Transcriber: Sophie Goupil Reviewer: Mujtaba Abdelwhab
Centuries humans have been counting and storing and keeping record numbers,
and as we progressed in our ability to count,
we grew the amount of information that we needed to store and keep record of.
So we needed to keep this information in an orderly fashion. Known as ledgers.
So the early ledgers were examples of how we kept the information in
an orderly fashion. As technology advanced,
the information and volume of information grew,
which created additional problems of how do we access this volume of data rapidly
and in a reliable way? And at this point, ledgers were computerized.
And so we had access to information at very, very quick speeds,
and the volume of information was helping us to be able to make decisions.
And it became more crucial to decision making.
But there was a problem highlighted by the global financial crisis of 2008
that time, the integrity of the data became corrupted and
the interpretation by humans of that data became unreliable and also untrustworthy.
The events of 2008 basically highlighted that data integrity was
an issue where data was either ignored or misinterpreted, and in some cases,
risky and reckless decisions were made where the data was completely disregarded.
in response to this. An anonymous person or persons known under
the pseudonym of Satoshi Nakamoto,
developed and created an idea about digital currency,
and this was given as a reward for helping to build
an enormous giant network of computers that could be trusted to talk to one
another known as a blockchain.
A blockchain is basically a series of computers for all,
talk to one another through cryptography.
They're all connected through a cryptographic code.
Every single blockchain starts with a Genesis block,
which is holding the exact protocol for what the code is to unlock each block.
And so as each block is added,
a reward is given for increasing the capacity of that network.
So now we grow the network and all those computers can talk to one another,
and all those computers can agree
on what it is they're actually talking about.
And they all have that protocol that they've agreed to.
So they have this tick box that certifies that they're all agreeing not only
on the information, but they're all agreeing
on how they’re going to cryptographically protect that information.
So effectively, Blockchain gamified a crowdsourced trusted network of computers.
So this is a distributed ledger, and this is what we know now,
as a modern ledger, the blockchain is now becoming a distributed ledger.
So with this distributed ledger, each time a new block is added,
it's known as mining, and when you mine, you add a new block to the blockchain.
The reward for adding a new block to
the bitcoin blockchain is actually 6.25 bitcoin,
which is worth around about £200000 right now.
So every time a new block is added,
the developer that added that block is rewarded with £200000 approximately
of revenue.
Now, blockchain has come a long way in addressing
the core issue of data integrity, and the opportunities now are vast.
The applications are infinite. But there is a problem.
Every time a new block is added, it uses up natural resources, it uses up energy.
So this has been addressed by a number of pieces of research where
the blockchain is using renewable energy.
So this ranges from thirty nine percent up to seventy three percent in terms
of the use of renewable energy within blockchain.
So it's come a long way in understanding
the issues of how to actually use energy effectively.
Blockchain actually lends itself really well to using solar, hydro and
water power and wind power.
So it's a really good way of being able to use the different natural resources.
And there are many heavy industries that are still reliant upon fossil fuels,
but could learn from the new kid on the block.
So could this be the coming of age for blockchain?
Right now, blockchain is used for storing medical records safely and securely.
It's all encrypted. It can't be touched by anything other than the system,
so it's safe and secure for storing medical records.
Transactions can be agreed across the network in fractions of a second.
Even contracts and agreements are really well suited to being used on
the blockchain. So blockchain has many, many advantages and many,
many ways that it can support our modern day life.
Videos can be downloaded and live streamed across a decentralized network.
So from that point of view, we know that it's a very,
very fast capacity and very,
very good at being able to interact with people's daily lives.
One of the things that has boomed in
the past 12 months is something called nonfungible tokens or NFTs.
New NFT are minted and they prove originality.
So artists and musicians and gamers have jumped on this trend,
and they're creating items of value that they sell directly to people who want
to buy those NFTs.
This decentralized approach means that
the creator gets more of the royalty than previously
because it's paid directly to them, minus a few fees for using the blockchain,
of course. But the point is that it's
a decentralized approach that gives more control to the creator of the material.
In terms of the cryptocurrency, Bitcoin is still the original cryptocurrency,
and it is still the largest of all the cryptocurrencies.
It's currently trading at around $48000 and I've checked that just a moment ago
and it does vary. So it does does move up and down. It's quite a volatile market.
And I'll talk about that in a moment. But bitcoin has 21 million coins.
It's restricted, so it will never go beyond 21 million coins.
So the value can go up based on the scarcity or based on the demand
and based on the popularity.
And Bitcoin is given as a reward for creating this giant network.
So it’s a really valuable way of rewarding people to grow
this decentralized network.
In terms of the total market,
the size of the market is dynamic because bitcoin
and cryptocurrencies are traded globally 24-7.
Bitcoin still represents the largest majority of the blockchain
and the cryptocurrency market,
and the total market changes literally by the minute because it’s 24-7.
So what can we learn from bitcoin around
the predominance of how it's been adopted in cryptocurrency?
There are over 10000 alternative coins tokens now available.
So this is a technology which is here to stay and is growing and will be around
for some time to come.
Right now, you can use bitcoin to earn and pay for items and to pay
for items such as a car, a house, you can buy gold and silver with it, for example.
More and more things are becoming available to be able to be bought with
bitcoin and with cryptocurrencies, you can spend other cryptocurrencies.
But bitcoin is still the major one that everyone accepts and is widely accepted,
and this payment method is increasing.
In fact, in El Salvador, they recently adopted bitcoin as legal tender alongside
the US dollar. So it's becoming more and more acceptable
for all four countries to actually start to adopt this.
So we can look at this because there are challenges.
The decentralized nature of blockchain and
the adoption of cryptocurrency can be seen as disruptive.
So it faces challenges, for example,
governments could see decentralized autonomous organizations as a threat.
They use regulation to say that they're going to protect consumers.
But could that just be a cover?
Banks in particular are unlikely to want to give up their monopoly
on printing money, and most of them are already talking about developing their
own digital currency, which I'll talk about in just a moment.
The retail banks have made it very difficult for you and I
to be able to invest in cryptocurrency and
on ramping of money into crypto exchanges has become quite challenging.
And also, large organizations that have the power to censor your content
or control your data are unlikely to want to relinquish their power over that,
and the huge profits they make from harvesting your data.
So let’s unpack one of these areas in particular.
I mentioned about the central banks.
The central banks are developing a digital currency known
as central bank digital currency CBDC,
and pretty much it might look like a cryptocurrency,
but it is absolutely the opposite.
Because the bank will continue to want you to invest your money
and deposit your money into their votes.
They take that money and they use it to speculatively make profit that they don't
share with you, and that's unlikely to change.
They also want to restrict your money
and restrict access to it if they don’t like what you’re spending your money on.
For example, cryptocurrency.
And so they could restrict your access to money.
And this is unlikely to change with a central bank digital currency
because they can switch on and off whenever they desire.
So their control will be even greater over your money.
Banks are also likely to continue with centralized decision making.
You may have experience, the computer says,
no moments when trying to make transactions.
And this is unlikely to change anytime soon.
Central banks have a habit of printing money when
the economy is not doing very well.
This has been seen to not be a very good strategy long term because it brings
the country into debt. But with central bank digital currency,
this would be even easier for them to do as they can add zeros on to
a spreadsheet, quite literally. They create money from nothing with no backing.
And that would be easy for them to control when they have
a central bank digital currency.
And one final point on CBDC.
The digital currency is programmable money,
which means that the bank can put an expiry date on your money
and your money will expire literally before your eyes.
And you could actually be restricted from accessing your money based on such things
as your social credit score.
And this is already happening in China,
so other countries are watching and seeing what’s happening for the future.
If you look at cryptocurrency and fail to see
the importance of blockchain technology and
the significance of decentralized autonomous organizations,
this is shortsighted and mistaken.
It’s a little bit like this coin.
In the U.K. this has a face value of £2.
So to the untrained eye, it just looks like an ordinary two pound coin.
But to the discerning investor and to someone who is trained,
they will see that this is one ounce of pure fine silver,
which is actually selling for around £28 in the UK.
I firmly believe that when we can see beyond the face value of cryptocurrency
and we can start to be more discerning towards blockchain and
the possibilities that it offers.
To empower decentralized autonomous organizations to accelerate
a vast ocean of opportunity will open up,
for humanity.
There are significant moments in history.
Pivotal moments when we get to redefine and recalibrate our future.
The Berlin Wall came to symbolize freedom from oppression.
And it was a symbol that we identify with the crumbling of an oppressive society.
Maybe we’ll look back in future at blockchain and see that
as a moment where our liberty and digital freedom has been given.
Could this be the start of the decentralized revolution?
Who knows where we will end up with the technology
and where it will lead us to?
Maybe your car of the future will be earning you cryptocurrency while it
charges overnight?
Maybe you have sovereignty over your data
so that you get to decide what happens with your data
and how you want to have other people access it.
There's already technology available where
the blockchains are talking to one another offering a massive,
powerful network.
And this is giving us a fantastic opportunity
as humanity to move forward with decentralized autonomous organizations,
having a platform to build and build and build.
Cryptocurrency is still in its infancy, establishing itself as an asset class.
But the future of blockchain and
the popularity of decentralized autonomous organizations is certainly
going to be around for a long time to come.
Our journey with the technology will continue for a long period of time.
Let's hope we're all here to enjoy the ride to destination tomorrow.
Thank you.
[Applause]