Thread by @thedefiedge

There's 1 sector that CZ, Vitalik, & Brian Armstrong are all bullish on:

DeSci

Decentralized Science has been one of the best performing sectors so far this month. And you're still early.

Here's your guide to DeSci (and the top protocols):

Why is DeSci Hot Now?

DeSci has been around for several years already. However, the category's financial performance and mindshare accelerated the past 7 days.

• Several tokens are up by xxx%.

• It's "mindshare" has soared

So, I investigated to see what's going on:

These two KEYS events happened earlier this month that drove hype to DeSci:

• Nov 8th: Binance Labs invests in BIO Protocol - their 1st investment in DeSci. Bio Protocol is kinda like the y-combinator for on-chain science.

• Nov 13th: CZ and Vitalik attend an informal talk on DeSci organized by Labs in Bangkok

https://x.com/cz_binance/status/1856648227572908514

What Happened at the Event?

1. Vitalik showed off VitaDao's 1st longevity product, VD001. A spermidine supplement already approved by the Thai FDA

2. CZ said "he hopes to see 1,000 DeSci projects next year."

Having 2 titans of the industry at a DeSci event drove a ton of attention.

What IS DeSci?

There's a trend to decentralize everything: finance, social media, loans, etc. Science has a HUGE centralization problem.

DeSci wants to leverage the blockchain & Web3 tech to accelerate Science research.

The Benefits of DeSci

Crowdfunding - get funding from the community rather than centralized entities which have their own motives (ex. Pharma companies)

Open Access - A lot of research is locked behind paywalls.

Other issues include intellectual property, peer reviews, & more.

Top DeSci Protocols

People started building DeSci protocols years ago, and we're now starting to see some traction.

Here are some of the top protocols that I found.

Keep in mind this is meant to be an education piece, and not a list of things you should buy.

VitaDAO ($VITA) - Crowdsourcing Longevity Research

MC: $103m

Imagine a world where cutting-edge research on aging and longevity isn’t limited by red tape or funding bottlenecks.

Longevity's hot as evident by Bryan Johnson's popularity.

• Raised $4.1m in 2023 from Pfizer Ventures

• Vitalik has shown support for VitaDAO

• Launched its first biotech company, Matrix Biosciences focusing on cancer and aging-related therapies.

ResearchCoin - The GitHub for Science

MC: $64m

Co-founded by Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong.

It's an open platform for research.

It breaks barriers like paywalls and funding bottlenecks in academia

ResearchHub has 2,000+ active researchers and integrates with tools like Google Scholar.

With 10,000+ contributions covering everything from STEM to social sciences, ResearchHub could become the decentralized “GitHub” for academic work.

HairDAO ($HAIR) - Tackling Hair Loss with Web3

MC: $72m

Hairloss is a major problem. I can count at least 5 friends this year that have gone on Turkish Hairlines.

It affects a ton of men, yet it's severely underfunded.

Traction

• They've filed 2 patents so far.

• HairDAO is getting hands-on with its very own lab space in Soho, New York.

• The DAO has conducted an observational trial testing its first self-developed IP, a topical spray repurposing an FDA-approved drug to regrow hair.

https://x.com/HairDAO_/status/1853476940243452177

4. AxonDAO ($AXGT)

MC: $80m

AxonDAO is building biometric AI tools & funding health-focused research to decentralize the world’s health data.

AxonDAO’s 50+ Scientists currently support 10+ projects.

Few interesting Projects:

• Cure Ring: The first crypto-integrated health ring. Looks like a Crypto version of the Oura Ring.

• CureOS: A universal health profile platform to tie all AxonDAO’s projects together.

@PumpdotScience

This one's really interesting.

DeSci meets Memecoins - built on Solana.

Pump science is the ultimate meme coin launchpad for longevity experiments.

Developers can launch tokens tied to anti-aging research, turning wild ideas into tradable assets.

The two coins that Pump Science has launched are

1. Rifampicin ($RIF) - The Antibiotic Meme Coin

2. Urolithin A ($URO) -  Gamifying Life-Extension Research

Both have had ridiculous performances price wise.

I'm paying close attention to anything launching there in the future.

What Are the Criticisms

• Some people think that most of it is B.S. And it's leveraging Science's brand as a money grab

• There's also some criticism around the work produced so far, and poor technical writing

https://x.com/SmokeyTheBera/status/1858141493384409475

Thoughts

Overall we're still early in this sector as the top protocols haven't hit $1b.

DeSci has a lot of long-term potential. It solves some real problems, it's getting traction, and the Crypto titans are backing it.

The main issue I see how it can sustain its momentum.

A lot of the hype came from the CZ / Vitalik talk in Bangkok, and the momentum does feel like it's slowing down according to Kaito.

In a full fledge bull market, I see it the sector having a hard time capturing attention away from memes, A.I. and Alt L1s.

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