Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
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Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#2My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)?
I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realization that the effort was for nothing. Either the solution is no better than the old solution, just different, or the solution is so obscure, that the cost of maintaining it is greater than the value it generates.
In the end, the costs of the choices of these institutions are being paid for by you and I, and I hope they don't go too deep into their project before realizing: “Basically, it became a solution in search of a problem,”
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#3My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)? I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realiz…
"My question is if this is your conclusion is that it's a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)?"
That strikes me as a very rich question that would be interesting to investigate. Yes, we know people can get involved in hype cycles, but what was it about this technology that made it the thing that got hyped exactly?
Perhaps a subconscious association with BitCoin and getting rich quick hit the people most prone to hype? Some of the blockchain projects being proposed, I honestly couldn't see how they were planning on profiting from it. I don't just mean profiting enough, but profiting at all; what was the mechanism by which money is transferred from some set of customers to the blockchain creators? Preferably with the transfer of some valuable good or service in the other direction, but, you know, technically that's optional from a business perspective.
I understand the answer for new cryptocurrencies; the creators start with more of it than the incoming users and that becomes valuable as the currency becomes valuable. The non-currencies I didn't always see an answer. Which is why my best guess is some sort of subconscious belief that anything that has a blockchain will automatically somehow become wildly valuable via (underpants gnomes step 2 here). It's kinda a copout answer but it's the best I've got. Improvements? (Again, beyond just "people do hype." Why this hype and not something else?)
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#4My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)? I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realiz…
My major questions have always been: where is the business value in blockchain applications? what can a blockchain app do that can't be done by non-blockchain (beyond decentralization - bc I don't think this produces much business value)?
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#5My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)? I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realiz…
> what was all that effort being spent on
Not being left behind if you're wrong.
I'm in a tech-adjacent industry and see it all the time. Competitor A comes out with "shiny new technology" and markets the hell out of it. My company panics because we're suddenly lagging behind and rushes a competing project into development. Competitor B sees all of this and hops in too. All of a sudden it's the new direction of the industry and dominating trade shows, despite the origin being a mediocre product with some clever marketing. 5 years later it's never spoken of again.
I'm not familiar enough to say for sure this is what happened with "blockchain", but from a distance it has a lot of familiar markers.
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#6My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)? I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realiz…
> what was all that effort being spent on Not being left behind if you're wrong. I'm in a tech-adjacent industry and see it all the time. Competitor A comes out with "shiny new technology" and markets the hell out of it. My company panics because we're suddenly lagging behind and rushes a competing project into development. Competitor B sees all of this and hops in too. All of a sudden it's the new direction of the i…
An example from the top of your head ?
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#7It is interesting that even in an article like this that they still say things like "for all its potential, blockchain is still in its early days." It is sticking with the unfounded assumption that it will be a success in the future, if only it is given more time. In technological terms, it is old. Innumerable efforts have been attempted, yielding almost no fruit.
At what point are the fundamental assumptions going to be questioned?
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#8DTCC is a central authority by definition; there's no amount of handwaving that you can do to make a distributed quorum system fit this particular problem...unless you're just trying to raise VC money.
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#9My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)? I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realiz…
My major questions have always been: where is the business value in blockchain applications? what can a blockchain app do that can't be done by non-blockchain (beyond decentralization - bc I don't think this produces much business value)?
Sending money without fees and delay? Have you ever tried a normal bank transfer? How long did it take?
Have you ever tried, say, nano? It literally takes seconds and 0 fees.
Here is some value.
Re: Wall Street rethinks blockchain projects as euphoria meets reality
#10My question is if your conclusion is that blockchain is a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)? I'm not saying that blockchain is not a valid solution to a problem, but as a veteran of the online industry, I can say I've seen a lot of hype around new technology, actual effort being put into it, and then the realiz…
"My question is if this is your conclusion is that it's a solution in search of a problem, what was all that effort being spent on (not just in finance, but everywhere blockchain is being considered)?" That strikes me as a very rich question that would be interesting to investigate. Yes, we know people can get involved in hype cycles, but what was it about this technology that made it the thing that got hyped exactly…
I look at it differently:
Brick-and-mortar plus mail-order was a viable business model for decades. Building the network infrastructure and software interconnections to move from that state to today’s online commerce and delivery model took years to accomplish and was (is) filled with hyped innovations.
Blockchains may never reach their hyped potential, or we may simply be attempting to evaluate at very early stages vs. the point where utilities are clear.