Why the crypto markets are crashing + All the Web3 news you missed this week
If you’ve had friends/family ask about why the crypto markets have been crashing, I had a chance to explain what is going on this weekend on the PBS News Hour with Geoff Bennett. My TL;DR is that the broader financial markets are also crashing, crypto isn’t immune to the downswing. It also hasn’t helped that several prominent crypto companies have taken on too much risk and are now imploding.
And now, the rest of the Web3 news you missed this week.
Here’s the Web3 news from the past week
General
Decentralized Venture Capital, an interview with Jules Miller, VC3 DAO (Web3 Roundup)
This week I interviewed Jules Miller, a partner at Mindset Ventures and the founder of VC3 DAO, a group of more than 150 professional VCs building a decentralized model for venture investing. As Miller told me, “The idea is: What is the best path for entrepreneurs? How can you create a model that is a better experience for them?”
Why We Need to Build Web3 Differently (CoinDesk)
Hackathons play an important role opening up Web3 to everyone — and thus making its products more inclusive and more oriented toward users’ actual needs than the fruits of Web2 have been. Tricia Wang, co-founder of the Crypto Research and Design Lab, explains three ingredients for a Web3 hackathon geared toward these goals: hyperlocal challenges, multichain optionality, and inclusive language.
NFTs
Bored Apes founders on their plans for Otherside metaverse (TechCrunch)
Yuga Labs gave 4,500 community members a private demo of its metaverse gaming platform, Otherside, which is currently in beta. (A public launch date hasn’t yet been announced.) Users will be able to create and monetize experiences on the platform — as well as buy and sell virtual land — and execs note that they’re planning lower sales fees than the nearly 50% tax in Meta’s Horizon Worlds.
300+ NFTs Stolen, $400K in Ethereum Taken In Premint Hack (Decrypt)
Scammers hit the NFT registration platform Premint, creating a pop-up on the site that prompted users to verify their wallet ownership. Though Premint says a “relatively small number of users fell for this,” the hackers nonetheless stole 320 NFTs that they sold for more than $400,000 on outside marketplaces.
Metaverse
Is the metaverse going to suck? A conversation with Matthew Ball (The Verge)
On the Decoder podcast (also available as a written transcript), Nilay Patel interviewed former Amazon Studios exec Matthew Ball, author of “The Metaverse: And How It Will Revolutionize Everything,” about how he defines the metaverse, how cross-platform standards might develop, and what his outlook is on tech giants’ metaverse projects.
DeFi
Crypto is crumbling, and DeFi hacks are getting worse (Protocol)
A recent report from PeckShield found that DeFi hackers made off with $1.57 billion in the first four months of 2022, compared to $1.55 billion in all of 2021. “The biggest hacks of 2022 were carried out by attackers spotting vulnerabilities in smart contracts and protocols, especially in cross-chain bridges and flash loan protocols,” writes Protocol’s Lindsey Choo.
About Me
Hi, I’m Andrew Chang - I created the Web3 Roundup to share what I’m learning in this space. I’ve spent my career at the forefront of the technology industry in areas such as crypto/blockchain (Former COO @ Paxos, co-founding partner of Liberty City Ventures), video and adtech. I learn by meeting with founders, investors and other thought leaders and approach Web3 with the same enthusiasm – and skepticism – I had about crypto/blockchain technologies 10 years ago.
You can connect with me on LinkedIn or Twitter (@DigitalDrex)