Original Title: Public Chain Universe
In 2020, the public chain has made progress in scalability, privacy, and cross-chain. 2021 will be a year for all major public chains to shine. ETH2.0, Polkadot slot auctions, the development of privacy protection technology, etc. will all begin in 2021. What answer will the public chain give us in 2021?
In the third roundtable event of the “2030 Blockchain Innovator Cloud Summit” hosted by Beep News-Discussion on Public Chain Performance, Beep News founder Xiaogui, Ontology founder Li Jun, and PlatON CTO Qu Junjie Have done a point of view sharing, the content is organized as follows:
Guest introduction
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
Ontology founder Li Jun
Wonderful view
Qu Junjie, Chief Technology Officer of PlatON:
Li Jun, the founder of Ontology:
Ethereum is the largest asset class public chain, and its assets can be exported to other chains. Ontology can also export decentralized identity technology to other chains. Each chain can combine the output technology.
01
Q1: Ethereum is still the king of the public chain. The Ethereum 2.0 beacon chain has been launched, and it will take about 2-3 years for ETH2.0 to be fully online.
At present, the final outcome of public chain competition has not yet been determined. How do the guests think about ETH2.0, how to grasp the window period before ETH 2.0 is fully launched, and what are the strategies for competition and cooperation with Ethereum?
Ontology founder Li Jun
I think ETH2.0 is a very good direction, and it also solves the comprehensive problems of Ethereum’s performance and cost. Many previous projects had the title of “Ethereum Killer”, but at this stage, I think everyone is more inclined to a cooperative relationship, because it is difficult to say that a certain public chain, no matter how big or popular, can solve all problems. Because there are different situations in different scenarios.
Recently we saw the Compound application, it said that I can also send a chain of my own, this chain may not only be Ethereum layer2, it can be cross-chain, can also be developed. As long as you have a scene, you will have your own chain. In the end, there will be some chains as more basic facilities, such as Ethereum. Now Ethereum may be more like an asset chain, dedicated to asset registration, registration, issuance, and transfer. If you are doing other applications, such as large-scale deposits and data transactions, then doing these on Ethereum will not cover the cost and performance.
So you will find that there will be a variety of chains in the future, some of which are more infrastructure-oriented, and everyone calls these public chains. The public chain will also have its own focus, such as focusing on assets, identity, and data. There are also some chains that focus on the scene, such as Compound Chain, which focuses on better connecting assets for lending. Therefore, in the future, some basic chains will focus on different full-time directions, such as identity, data, assets, or deposit certificates, and some are scene chains, which may be borrowing, DeFi scenarios, or even scenarios that are combined with traditional fields. Of course, this amount will not be much, but each chain will have its own focus.
Ontology focuses more on decentralized identity, data, and credit system-based directions, including some data protocols on Ethereum that rely on Ontology’s technologies to make smart contracts.
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
I basically agree with Mr. Li Jun’s point of view because I think blockchain is a disruptive technology. It will be applied to all aspects in the future, and each aspect will actually have different needs. Some laws and regulations have not yet been implemented, so they can only be applied to the fields of pure digital currency and digital assets. Once some of the laws and regulations in the future are implemented, based on the cost of the blockchain, as well as scalability and other technologies, if there are breakthroughs, it will have a very prosperous ecology, and this ecology will be complementary.
Ethereum already has a very active ecology, and the ecology inside has enough scenarios for you to try, and the experiences you have tried out are very good learning materials for other new public chains. Other public chains seem to be high-achieving students who have just graduated, but there will be many technical, legal and regulatory bottlenecks when they actually land. There will be many scenarios in Ethereum, so I think this is a complementary process. For example, Ethereum’s DeFi, as well as its various ecological tools, actually provide an inspiration for each public chain, so that everyone can learn, and then overtake the car to make a breakthrough. After the breakthrough, good technology can be used. Feed back Ethereum.
For example, we made a protocol custodian based on MPC (Model Predictive Control) some time ago. Conversely, on the Ethereum side, ConsenSys made another project for the 2.0 upgrade called sequence sharing validator. These are actually complementary, and at the same time the future imagination space is very large. We are a relationship of mutual learning and at the same time a cooperative symbiosis. This is my basic view.
02
Q2: For capacity expansion, each public chain currently has different solutions, such as sharding, Rollup, Plasma, etc. Which on-chain capacity expansion solutions are you more optimistic about? Can there be new breakthroughs in scalability?
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
Because the data of the blockchain itself is traceable and cannot be tampered with, expansion is actually a very core proposition. It is like saying that Ethereum is like a very good highway, but now there are more and more cars and traffic jams on the highway. At the same time, every vehicle has to leave something when it passes. There is more and more “earth”, the vision is getting worse and worse, and the cost of maintaining the highway for miners is getting higher and higher. At present, Ethereum is facing these problems, and we are considering how to make it sustainable through expansion.
At present, we have not seen a particularly new breakthrough in technology. Now everyone is still following the old method, abstract and then abstract, such as using a fingerprint to represent myself, trying to solve the problem of expansion.
Ethereum now has Plasma and ZKRollup, both of which use “fingerprints to represent people” to make the main chain easier. So if there is no breakthrough in core technology, these things will actually be fragmented.
Ontology founder Li Jun
In terms of technology itself, among the two expansion solutions of Plasma and Rollup, Rollup solves the problem more directly and fundamentally. However, Plasma is more applicable than Rollup, and both of these solutions have pros and cons.
From a technical perspective, everyone thinks that Rollup is a better and more fundamental method. We should use Rollup. But many technologies are not judged based on their perfection, but based on market adoption. That is, which technology is used the most, even if the technology is flawed, but the adoption rate is high, it will gradually become a standard. Many well-known projects are already using Plasma, so in this case, Plasma is at least half a step ahead. If the trend continues, the application may become a real-time standard, rather than judging by the technical merits, but the outcome of the two options is uncertain.
The new form I currently see is not necessarily through Layer 2 expansion. For example, Compound, Compound may take another path, build a chain, and then use a cross-chain approach. This shows that I don’t have to do Layer 2 on a certain chain, I can be a chain myself, and then my chain can be connected with other chains like a plug-in to achieve applications in specific scenarios, and it may be asset conversion , It may also be the conversion of information.
03
Q3: At present, most blockchain ledgers are completely open and transparent, which also has drawbacks, especially for some financial applications. Because some financial applications require privacy protection, which hinders the development of blockchain applications, I would like to ask distinguished guests, what have you tried in this regard? What can privacy protection bring to the public chain?
Ontology founder Li Jun
For example, Ontology focuses more on decentralized identity data and trust collaboration mechanisms. In our decentralized exchange protocol, the big principle is that the original data does not need to be chained. The first role that the blockchain plays is the series connection, through which channels can I get these data. The second is to verify the authenticity of these data. I use the hash value to verify the timestamp on this data. The content of the files of the participants is authentic and cannot be tampered with. In this case, the blockchain plays a role in series, it is more like a connector, no need to store all the data in the database.
So if your original data does not leave the most original storage place, the privacy risk will be relatively smaller, even smaller than the current centralized big data platform, because the centralized big data platform also has a process of collection and circulation. Privacy may be leaked, or a single point may be breached.
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
We really spent a long time and a lot of energy on this area. There are two aspects. One aspect is the Distributed Ledger Technology of the blockchain itself, which exposes all the details of your transaction, such as which two addresses are exchanged and what is transferred, which is its most basic A performance.
For example, if I am a bank, it is impossible for me to easily divulge the information of which account number of my client to which account number. This is a fundamental contradiction between the blockchain and the traditional financial industry.
If you store a large amount of raw data on the chain, the chain may soon be paralyzed. This piece is a problem of architecture design.
If there are several kinds of raw data that can work together, like the synthesis of multiple chemical elements, it may be able to produce a very valuable crystal under certain conditions. In this case, how to protect the data is another aspect.
I’m looking at two aspects. The first aspect is from the perspective of financial applications. How to resolve the contradiction between privacy protection and the transparency and immutability of blockchain ledger? We have recently done more in-depth research and want to do private transactions. In other words, in the details of the transaction, I can protect the source address and target address, the transfer amount, and the transfer token. At the same time of protection, in the area of traditional finance, the China Securities Regulatory Commission also has to supervise, so we must do something that can be supervised and is privacy. So we have now developed PlatON Improvement Proposal, which is the first layer.
In the second layer of data, all kinds of data as factors of production are equivalent to that in the digital world, we people and others have natural rights. This natural right is fully protected. If you don’t cooperate with others, its value will be affected. damage. So how to make full use of it under the premise of protecting ownership and let it generate more value. In this regard, we have made a lot of effort, including multi-party calculations with MPC.
For example, my data is to be completely protected, or I can get it on the desktop to let others know that I have this data, but you can only know that I have it, and you can negotiate with me if you want, or I can put it directly on the market , You can come to collaborate. After this MPC protection, my original data will never be leaked. This is what we did on another level.
04
Q4: In the first question, we mentioned the competition and cooperation between the public chain and Ethereum. In addition to Ethereum, what is the competition and cooperation strategy between the public chain and other public chains where the guests are located? In addition, public chains can also improve interoperability, so that assets between different public chains can flow better. Do you all have your own plan in this regard?
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
But cross-chain brings a logical paradox. If the other party’s “universe” is flawed, then you may be at risk if you step over. And there are many ways to cross-chain, just like some tunnels, some railway roads, some routes, and so on. But only after all “universes” can communicate with each other can order emerge. Only when there are more application cases and the interconnection of different universes can there be a better cooperation model such as learning from each other, discovering each other, and improving each other.
From the perspective of PlatON, it is based on privacy calculations, so do a good job of data protection, and then build a market for data interaction, including data use rights, ownership, and even data levels, such as sophisticated data use rights and extensive data The right to use etc.
In this case, it will bring about a significant cost reduction and efficiency improvement. Because my child is studying abroad recently, I remit the tuition fee to him, which is very touching. I used a traditional bank to transfer money only three days ago. If I use Bitcoin, Ether, or some public chains now, it may arrive in a few seconds. This time cost is very epoch-making.
Further development on this basis is the future ideal proposed by Wanxiang Xiao Feng. This is my basic view on this issue.
Ontology founder Li Jun
I think each public chain must have its own focal point, and finally public chains with different focal points can be combined to form a unified infrastructure. Ethereum is currently mainly an asset infrastructure, most of which are transactions related to assets or transactions. Ontology focuses more on decentralized identities and decentralized data, including production relations, confirmation of rights, exchanges, identity verification, as well as credit evaluation systems and credit collaboration mechanisms.
Currently on Ethereum, Binance Chain and Polkadot, the main decentralized identity protocols and smart contracts are all provided by Ontology and are interoperable. So the future of Ontology is like a large Chainlink, like Super Oracle.
The other is to provide asset services. For example, there is wing.finance on Ontology, which is doing lending. Now it exceeds TVL by more than 70 million US dollars. At its peak, it has more than 200 million US dollars. It can rank in the top 20 on Ethereum. It has 80% of assets. It was cross-chain from Ethereum.
For users, they don’t care whether they are using this chain or that chain. Today, I used this chain to complete identity authentication, that chain to complete the asset transfer, and another chain to complete the data joint calculation, and it was enough to complete my needs. Therefore, multiple public chains may collaborate in this way in the future.
05
Q5: How do you view the development pattern of the public chain next year, and what are the new trends worth noting? And what new attempts are you doing?
Ontology founder Li Jun
I think the slogan of “Ethereum Killer” in the public chain next year will be less. Everyone realizes that we should find a special point that we can serve, whether it is a cross-chain, or a public chain of identity, data, and credit, or data. The public chain of services and computing. Few people nowadays say that it is necessary to unify the public chain of Ethereum.
The biggest category currently used is related to assets, but it will be another matter next year or in the future. For example, when the blockchain is more and more cutting into traditional finance and business, for example, the blockchain will be connected with offline, will the verification and audit of identity or data form a new hot spot? Competing on these tracks requires its own unique public chain system, so that the focus of each track (public chain) will emerge on different tracks.
Regarding the future pattern, there will be respective head public chains in different vertical infrastructure fields. For example, Polkadot may be the head public chain of cross-chain, and Ethereum is the head public chain of assets, and it is doing decentralization. In terms of identity, the current focus is more on the ontology, and in the future, in the joint calculation of data, everyone will be interconnected.
Then our new attempt focuses on identity data and credit, and we have also done a lot of agreements. At the product layer and application layer, we also provide services for C-end users. For example, the Ontology wallet has been upgraded to a wallet that fully supports cross-chain and personal data management, which is relatively functionally complete. In terms of product services, we build directly from the protocol layer to the product layer, and use products and infrastructure to drive the community. Because you can’t rely solely on the underlying protocol to drive the community, you must use new products and services to drive the community and drive application collaboration.
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
I still look forward to breakthroughs in innovation in various public chains, because up to now, our Asia-Pacific region is a little lacking in innovation. The main innovations are always born from the West, and then we move here. Do better than them. After following these years, new innovations may emerge from the Asia-Pacific side. This is my expectation and a trend I hope.
Another point is that the SEC in the United States has become more and more strict with blockchain supervision, and even began to fine, such as XRP is now fined. Including the rapid rise of Bitcoin and the additional currency issuance of central banks of various governments, in a “universe” controlled by a very stable algorithm such as the public chain, its value of funds will be increasingly recognized by traditional institutions.
This is what I think is a very obvious trend in 2021. It can be the innovation of 10 models. The market has accepted two of them. These two possibilities have formed the industry standard.
There is also the development direction of DeFi. The funding loopholes of DeFi are not the same as the previous loopholes. The previous loopholes were hacker attacks to steal your money. Now the code logic of DeFi is public, which is equivalent to stealing. So for bad code, bad logic brings this bad risk,
My Internet is open, but one of our VPNs can be regulated and classified and accepted by traditional finance. This is one of our main development directions in the future.
Xiaogui, founder of Beep News
Do the two guests have anything to discuss on this topic? Or is there anything else you want to share with you?
Ontology founder Li Jun
Xiaogui, founder of Beep News
At present, the entire blockchain industry is still concentrated in the original digital currency. Few out-of-circle projects can really land. What are the practical obstacles?
Ontology founder Li Jun
The first is that the current teams in the blockchain field are technology-oriented or innovation-oriented. Looking at the scenes of traditional industries, it’s a bit of a foggy view. It’s just looking at it from the outside. You think this is good. You know how to play in a decentralized way. This logic makes sense. But when you really do it, you will find that there are actually a lot of pits in the middle. These pits are only those professional teams in the industry know how to play. The decentralized logic you pushed on paper really puts it in the actual scene. The medium may not be applicable, or there are already good solutions in practice that can solve the same problem. This is a test of the innovation team.
But this is not an absolute obstacle. You just have to look back and start with the end. Let’s see what the final scene will look like if we follow our technical assumptions and planning assumptions. For example, a system such as decentralized identity data and credit identities is more efficient and lower in cost than the current system, so how to get there? We can cooperate with traditional professional teams in various fields.
Just make sure that the vision must be more valuable than the current solution, not an empty virtual vision. If you get to the end, there is nothing better than now. There is no need to do such a thing. You just have to make sure that you get to a better destination than now. No matter which way you go, climbing in the past or diving in the past, you can. I think how to find more professional partners in the industry may be a better model.
Qu Junjie, CTO of PlatON
The advantage of the public chain is that the code is open, you can stand on the shoulders of any giant you want to stand on, and the update iteration is very fast. One year of innovation in the public chain may be a summary of 5-10 years of innovation in traditional industries. This is a good place.
To land this piece, I think it is to find a point to study thoroughly and let it land. The core of landing is cost, such as money cost, labor cost, and time cost. From these aspects to study thoroughly. Then use this to persuade the supervision and give us the green light of the law. If you can’t give us the green light of the law, you can open a sandbox. Let us toss in the sandbox to prove that this solution is advanced and can give society productivity. Bring development.
Therefore, it is true that more public chains are needed to form breakthroughs from all angles, so that supervision and all parties have to admit that the blockchain is really good, and users are willing to use it. If there is a breakthrough in these two points, the future prospects of the blockchain are still very good. I hope to see that in 2021, three days later, more projects will truly land and make breakthroughs.
