Ethereum And The Future Economy

Who Is This Dude?Ryan GoekenTwitter: @pixelsnbits

Age: 2 x 2 x 2 x 2 x 2

Occupation: Something to do with computers.

Qualifications:

- Owns a computer- Achieved a C+ on a Bitcoin course on Coursera- Enjoys considering the future- Coming to Terms with being Libertarian Socialist (Probably)

Buckminster Fuller’s Challenge:“To make the world work for 100% of humanity in the shortest

possible time through spontaneous cooperation without ecological offense or the disadvantage of anyone.”

First, the Blockchain

Blockchain Basic Overview● List of Transactions, compounded over time

○ Verified cryptographically by computing resourceson a decentralized network of nodes

● Popularized by Bitcoin as public ledger of currency transactions

● Simple Visual Analogy: Stacking Lego bricks

* https://stats.ethdev.com/

What is Ethereum?

Overview of Ethereum

Critiques

● Assumes Ethereum is de facto platform

● “Planetary Scale”

○ Has Potential, Currently Only Few Thousand Peers*

● Ethereum is the application backbone, still uses existing Internet infrastructure

○ User connections to the Internet backbone are provisioned by profit-driven corporations, i.e. Comcast, AT&T (Internet Service Providers)

* https://stats.ethdev.com/

Potential Applications● Avoid Censorship

○ No Central Authority

● Transparent Governance (Corporate or Political)○ Collectively, Democratically dictate the division of labor and product of labor ○ Example: “Workers’ Self-Directed Enterprises”*

● Secure Communications○ Secure transactions on the Blockchain contain the encrypted content of the

message○ Example: Video/Photo, Text, Group Chat

* ”Democracy at Work: A Cure for Capitalism” - Richard Wolff, Marxist Economist

Smart Contracts:

Contracts are traditionally enforced through laws or courts of arbitration whereas “smart contracts” are enforced cryptographically with consensus on the Blockchain without the need of a central authority.

Who is Ethereum?

Notable PeopleVinay Gupta Imogen HeapVitalik Buterin

Inventor Strategy Consultant Evangelist/Producer

Why Ethereum?How is it different from Bitcoin?

● Represents a new layer on an alternative economic model

○ Bitcoin = legitimacy for alternative currency

○ Ethereum = legitimacy for a new economic platform

● Large following in altcoin community, Yearly Developer Conference, DEVCON○ Sponsored by Microsoft

Example Use Casesslock.ithttp://slock.it

Allows for owners to rent out their own “smart property” using Ethereum to make smart contracts (Bluetooth door lock, Bluetooth bike lock).

● Airbnb-esque rental contracts without going through escrow or banks.

Ujo Musichttp://ujomusic.com

Allows for a content producer to enable quick transactions to the consumer that can immediately be sent to all parties involved in the production, bypassing labels or agencies.

● Imogen Heap released ‘Tiny Human’ using the Ethereum platform.

Dream Use CasesCSA Access● Customer purchases CSA Share from a

local farm● Produce delivered to secure garage● Customer uses iPhone to open Bluetooth

lock● Monsanto is not involved anywhere in the

process

Band Tip Jar● Band plays a show at a venue and has a QR

code at the merch table● All band members paid immediately to

their individual accounts● Band members use the money to buy

beers right after the show● No cash needed to be counted, instant

gratification

Questions?

https://duckduckgo.comhttp://ethereum101.org