Epicenter – Podcast on Blockchain, Ethereum, Bitcoin and Distributed Technologies

It's been an eventful year in the blockchain space, for the Epicenter podcast, and its hosts. Brian, Meher and Sebastien look back on 2016 and provide a few personal updates, give their thoughts and insights on how the space evolved, and make predictions on where they feel the industry will go in the next year.

Support the show, consider donating: 1JHEaFW3oA7N72MNdALZXgkYcuChifJ81H (http://bit.ly/2iSV5A2) It's been an eventful year in the blockchain space, for the Epicenter podcast, and its hosts. Brian, Meher and Sebastien look back on 2016 and provide a few personal updates, give their thoughts and insights on how the space evolved, and make predictions on where they feel the industry will go in the next year. Topics discussed in this episode: - Brian, Meher and Sebastien give a few updates on their personal lives and professional projects - The current state of VC funding in the blockchain space - The application of blockchain technologies in enterprise and the corporate development cycle - The current state of the Bitcoin and Ethereum ecosystems and provide our thoughts on their respective futures - Predictions for 2017 and speculations on how the industry will continue to evolve Links mentioned in this episode: - Bitcoin Venture Capital Funding: http://www.coindesk.com/bitcoin-venture-capital/ - Not Just Bitcoin: The Top 7 Cryptocurrencies All Gained in 2016: http://www.coindesk.com/not-just-bitcoin-the-top-7-cryptocurrencies-all-gained-in-2016/ - Validity Labs: https://validitylabs.org - Stratumn Website: https://stratumn.com - Tendermint: https://tendermint.com/ - Cosmos - Internet of Blockchains: https://cosmos.network/ - Dictator's Handbook: https://www.amazon.com/Dictators-Handbook-Behavior-Almost-Politics/dp/1610391845 Sponsors: - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io This episode is also available on : - Epicenter.tv: https://epicenter.tv/165 - YouTube: http://youtu.be/oQA47uWLJ_0 - Souncloud: http://soundcloud.com/epicenterbitcoin/eb-165 Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.

Ari Juels, a Professor at Cornell Tech and former Chief Scientist of RSA, joins us to discuss his work on Authenticated Data Feeds for Smart Contracts. These 'Town Crier' feeds would act as bridges between smart contracts and websites, srapping data over TLS and feeding to to a smart contract. Relying on sophisticated hardware enclave technology, one who uses a Town Crier feed would not need to trust its operator as code execution would be guaranteed signed by the hardware.

Support the show, consider donating: 14PRgGymfhzY19Jw7x3T9DrXD5Jjxo76JV (http://bit.ly/2hgRr1l) One of the shortcomings of decentralized smart contracts is their inability to retrieve information from the outside world. The deterministic nature of Ethereum-style blockchains makes it impossible for them to incorporate functions allowing them to do things such as make API calls to websites and data feeds. Though oracles are often cited as the solution to this problem, they require users to place a high level of trust in their operators, a model which would undermine the very nature of a decentralized smart contract. Ari Juels, a Professor at Cornell Tech (Jacobs Institute) and former Chief Scientist of RSA, joins us to discuss his work on Authenticated Data Feeds for Smart Contracts. These 'Town Crier' feeds would act as bridges between smart contracts and websites, scraping data over TLS and feeding to to a smart contract. Relying on sophisticated hardware enclave technology (Intel SGX), one who uses a Town Crier feed would not need to trust its operator as code execution would be guaranteed signed by the hardware. Topics discussed in this episode: - Ari's background in cryptography and cryptocurrencies - The pain points with oracles as we describe them today - The idea behind Authenticated Data Feeds - The hardware and software architecture of the Authenticated Data Feed model and how hardware isolation works - How Authenticated Data Feeds could be used to create criminal smart contracts - The different ways in which criminals could use Authenticated Data Feeds to release bounties for crimes such as private key theft or even murder - Countermeasures which may prove effective in fighting criminal smart contracts - The Initiative For Cryptocurrencies & Contracts (IC3) and its raison d'être Links mentioned in this episode: - Ari Juels' website: http://www.arijuels.com - Town Crier: An Authenticated Data Feed for Smart Contracts (white paper): http://www.initc3.org/files/tc.pdf - The Ring of Gyges: Investigating the Future of Criminal Smart Contracts (white paper): http://www.initc3.org/files/Gyges.pdf - IC3 - The Initiative For Cryptocurrencies & Contracts: http://www.initc3.org/ Sponsors: - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io This episode is also available on : - Epicenter.tv: https://epicenter.tv/164 - YouTube: http://youtu.be/V5pJL6uJuI4 - Soundcloud: http://soundcloud.com/epicenterbitcoin/eb-163 Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.

Roger Ver is one of the earliest Bitcoin investors and evangelist. We discusses his impassioned vision for how Bitcoin can help liberty and the current issues on the best way of scaling Bitcoin.

Support the show, consider donating: 1PAXxdeG1cmmtjJKgoR4wK6ukrBqh9JhW9 (http://bit.ly/2gSLOdl) Roger Ver is one of the earliest Bitcoin investors and through his tireless evangelizing of the cryptocurrency became known as 'Bitcoin Jesus'. Roger joined us to discuss Bitcoin's incredible potential to foster liberty. We also discussed how the current stalemate about how to scale Bitcoin is threatening that potential. And, finally, the mining pool operated by his site Bitcoin.com that is supporting the Bitcoin Unlimited client. Topics discussed in this episode: - How Roger Ver became the first investor in Bitcoin startups - What the Bitcoin community was like in 2011 - The appeal of Bitcoin for voluntaryists - Why the scalability stalemate is crippling Bitcoin - Bitcoin.com's new mining pool and support for Bitcoin Unlimited - His vision for the future of Bitcoin Links mentioned in this episode: - Bitcoin.com: https://www.bitcoin.com/ - Roger Ver Uncut Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-JieIxoBcZM - Bitcoin Unlimited: https://www.bitcoinunlimited.info/faq - Hashrate Distribution Mining Pools & Clients: https://www.bitcoinunlimited.info - BLOCKTRAIL | Bitcoin API and Block Explorer: https://www.blocktrail.com/BTC/pools?resolution=1w - Roger Ver: TIme to End the Block-Size Blockade: https://steemit.com/bitcoin/@rogerkver/time-to-end-the-block-size-blockade-by-roger-ver - Digital Gold: Bitcoin and the Inside Story of the Misfits and Millionaires Trying to Reinvent Money: http://amzn.to/1LxK5im Sponsors: - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io - Ledger: Smart card security for your Bitcoins - Get 10% off your first order when you use the code EPICENTER - http://ledgerwallet.com This episode is also available on : - Epicenter.tv: https://epicenter.tv/163 - YouTube: http://youtu.be/VUegfo-8HKc - Souncloud: http://soundcloud.com/epicenterbitcoin/eb-164 Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.

Epicenter listeners who subscribe to the show on the LTB Feed probably noticed that they were unable to download the show for the last few weeks. There was an issue with the links we were posting to the LTB website. Well, we're happy to report that the issue has been fixed and that you can now go back an listen to episodes 159, 160, 161 and 162.

Ned Scott, Co-Founder and CEO of Steemit, joined us to discuss the blockchain-based social media platform that rapidly built a vibrant community of contributors since launching this year. We covered the complex architecture of Steem with its various tokens and how it aims to reward content contributors. We also discussed the project's much-criticized launch with an early mining phase and subsequent transition to a Proof-of-Stake system.

Support the show, consider donating: 1HK9HmWCTVvA6hH6nVQ33fycbU5ZrEFgwf (http://bit.ly/2huTEdi) Few crypto projects have gotten as much attention and caused as much controversy as Steem. The blockchain-based social media platform launched early this year and managed to gain real user traction building up a vibrant community of contributors. The Steem token quickly entered bubble territory reaching a market cap of almost $400m and losing 90% of its value since. Steem Co-Founder and CEO Ned Scott joined us to discuss the ambition of the project and its short tumultous history. We also discussed some of the accusations against Steem and its unorthodox launch. Topics discussed in this episode: - How Steem was launched out of the BitShares community - The different components and tokens of the Steem system - How Steem rewards content contributors - The controversial Steem launch and criticisms of the project - Why Steem transitioned from Proof-of-Work to Proof-of-Stake - The potential disbalance of power due to the Steem distribution - How Steem managed to build a vibrant user community Links mentioned in this episode: - Steem Website: https://steem.io/ - Steemit.com: https://steemit.com/ - Why Every Blockchain Needs a Constitution: https://steemit.com/blockchain/@dan/why-every-blockchain-needs-a-constitution - Charlie Shrem Article on Steem Launch: https://steemit.com/steem/@charlieshrem/was-the-launch-of-steem-a-scam-or-the-only-legal-way-thoughts-on-steem-by-charlie-shrem-a-week-later - The History of Steem Launch in Words of Dan Larimer: https://steemit.com/steem/@joseph/the-history-of-steem-steemit-launch-in-the-words-of-dan-larimer-from-the-early-launch-days - Bitcoin Talk Thread on Steem Launch: https://bitcointalk.org/index.php?topic=1427230.0 - Bitcoin Stackexchange: What is Steem?: http://bitcoin.stackexchange.com/questions/46007/what-is-steem-and-steemit Sponsors: - Ledger: Smart card security for your Bitcoins - Get 10% off your first order when you use the code EPICENTER - http://ledgerwallet.com - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io This episode is also available on : - Epicenter.tv: https://epicenter.tv/162 - YouTube: http://youtu.be/gg_MHqXa4yI - Souncloud: http://soundcloud.com/epicenterbitcoin/eb-162 Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.

Marley Gray, Principal Program Manager Blockchain at Microsoft, joins us to talk about Microsoft's approach to blockchain architecture. With enterprise in mind, Bletchley introduces the concept of "Cryptlets", the core building blocks for introducing a secure middleware tier into blockchain application infrastructure. These computational units, running off-chain on secure trusted container enclave hardware, could provide trusted data to on-chain smart contract logic.

Support the show, consider donating: 1JqE3eCwn7PeFNZUq6U2LExwxFqGBS9eqM (http://bit.ly/2gl9HIP) In their relatively short lifespan, blockchain technologies have already undergone significant milestones. Bitcoin’s blockchain, often referred to as Blockchain 1.0, features a simple database ledger that records transactions in a chronological order and represents the state of the network to participants. Ethereum, or Blockchain 2.0, introduced the notion of smart contracts. Microsoft’s Bletchley Project introduces a new modular architecture which might mark a new milestone for blockchain technologies. Marley Gray, Principal Program Manager Blockchain at Microsoft, joins us to talk about Microsoft’s approach to blockchain architecture. With enterprise in mind, Bletchley introduces the concept of “Cryptlets”, the core building blocks for introducing a secure middleware tier into blockchain application infrastructure. These computational units, running off-chain, on secure trusted container enclave hardware, could provide trusted data to on-chain smart contract logic. Topics discussed in this episode: - Marley’s background and experience at Microsoft - Why Microsoft is aggressively pursuing blockchain technologies (compared to other large tech companies like Amazon, Google, Facebook, etc) - Microsoft’s Azure Blockchain-as-a-Service offering - Project Bletchley, its goals and the problems it is trying to address - The primary use cases in which Bletchley may provide value - How Bletchley addresses the issue of deploying consortium style blockchains - What are Cryptlets and how do they relate to Bletchley - How Cryptlets are different from Oracles - How Cryptlets could provide data to Ethereum-style smart contracts Links mentioned in this episode: - Bletchley Whitepaper: https://github.com/Azure/azure-blockchain-projects/blob/master/bletchley/bletchley-whitepaper.md - Blockchain as a Service (BaaS) | Microsoft Azure: https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/solutions/blockchain/ Sponsors: - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io This episode is also available on : - Epicenter.tv: https://epicenter.tv/161 - YouTube: http://youtu.be/avAouD1UHH4 - Souncloud: http://soundcloud.com/epicenterbitcoin/eb-161 Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.

Hyperledger Executive Director and internet pioneer Brian Behlendorf joined us to discuss why blockchain technology needs an open-source, collaborative approach to developing its foundational technology.

Support the show, consider donating: 1BciftGTVVzkfViKueG1u5KNtMVfM8xAuc (http://bit.ly/2fx1X4d) As a lead developer of the Apache webserver and founder of the Apache Software Foundation, Brian Behlendorf has played a central role in building internet architecture. Recently, he became Executive Director of the Hyperledger Project that aims to build foundational blockchain technology in an open-source, collaborative way. Topics discussed in this episode: - Brian's role in the development of the Apache server and Apache Software Foundation - The flaws in how blockchain software is currently being developed - Why blockchain needs a foundation to steer the development of its foundational technology - The key lessons from the Apache Software Foundation that inform Hyperledger's approach - Hyperledger's membership and organizational structure - The role of software licenses and why he favors Apache Links mentioned in this episode: - Hyperledger Website: https://www.hyperledger.org/ - Brian Behlendorf's Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Behlendorf - Brian Behlendorf's Website: http://brian.behlendorf.com/ - Blockchain Meetup Berlin Hyperledger Talk: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=huN0dcKHD9U Sponsors: - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io - Ledger: Smart card security for your Bitcoins - Get 10% off your first order when you use the code EPICENTER - http://ledgerwallet.com Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.

Stratumn CEO Richard Caetano and Head of Research Anuj das Gupta joined us to discuss their work to bring security and integrity to processes. We covered the philosophy behind the company and why they use cryptography and other technologies coming out of the crypto space while shunning a classical blockchain design.

Support the show, consider donating: 1VnuCdgG4gomHZeresi7AyX2JVQuHpTVj (http://bit.ly/2ghGcGL) Stratumn CEO Richard Caetano and Head of Research Anuj Das Gupta joined us to discuss their work to bring security and integrity to processes. We covered the philosophy behind the company and why they use cryptography and other technologies coming out of the crypto space while shunning a classical blockchain design. Topics discussed in this episode: - How Paris-based startup Stratumn was founded - Why Stratumn's thinking revolves around processes - How Proof-of-Process secures the who, what, where, when and why of each step of a process - How Stratumn uses Zero Knowledge Proofs to protect privacy - The connection between Proof-of-Process and blockchain protocols - Why using cryptography to secure processes didn't gain traction earlier but does so today Links mentioned in this episode: - Stratumn Website: https://stratumn.com/ - Proof-of-Process white paper: https://stratumn.com/proof-of-process.html - Use case book: https://stratumn.com/use-cases-for-trusted-workflows.html - Chainscript: http://chainscript.io - Stratumn Blog: http://blog.stratumn Sponsors: - Jaxx: Wallets that Unify the Blockchain Experience Across Devices - http://jaxx.io Watch or listen, Epicenter is available wherever you get your podcasts. Epicenter is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy.