What seems lost on the blockchain hype crowd is that a blockchain or distributed ledger -- in and of itself -- is NOT the key innovation here. Rather, it is the relation to the consensus mechanism by which trustless, secure verification of the data on said ledger is achieved.
Having said consensus participants be decentralized effectively ensures the integrity of the tamper/censorship resistance.
Couple this with whatever additional features of the protocol you'd like, but it needs to be viewed holistically.
Couple this with whatever additional features of the protocol you'd like, but it needs to be viewed holistically.
If you do not require trustless censorship resistance, then the value -add of a blockchain is questionable.
Beware anyone who touts speed as a primary focus feature -- it is most always, at the protocol level, at the expense of security in some form or fashion.
Beware anyone who touts speed as a primary focus feature -- it is most always, at the protocol level, at the expense of security in some form or fashion.
So what is 'blockchain' provably best for? What is its 'killer app?' Secure, sovereign, self-custodianship and transfer of value, aka SoV and as a money-like asset, which is highly seizure and tamper resistant.
The most robust and decentralized implementation of this is Bitcoin
The most robust and decentralized implementation of this is Bitcoin
Invariably when I see enterprise pitches that "blockchain will speed up business processes" or provide some magical efficiency akin to some new CRM/ERP functionality it makes me laugh, because all you're doing is introducing unnecessary friction in an already trusted setup.
Businesses will figure this out as they go through various proofs of concept that fail to deliver on the promised magic. This will take some time, but isn't dissimilar to most new technology adoption curves.
Bitcoin "maximalism" is in most cases the result of informed, *empirical* blockchain skepticism, combined with the expectation of the immense potential a cryptographic protocol network can bring to bear on personal financial freedom.
Blockchain "maximalism" is in most cases the result of semi-informed, *theoretical* blockchain application, combined with the expectation of the immense potential a cryptographic protocol network might bring to bear on almost any process that exists.
