Bitcoin. Etherem. Ripple. Solana. Matic. Avalanche. Fantom..
The list of chains is essentially endless. An inadvertent second order consequence of this is diluted attention and capital. However, it begs the question: will there be one blockchain to rule them all, or will the future be multi chain?
The Great Space Race:
The cryptocurrency market is similar to the tech boom of the late 1990s in that both are characterized by a rapid increase in the value of new and innovative assets, fueled by high levels of speculation, hype and investor optimism.
Although there were clear winners and losers..
I am typing this within a Google Chrome Browser.
On my computer that is running Microsoft Windows.
Listening to Music via my iPhone and Airpods.
The future of technology has, and always will be multi-faceted.
The tech boom and the cryptocurrency market have seen a large influx of retail investors and a general sense of mania driving prices higher, often detached from fundamentals or underlying value.
Maybe its not as different as we think?
Common Themes Among Winning Assets:
These paradigms are applicable between both Tech and Crypto.
Strong adoption and usage: They have a growing user base, active community, and are being used for real-world transactions.
Robust technology: They have a well-designed and secure blockchain infrastructure that can handle the scale of adoption. At this point in the market maturity, one should have a functional product.
Solid team: They have a talented and experienced team with a proven track record of delivering on their promises.
Partnerships and integrations: They have established partnerships and integrations with other companies and organizations in their respective industries, which can provide long-term stability.
Strong governance: They have transparent and effective governance mechanisms in place, with clear rules and decision-making processes.
Regulatory compliance: They are proactive in addressing regulatory concerns and work to ensure their compliance with existing laws and regulations.
Why the Future is Multichain:
Diversity of needs and use cases: Just as different tech companies serve different niches, each cryptocurrency project is likely to have a unique value proposition, target audience, and use case. This will lead to a diverse and decentralized ecosystem, rather than a single dominant player.
Network effects: Cryptocurrencies have strong network effects, meaning that the value of the network increases with the number of users. This incentivizes the development of multiple projects and ecosystems, each with their own user base and network effects.
Decentralization: Cryptocurrency is a decentralized and trust-minimizing technology. Having multiple chains allows for greater decentralization, reducing the risk of any single point of failure or centralization of power.
Innovations and improvements: Cryptocurrency is a rapidly evolving space, with constant innovations and improvements being made. This will likely lead to the emergence of new projects and chains that offer better solutions than existing ones.
In conclusion, the future of cryptocurrency is likely to be multi-chain due to the diversity of needs, network effects, decentralization, and innovations. This is similar to the tech bubble where different tech companies emerged to serve different niches and provide unique solutions.
TLDR: the future is multi chain because each new solution has an improved value proposition to the last. This will continue to compound upwards with the end goal of a fully mature and useable product.