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

The lack of an explicit governance mechanism has created deep problems for Bitcoin. Ethereum, with the DAO-related soft/hard-fork discussions, may face similar challenges ahead. Yet, already in 2014 Arthur Breitman quietly started working on cryptocurrency network Tezos that has an explicit mechanism to let coinholders vote on protocol upgrades. Our discussion with Breitman centered around … Continued

The idea that in the future tokens will play a crucial role in networks and organizations to incentivize decentralized collaboration and reward contribution is not new. It’s the original decentralized autonomous organization idea that has informed many projects that have been on the podcast (Swarm, Ethereum, Factom, Storj, etc). For Matan, the vision originally led … Continued

Support the show, consider donating: 1BtAS8As9b5pRPWmsURxrvi8hg38j6QoMm (http://bit.ly/25UwU9K) For many the promise of decentralized applications and DAOs is to be beyond the limitations and rigidity of the existing legal system. There is no question that where DAOs can roam freely, innovation can accelerate. But can the law, courts and regulations be left behind so easily? Lawyer Stephen Palley joined us to discuss what happens when the new and old worlds collide and how courts will look at what goes on in the land of DAOs and DApps. Topics covered included: - Whether trust is reduced, removed or just shifted elsewhere in blockchain systems - If creating decentralized applications could create liability risks - Why courts will impose a legal structure if a formal one doesn't exist - The concept of jurisdiction and how it could affect DAOs - Why one should be careful with saying a DAO provides insurance Links mentioned in this episode: - How to Sue A DAO http://bit.ly/1tqZgas - Blockchain Jurisdiction http://bit.ly/1UKSmVW - Smart Contracts and Smart Lawsuits http://bit.ly/21hmTwC - Blockchain and the First Law of Lawmodynamics http://bit.ly/25WzSXL - Smart Contracts, Performance and Trust http://bit.ly/1U8zG5L - DAO Insurance Company, Inc http://bit.ly/1PW5lWj - All of Stephen Palley's LinkedIn Posts http://bit.ly/1UpwwZx - EB125 Florian Glatz: Defining a Legal Framework for DAOs http://bit.ly/1Xiorb3 - EB132 Stephan Tual: A Universal Sharing Network and a $150m DAO http://bit.ly/1rkU8mh Sponsors: - Hide.me: Protect your privacy and personal data with a free VPN account at http://Hide.me/epicenter - Ledger Nano: Smart card security for your Bitcoins - Get 10% off your first order when you use the code EPICENTER at http://ledgerwallet.com Show notes: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/135 YouTube: http://youtu.be/uEbFX1M-DT4 Epicenter Bitcoin is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy. - Visit our website: http://epicenterbitcoin.com - Subscribe to our newsletter: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/newsletter - Twitter: http://twitter.com/epicenterbtc

For many the promise of decentralized applications and DAOs is to be beyond the limitations and rigidity of the existing legal system. There is no question that where DAOs can roam freely, innovation can accelerate. But can the law, courts and regulations be left behind so easily? Lawyer Stephen Palley joined us to discuss what … Continued

Raising $150m+ through its toke sale, ‘The DAO’ has become the most notable decentralized application to date. The ambitious goal of the project is to form an decentralized organizations that efficiently makes investment decisions and generates a return for the token holders. Computer Science professor Emin Gün Sirer and researcher Vlad Zamfir joined us to … Continued

Support the show, consider donating: 18TfUL2WcAy3dvMqD8tW9SFLHps3sALP3z (http://bit.ly/28eIqvc) Raising $150m+ through its toke sale, 'The DAO' has become the most notable decentralized application to date. The ambitious goal of the project is to form an decentralized organizations that efficiently makes investment decisions and generates a return for the token holders. Computer Science professor Emin Gün Sirer and researcher Vlad Zamfir joined us to discuss the various security issues with the daring project and why they've called for a temporary moratorium on funding proposals. Topics covered included: - How the DAO works - What the role of the curators is - What splits are and how they became a way to withdraw funds - Why the DAO has a bias towards approving proposals - How attackers could 'stalk' token holders when withdrawing their funds - How the DAO can be upgraded Links mentioned in this episode: - A Call for a Temporary Moratorium on The DAO Blog Post http://bit.ly/28ftfC1 - A Call for a Temporary Moratorium on The DAO Full Paper PDF http://bit.ly/1TRJgo9 - EB132 – Stephan Tual: Building A Universal Sharing Network On Ethereum And A $150M DAO http://bit.ly/25IMFk4 - Understanding the DAO Accounting http://bit.ly/22JmkNn - The DAO website http://bit.ly/1PAkhcq - Meher's 'split DAO' reward token attack http://bit.ly/1U42Wau Sponsors: - GTEC: Blockchain Innovation Award epicenterbitcoin.com/gtec - Hide.me: Protect your privacy and personal data with a free VPN account at Hide.me/epicenter Show notes: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/134 YouTube: http://youtu.be/ON5GhIQdFU8 Epicenter Bitcoin is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy. - Visit our website: http://epicenterbitcoin.com - Subscribe to our newsletter: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/newsletter - Twitter: http://twitter.com/epicenterbtc

One of the problems often cited when talking about cryptocurrencies is their level of volatility compared to traditional fiat currencies. This makes most cryptocurrencies a poor instrument for storing value, and introduces complexities when making purchases in fiat amounts. Stable cryptocurrencies include mechanisms which allow them to stay pegged to fiat currencies like the US … Continued

Support the show, consider donating: 13VEc3hiRHvPU6hKDqorNep6VA36pjzzHb (http://bit.ly/25wFqM1) One of the problems often cited when talking about cryptocurrencies is their level of volatility compared to traditional fiat currencies. This makes most cryptocurrencies a poor instrument for storing value, and introduces complexities when making purchases in fiat amounts. Stable cryptocurrencies include mechanisms which allow them to stay pegged to fiat currencies like the US Dollar or Euro. They present a number of advantages, and, in addition to taking the headache out of making purchases, can be used by cryptocurrency traders who need a stable unit of account for hedging their assets. We talk to brothers Pascal and Julien Hamonic, Core Members of the Nu team about the NuBit stable cryptocurrency. Similarly to the mechanisms that keep our body temperature stable, NuBits relies upon the introduction of new coins into circulation when demand increases, and for coins to be taken out of circulation when demand drops. Shareholders (NuShareholder) vote on these measures as the network relies on custodians who bring liquidity into the market in exchange for dividends, and on speculators who ""park"" coins in exchange for potential returns when demand increases again. Topics we discuss in this episode: - What is NuBits and what is the goal it is trying to achieve - The different components of Nu (NuBits, NuShares) - The economic mechanisms behind the $1.00 USD peg - Who are the different participants in the network (NuBits users, NuShareholders, custodians) - The important role of custodians in providing liquidity to the network - The consensus model used in Nu - The initial allocation of NuBits and NuShares - The governance mechanisms in Nu Links mentioned in this episode: - Nubits: https://nubits.com - NuBits Whitepaper: https://nubits.com/about/white-paper Sponsors: - Hide.me: Protect your privacy and personal data with a free VPN account at Hide.me/epicenter Show notes: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/133 YouTube: https://youtu.be/lS7M397OhV0 Epicenter Bitcoin is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy. - Visit our website: http://epicenterbitcoin.com - Subscribe to our newsletter: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/newsletter - Twitter: http://twitter.com/epicenterbtc

In this episode we welcome back Stephan Tual, the COO of Slock.It, a German startup working at the intersection of the Internet of Things and the Ethereum blockchain. Slock.It’s small team also wrote the smart contracts that power ‘The DAO’, a decentralized capital management entity that recently raised north of $160 million for investing into … Continued

Support the show, consider donating: 13jmp7w14YkX8RModJgyjmQGQBqbaTmbxs (http://bit.ly/1VeYDeC) In this episode we welcome back Stephan Tual, the COO of Slock.It, a German startup working at the intersection of the Internet of Things and the Ethereum blockchain. Slock.It’s small team also wrote the smart contracts that power ‘The DAO’, a decentralized capital management entity that recently raised north of $160 million for investing into Ethereum based projects. ‘The DAO’ has been featured in many mainstream news outlets, such as New York Times, Wall Street Journal and the Economist. The interview explores the vision, motivation and challenges behind both ‘The DAO’ and Slock.It. Some of the topics discussed in this episode are: - Stephan’s background and role as CCO at Ethereum Foundation. - What is ‘The DAO’ and how it relates to Slock.It. - DAOlink and the business opportunity of enabling interactions between DAOs and traditional firms. - Opportunities, assumptions and challenges for ‘The DAO’. - Vision and products of Slock It - Univeral Sharing Network and the Ethereum computer. Links mentioned in this episode: - Slock It Website: http://slock.it - The DAO: http://daohub.org - The DAO on Github: https://github.com/slockit/DAO - The DAO Whitepaper: https://download.slock.it/public/DAO/WhitePaper.pdf - Why I’ve Resigned as a Curator of the DAO: https://medium.com/@gavofyork/why-ive-resigned-as-a-curator-of-the-dao-238528fbd447#.3nnnte91u - Is The DAO going to be DOA?: https://steemit.com/crypto-news/@dan/is-the-dao-going-to-be-doa Sponsors: - Ledger Nano: Smart card security for your Bitcoins - Get 10% off your first order when you use the code EPICENTER at http://ledgerwallet.com - Hide.me: Protect your privacy and personal data with a free VPN account at Hide.me/epicenter Show notes: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/132 YouTube: https://youtu.be/gPvsoKBBCqE Epicenter Bitcoin is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy. - Visit our website: http://epicenterbitcoin.com - Subscribe to our newsletter: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/newsletter - Twitter: http://twitter.com/epicenterbtc

One of the foundational problems in payment networks is that they are mostly uninteroperable. This problem exists at all levels, from consumer payment solutions like PayPal, to national and multi-national banks. This complexity is brought on by the proprietary nature of payment networks, and moving value from one to another requires a negotiation between parties … Continued

Support the show, consider donating: 1MiCgB2bRo1kRgzHx2QbahX6vbmgTbxQ2H (http://bit.ly/1Yt7I2n) One of the foundational problems in payment networks is that they are mostly uninteroperable. This problem exists at all levels, from consumer payment solutions like PayPal, to national and multi-national banks. This complexity is brought on by the proprietary nature of payment networks, and moving value from one to another requires a negotiation between parties on which common payment network to use in a transaction. We saw similar problems in the early days of the Internet, assembled around protocols which allow for data to be routed and move between networks in a standardized way. We're joined by Stefan Thomas and Evan Schwartz, co-creators of Interledger. This neutral protocol would bring the same level of interoperability we know take for granted around the flow of data, to payments, thus allowing money to move freely across networks. A market maker, who holds accounts in both networks, would receive funds in escrow from a sender, and move funds to an escrow account with the receiver, getting paid by the sender when he shows the proof the funds were delivered to the receiver. Topics discussed in this episode: - What is Interledger and what problem is it trying to solve - Interledger's architecture - How connectors and routing works, and how we may compare it to the way data flows on the Internet - Cryptographic Escrow and its role in Interledger - Requirements for payment solutions to become Interledger compatible - Interledger's community group at the W3C - How Interledger applies to micropayments - Ripple's role in Interledger Links mentioned in this episode: - Interledger: https://interledger.org/ - Interledger Whitepaper: http://interledger.org/interledger.pdf - Interledger + WebTorrent - Demo by Evan Schwartz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=525Z7Ck0ffY - Interledger Architecture: https://stackedit.io/viewer#!provider=gist&gistId=f534bfb53dfffb980c66&filename=interledger-architecture.md - Interledger Github: http://github.com/interledger - Interledter Slideshare: http://slideshare.net/interledger - Ripple Labs: https://ripple.com/ - Episode 92 with Stefan Thomas: https://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/092/ Sponsors: - Hide.me: Protect your privacy and personal data with a free VPN account at Hide.me/epicenter Show notes: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/131 YouTube: https://youtu.be/izon3JJRs5w Epicenter Bitcoin is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy. - Visit our website: http://epicenterbitcoin.com - Subscribe to our newsletter: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/newsletter - Twitter: http://twitter.com/epicenterbtc

Support the show, consider donating: 19BvZNBbbSbXXnE2WwWyWp44Zd2yCyCXkr (http://bit.ly/1pKWYkJ) In the short history of the Bitcoin industry, there has been an impressive amount of high profile hacks, ranging from a few hundred thousand to many millions of dollars. In all of these, customers, Bitcoin users, where robbed of their funds because poor security policies, negligence, incompetence, or plain old scamming. Recently, the cryptocurrency conversion service ShapeShift fell victim to a hack in which over $200,000 of company funds were stolen, initially by an employee, and then by a hacker to whom this employee had sold sensitive company information. Luckily, no customers lost any money as ShapeShift does not hold any funds on behalf of users. We talked to ShapeShift CEO Erik Voorhees who walks us through this captivating ordeal, which sounds like it could be the plot of a movie. He speaks about how the company is trying to recover and what he has learned from this unfortunate event. Topics we discussed on this episode: - How the ShapeShift hack went down - What steps the company has taken to avoid this from happening again - What he learned from the hack - ShapeShift's long-term vision as a company and product - Ethereum's role in their recent growth - His history as an entrepreneur in the Bitcoin space - His views on libertarianism and the long-term impact of Bitcoin on that movement Links mentioned in this episode: - Looting of the Fox: The Story of Sabotage at ShapeShift: https://news.bitcoin.com/looting-fox-sabotage-shapeshift/ - Bitcoin.com podcast - Details of the Shapeshift.io Hack: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2mYfmj0hY0U - The Slaying of Bearwhale: https://shapeshift.io/bearwhale.html - Erik's Blog: http://moneyandstate.com/ Sponsors: - Hide.me: Protect your privacy and personal data with a free VPN account at Hide.me/epicenter Show notes: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/podcast/130 YouTube: https://youtu.be/G8QNpyqHr04 Epicenter Bitcoin is hosted by Brian Fabian Crain, Sébastien Couture & Meher Roy. - Visit our website: http://epicenterbitcoin.com - Subscribe to our newsletter: http://epicenterbitcoin.com/newsletter - Twitter: http://twitter.com/epicenterbtc

In the short history of the Bitcoin industry, there has been an impressive amount of high profile hacks, ranging from a few hundred thousand to many millions of dollars. In all of these, customers, Bitcoin users, where robbed of their funds because poor security policies, negligence, incompetence, or plain old scamming. Recently, the cryptocurrency conversion … Continued

As the blockchain field continues evolving rapidly, Sebastien, Meher and Brian take some time to discuss the current environment and the longer term implications of blockchains. We discussed how smart contracts could affect the pace of innovation and the competitiveness of industries. We also talked about the role DAOs will play and what we can … Continued