Thread by @rajyaatluri

A blockchain’s value comes from its community.

This community works because it’s economically aligned.

I’m doing @a16z’s Crypto Startup School over the next 2 weeks and sharing my learnings👇

Day 4/14: Applications: Today & 2025 w/ @balajis

Why was Bitcoin invented?

Here’s how we got to it:

1. Physical cash ➡️ You hand cash to someone and no longer have it.

But what if you’re not in person? 👇

2. Naive Digital cash ➡️ You send someone serial numbers from a note but you still have a copy

This results in no scarcity bc you could send the same # to multiple people. To solve this👇

3. Centralized Digital cash ➡️ a bank is trusted to debit you and credit person you want to pay

We trust a third party and w/ that trust comes power. Satoshi wanted decentralization👇

4. Decentralized Digital cash➡️ Rather than a bank there are miners updating blockchain

Bitcoin replaced the centralized bank with many competing parties that carry out the same transaction.

ETH launched in 2014 and was more programmable than BTC.

👇

This allows for smart contracts

👇

Which led to the ICO boom 2017-2018

A blockchain is a database for storing things of value.

What are some examples of this?

-cryptocurrency
-tokens
-digital assets
-identity

Bitcoin is a protocol.

What does this actually mean?

If you were to open up Wireshark you could see the raw packets that update the blockchains.

Which means payments are now packets.

Once payments have been turned into packets that means machines can now hold & send money.

The innovation of the blockchain is real.

BTC & ETH have created 10x improvements compared to huge sectors like gold and SWIFT.

With blockchain, now you have a choice of who to trust.

Instead of being forced to store your money at a bank, you can now store it at an exchange or on a computer as well.

Blockchains transform social networks.

Social networks can now go from purely entertaining interactions to interactions that actually provide real world value such as completing tasks for digital currency.

What are some applications in 2020?

-exchanges, mining, issuance
-hardware wallets
-stablecoins
-DeFi

What are some applications for the future/2025?

-Privacy coins/privacy features
-Lending & Interest
-Scaling
-Decentralized cold storage
-Saas-for-gas
-Insurance
-Multiwallets
-Security innovation
-Novel financial instruments
-Blockchain games
-Crypto social networks

Always looking to meet people in the crypto space! 🤓

Also check out @hotcryptogirls where @kathrynjc7 and I create the best crypto memes 🔥