Author: 0xAmber, OKC Chain
"Can you build at the speed of___?" On November 15, during the Devcon event, we raised this question and embarked on the #Buidl with OS journey together at a workshop in Bangkok.
In the opening speech, Chief Innovative Officer Jason delivered a keynote titled "Build onchain, any chain," emphasizing the multi-chain characteristics of the OS platform. Its extensive ecosystem can provide support for over 100 different blockchain networks (including Ethereum, Bitcoin, Solana, etc.), helping developers seize emerging opportunities and enter the market faster.
Regarding product details, OS BD Head Shen introduced on-site: Currently, OS provides 4 types of powerful APIs, including Marketplace, Explorer API, etc. Taking the OKLink browser API as an example, Explorer and EaaS provide rich developer tools, data from over 50 mainstream blockchains (including on-chain data from EVM, UTXO chains, and Solana), and token data from over 200 networks. Developers can access real-time on-chain data, aggregated statistical data, and seamless contract verification through browser APIs. Easily integrate EVM RPC modules for smooth migration and high compatibility.
The EaaS service can further help development teams fully leverage the potential of blockchain exploration. Whether it is a new L1, an established chain, a rollup, or an application chain, our zero-cost service can be tailored to your specific needs.
During the forum session, OKLink Product Director Simon initiated a discussion on the theme of "What is the new gold mine of blockchain data" from the perspective of data infrastructure. Guests from Blocknative, Rootdata, Consensys SMG, Amberdata, and Blockaid shared insights from both theoretical and practical angles.
Simon@OKLink: What are the most pressing issues or challenges in bringing Web2 users into Web3? Security issues, trust issues, the difficulty of finding 'gems' among numerous new projects? Or the technical complexity of existing tool experience? How can blockchain data address these issues? What plans/projects are currently attempting to solve (or have already solved) these issues?
Raz@Blockaid: In my view, user experience and security are the primary concerns. For example, can you make your grandmother easily use the product you are working on? So, it's important to ensure your users fully understand what you are doing and what benefits it brings to them. We can see that many projects and applications in the industry are already doing very well. If a Web2 user can completely understand the login interface when logging into a Web3 application without having to spend a lot of time, and the prompts on your interface can make them believe and let down their guard that it is safe, then the sense of boundary will naturally disappear, and introducing Web2 users will no longer be a difficult bottleneck.
Matt@Blocknative: My answer might be different from everyone else's. I believe users need a good reason to come on-chain. I want to ask each of you, do you remember the last time you solved your payment problem on your phone? Why did you do it? For me, two weeks ago, I first came to Thailand, and I needed to use the transportation app Grab, so I downloaded it. While in Chiang Mai, I couldn't use my credit card, so I downloaded another payment app. In such scenarios, there are clear signals telling me, 'Hey, you really need cash.' This is a very persuasive scenario, and in such situations, it’s not surprising why users make clear choices.
Do you still remember the first time you logged onto the internet, when there was only one internet? Now, entering the on-chain world, you have multiple network options, and the complexity is clearly increased. Issues such as user experience, fees, and latency are all things you need to think about. From my experience, the most convincing scenario is: Telegram bots. They are not free, but they are very convenient to use, and easy to set up. You can get results with just a few clicks, making users satisfied. So my point is that this user experience means we should do everything we can to eliminate complexity and do useful things. Useful things can be entertaining, interesting, or practical, but they must be something that can be used.
Simon@OKLink: For institutions or companies intending to enter Web3, what challenges might hinder their adoption of Web3 technology? How can blockchain data help them accelerate the adoption of Web3 technology? Please feel free to provide examples.
Hunter@Rootdata: I would like to use the project I am involved in, Rootdata, as an example, which may differ from other guests. We focus on off-chain data as a Web3 asset data platform, which has become an essential data platform for millions of Web3 users' investment decisions, and aims to become a productivity-level tool for Web3 enthusiasts and investors. By presenting more detailed data, including entity addresses, financing rounds, etc., we help project parties and experienced individuals make better decisions. The rapid changes in the industry drive us to utilize data methods to continue moving forward.
Simon@OKLink: Change seems to be the norm in Web3, with new chains emerging every week. For Web3 builders, iterating the right use cases while handling the constantly evolving chain infrastructure (which currently seems to be multi-chain coexistence) is extremely challenging. What innovative data tools can separate infrastructure from user experience and enable Web3 builders to quickly test ideas and incubate the next killer application?
Tongtong@Amberdata: I have been working in data-related jobs for 7 years and have gone through several cycles. It feels like for a long time, people weren't paying attention to the data itself. But now it's different. In the several events I attended, I was excited to see participants discussing which data metrics they were focused on, allowing 'data maniacs' and 'wizards' in the community to share insights. This reflects that each of us is trying to understand data and connect them. Therefore, the data tools represented by APIs on the market can solve developers' issues, as powerful APIs make accessing data no longer a challenge, and they process it in a one-stop aggregated manner.
Max@Consensys SMG: During our process of building a new chain, we may face the issue that as integrations increase, the value of the chain itself gradually decreases, which may lead to the loss of developers in the ecosystem, while the maintenance costs remain high. Developers naturally need a series of toolkits, so from my perspective, there should be enough efficient and easy-to-use toolkits on-chain to allow developers to quickly get started and integrate conveniently, which can help maintain the competitive advantage of the new chain.
At the same time, OKLink directly conversed with several developers on-site. Among them, developer community opinion leader and special researcher at the Innovation Research Institute, Master Cui (@MasterCui), shared experiences from the perspective of a senior developer and technical instructor: "On-chain data and analysis platforms can help developers build smartly. On one hand, it can take on part of the backend work, saving the cost of developing a backend to retrieve data. Another possibility is that the on-chain data platform itself can be repackaged into a new application. For instance, I can say that I apply the results of existing data to other applications I am developing."
Additionally, he mentioned that communication and efficiency during the development process are very important. Mature on-chain tools can greatly save development teams' time in searching for the appropriate open-source code, and they should make good use of tools for statistics and collection. Therefore, developers should fully utilize all available APIs and other data tools, and use AI and other means to continuously optimize development collaboration and improve efficiency, maintaining innovation and competitiveness in the Web3 field.
When discussing the challenges encountered during development, developer Panda (@CodeMorePanda) stated: "Because now the entire public chain ecosystem is very diverse, and there are heterogeneous situations, such as Solana and EVM ecosystems being completely different. If we go to connect them one by one ourselves, it will waste a lot of time. At this point, we can actually choose some data aggregation APIs, such as the OKLink API we are using, which can significantly reduce our development time, allowing us to focus our time and save energy to be creative."
Build Onchain, Any Chain. We had an open discussion with developers in a relaxed workshop atmosphere, enjoying a pleasant afternoon. The pace of building the on-chain ecosystem has never stopped. As data tools become increasingly refined and AI methods develop more intelligently, more creativity and inspiration will continuously emerge, driving Web3 to bring more unexpected excitement in a smarter and more agile manner.
