OpenChat as a flourishing SNS DAO, the tech roadmap for ETH integration, a cool community demo by AirGap Wallet, and more.
Every month, DFINITY Foundation hosts a public webinar delivering a selection the latest protocol developments and community activity. Here is a breakdown of the March 2023 edition.
OpenChat: A successful SNS DAO Launch
On March 3, 2023 OpenChat was successfully handed over to an SNS DAO.
What does this mean? It means that OpenChat is now fully assigned to and controlled by an SNS DAO, which takes over the traditional role of a company. No CEO, no board of directors or developers in control, just thousands of community members, whose wishes are mediated through digital democracy algorithms.
How was it created? An initial “decentralization swap” exchanged the new SNS DAO’s governance tokens for ICP. These OpenChat tokens are now held in its treasury under the decentralized control of its governance community.
Here is the breakdown of tokens distributed at genesis:
Some of the advantages of OpenChat launching an SNS include another layer of decentralization, tokenization and funding. Through decentralized governance, users are now co-owners and the dapp’s service is set up to act in the best interest of the community. Tokenization allows for growth through ongoing algorithmic user and referral rewards. The ability to reward contributors will in turn spark organic growth as teams of advocates begin to form — a phenomenon that has the potential to induce viral network effects. Fundraising via the initial decentralization swap financially fuels the chat service, adds liquidity to exchanges and allows for growing the team.
Since the launch, three key proposals have been released to improve the user experience.
FederItaly, ORIGYN, & DFINITY
From Parmigiano Reggiano to Barolo wines and some of the best luxury brands in the world, the “100% Made in Italy” label is synonymous with high-quality, artisanal products that are crafted with care and attention to detail. However, counterfeiting and “Italian sounding” have been issues that continue to damage the economy and the reputation of these authentic products across the world. Blockchain technology offers the ideal solution for deterring the counterfeiting of artisanal and luxury products.
To create the “100% Made in Italy” label, the DFINITY Foundation, ORIGYN Foundation, and FEDERITALY have partnered to offer a revolutionary solution that utilizes tamper-proof certification to prove the authenticity and origin of Italian-made products. Read more.
ETH <> ICP
While the Ethereum network is currently the world’s largest smart contract blockchain in terms of market cap, TVL and daily DeFi volume, it has many pain points such as costly gas fees and limited scalability, which delay DeFi adoption and create major obstacles for developers. The Internet Computer, with its reverse gas model and ability to scale and perform at high speed, has the ability to pioneer a multi-chain approach that will make it possible for new and inexperienced users to enjoy the full utility benefits of ETH.
A roadmap to integrate the Internet Computer with the Ethereum network has been revealed and will rollout in two phases:
- Phase 1: Implementation in dapps with basic capabilities using HTTPS outcalls to cloud API providers.
- Phase 2: Protocol-level trustless integration with smooth migration from phase 1.
Phase 1 has already been made possible by the ICP DeFi community. DFINITY engineering teams and ICP community members will continue to collaborate on improving phase 1 and kickstarting phase 2.
ckBTC Is Live
Based on the community debate on how to best implement KYT checks into ckBTC transaction flow, three separate proposals were submitted to install the Chainanalysis KYT canister, add the first API key provider and upgrade the ckBTC minter canister to allow BTC > ckBTC conversion, use of KYT canister and reduce required confirmations to 12. Since the Global R&D session, the proposals (115468, 115470 & 115473) have been adopted with flying colors. ckBTC is now live.
Response verification v2
Response verification version 2 introduces new certification capabilities to asset canisters and the HTTP Gateway Protocol. Features like redirects, translated content or caching can now be implemented in a certifiable way without using update calls. Check out the announcement in the ICP developer forum for more details.
DEMOS
Community Demo: AirGap Wallet
Watch demo: 00:49:17
AirGap is a software Wallet that turns a spare mobile phone into a hardware Wallet. It achieves this by using two apps, AirGap Vault, and AirGap Wallet. Those can be downloaded from the Appstore, the Google playstore or directly the APK. Watch the demo and read the blog to find out how it works.
Canister Timers
Watch demo: 00:58:07
Unlike other blockchains, the Internet Computer can automatically execute canister smart contracts after a specified delay or periodically. Read more about the new Canister Timers feature, its status and availability here.
We hope you enjoyed this recap. If you missed the last Global R&D or want to watch it again, here’s the full replay: