How far are we from mass adoption?

A week after Trump’s election victory, while BTC surged over 20% and meme coins saw renewed excitement, the past six months have been marked by a narrative suggesting that “the crypto industry lacks real-world support.” During this period, the Depin sector was still developing, particularly in areas like cloud computing, which remain distant from true large-scale adoption. Yet, amidst the speculative frenzy surrounding meme coins, CZ and Vitalik’s involvement in promoting DeSci has unexpectedly reignited interest in the concept. It’s clear that every new idea initially goes through a speculative phase, and DeSci is no exception. After years of development in the blockchain sector initiated by Bitcoin, it’s time to focus on building applications that can benefit humanity.

AI & Desci

Last year, the AI revolution sparked by ChatGPT provided fresh narrative momentum for the current bull market. The idea that “AI symbolizes advanced productivity while blockchain signifies the redistribution and integration of advanced production relationships” quickly gained traction in the community, becoming one of the key narratives leading into the bull market. This trend has propelled projects like Bittensor and fetch.ai to the forefront of this movement.

Furthermore, in September of this year, as the crypto market began to recover, meme coins associated with AI saw a surge in activity, particularly with the launch of $Goat. Small teams or even individuals can create AI Agents with specific functionalities—whether for trading or companionship—and cultivate their own communities. If executed well, this can be achieved in just a week, culminating in the launch of a meme coin for profit.

The DeSci concept can be traced back to the last bull market, but it struggled to gain traction due to the lengthy cycles associated with “Science” in the Crypto+Science narrative. A significant breakthrough occurred on November 8, when Binance Labs announced its investment in BIO Protocol, marking its first venture into the DeSci field. Shortly after, CZ participated in Binance’s DeSci Day event in Bangkok, where he and Vitalik shared insights on DeSci, expressing a desire to see 1,000 DeSci projects by the following year. Since then, both Binance’s official communications and CZ’s posts have frequently referenced DeSci. Their enthusiastic endorsements have led to a remarkable rise in the popularity of DeSci-themed meme coins, with several emerging in just a few days, including $uro and $rif for specific drug developments, and $SciHub for donations to the Sci-Hub platform. The total market capitalization of these related concepts has exceeded $800 million.

However, a compelling narrative is not solely defined by short-term hype; it requires sustained infrastructure development to create real-world applications. The essential support for AI—computing power resources—continues to evolve, with the scheduling of idle computing power via Depin cloud computing still in its infancy, and widespread adoption remains limited. Additionally, the costs, stability, and speed of computing environments have yet to be effectively validated in the market.

The core technology behind DeSci—decentralized storage—has been validated through the IPFS protocol as being more cost-effective and secure than traditional centralized storage solutions, with current implementations showing maturity. Thus, the infrastructure for DeSci is established; it now requires broader recognition and adoption of decentralized storage ideas.

Is the DeSci concept still more speculative than practical?

I recall discussing with several projects focused on DeSci at the Web3 carnival in Hong Kong last April. They unanimously emphasized the need for a “long-termism” mindset. At this stage, it can only be said that DeSci has just begun to enter the public consciousness, and we are still far from achieving a “glorious Rome”; we have merely reached the proposal stage.

So, what exactly is DeSci? DeSci stands for Decentralized Science. It facilitates global open access to research data through distributed storage technology, diminishing the singular control of data by governments or institutions, and mitigating the risks of breaches, loss, and malicious tampering associated with centralized storage. This model not only enhances transparency in scientific research but also enables global researchers to freely share resources. Furthermore, DeSci employs smart contracts and DAOs to improve the transparency and efficiency of research funding, aiding scientists in securing necessary funding. This fundamentally alters the traditional structure of research funding sources and significantly boosts the efficiency of fund utilization.

In summary, the DeSci model innovates in two key areas: 1. Fundraising is achieved through token launches, with popular examples like $rif and $uro raising funds for drug development via meme coins. 2. Research data storage has transitioned from centralized servers to a decentralized blockchain that ensures permanence and security.

“Decentralized Science (DeSci) has successfully integrated the liquidity of meme coins into universities and laboratories worldwide, supporting genuine scientific research.” The founder of BIO Protocol’s response to CZ on X highlights DeSci’s essence: leveraging the speculative nature of the crypto market to accelerate the realization of value in research and foster more practical applications.

BIO Protocol business model, Source:https://docs.bio.xyz/bio

Currently, the popularity of the DeSci concept is largely driven by the wealth effect of meme coins. This brief exposure has led to the industry being influenced by market sentiment. However, the research sector requires ongoing, substantial investment while facing high risks and failure rates, which stands in stark contrast to the short-term speculation and rapid liquidity depletion characteristic of memes.

As a result, in the short term, we may see many speculators entering the field, using it as a gimmick to launch projects and seeking “financing equals profit,” rather than genuinely investing in scientific research. Thus, after a brief spike in interest, DeSci will likely enter a phase of distinguishing the genuine from the false, gradually educating the market and cultivating users’ understanding of DeSci, paving the way for the goal of “utilizing crypto finance to drive the monetization of scientific research outcomes.”

Currently, there is immense demand for data storage and on-chain proof in the DeSci space. If DeSci can harness meme coin popularity to break through barriers and establish a viable business model, decentralized storage will serve as the foundational infrastructure for DeSci, significantly advancing the development of the decentralized storage ecosystem.

Decentralized storage is mature and the infrastructure behind Desci should not be underestimated

Decentralized storage has evolved through several stages, from early solutions like Storj to Filecoin, Arweave, and the IPFS protocol. A May 2023 analysis indicated that decentralized storage is, on average, about 78% cheaper than centralized storage, with differences in enterprise-level data storage reaching up to 121 times. Moreover, decentralized storage offers clear advantages in data security, privacy, and reliability. However, while some Web2 clients are beginning to adopt decentralized solutions like Filecoin and Arweave, centralized storage, which provides a more intuitive user experience and mature product offerings, still dominates the market. The limitations of Filecoin regarding programmability and permanent data storage, along with the relatively high costs of Arweave’s “permanent storage” model, remain unresolved issues within the industry.

Comparison of Centralized and Decentralized Storage, Source: Binance Research

In April of last year, Binance launched BNB Greenfield, marking a significant advancement in decentralized storage. The key feature of Greenfield is that it provides decentralized storage infrastructure for the entire BNB Chain ecosystem, enabling users and decentralized applications (DApps) to create, store, and exchange fully owned data. With a native cross-chain bridge to BSC, users can easily transfer BNB between BSC and Greenfield, facilitating seamless interaction with DApps built on Greenfield.

Compared to IPFS and Arweave, BNB Greenfield offers advantages such as deep integration with BNB Chain, cross-chain support, a combination of decentralized storage and computing capabilities, and low-cost, high-efficiency solutions. This makes Greenfield particularly suitable for decentralized finance (DeFi), smart contracts, and Web3 applications, providing stronger scalability and ecological synergy. Looking ahead, Greenfield can be utilized in various scenarios, including but not limited to:

• Website Hosting: Users can quickly deploy and host websites through APIs, simplifying the registration and payment processes.
• Personal Cloud Storage: Users can create secure personal cloud storage using private keys, allowing easy upload and download of encrypted files.
• Blockchain Data Storage: Storing data from the BNB Smart Chain and other ecosystems, which reduces latency and enhances availability.
• Content Publishing: Creators can store their works and mirror them to the BNB Smart Chain, allowing buyers to access them after transactions.
• Social Media: Influencers can fully control their content data, publishing and profiting through decentralized platforms.
• Personal Data Marketplace: Offering decentralized data storage and management solutions to ensure the security of personal data.

The development of Greenfield also relies on support from its ecosystem projects. This year, the official BNB ecosystem launched a community voting activity for favorite projects, categorizing them into five groups. In the Infrastructure category, 4EVERLAND and BAS serve as essential native components for Greenfield.

BNB Ecosystem Catalyst Awards Candidates, Source: Binance Square

4EVERLAND

4EVERLAND is the largest decentralized storage provider in the Greenfield ecosystem. As an officially certified storage provider (SP) and validator, 4EVERLAND offers robust storage resources on Greenfield while supporting both the BNB Chain and opBNB networks, aiming to build an efficient decentralized storage network. By integrating the features and advantages of IPFS and Arweave, 4EVERLAND provides an enhanced storage network solution, improving user experience and reducing the complexity of using decentralized storage.

Key advantages include:

• Dual Role in Storage and Validation: As a storage provider (SP) and validator for Greenfield, 4EVERLAND offers storage solutions while participating in the proof-of-stake (PoS) mechanism to ensure blockchain security.
• Multi-chain Support and Compatibility: In addition to Greenfield, 4EVERLAND supports both BNB Chain and opBNB.
• Integration of Decentralized Storage and Computing Resources: 4EVERLAND utilizes its 4Ever Node to leverage idle hardware, providing users with immediate access to stored data and computing capabilities for more efficient data usage.
• Flexible Storage Solutions: 4EVERLAND offers hybrid solutions suitable for both hot and cold storage, combining IPFS + Arweave/Greenfield storage models to meet diverse storage needs while remaining compatible with Web2.
• Decentralized AI Services: Through AI RPC (API standards), 4EVERLAND provides an aggregation solution for over 100 models, offering efficient AI model invocation services.
• DWeb Hosting Services: 4EVERLAND also plays a significant role in the Greenfield ecosystem by providing one-click deployment features, allowing dApp frontends to be quickly deployed to Greenfield storage, and supporting future plans for RAAS (Rollup as a Service) within the BNB ecosystem, enabling one-click chain initiation.

Currently, 4EVERLAND has over 3 million registered users, with daily active users exceeding 100,000. It has stored 2000 TB on IPFS (third in the IPFS ecosystem), 20 TB on Arweave (third in the Arweave ecosystem), and has over 30,000 daily interactions on Greenfield (first in the Greenfield ecosystem). In terms of funding, it has received backing from BNBChain, Polygon, Optimism, IPFS, Arweave, and ICP, along with support from several well-known investment firms.

Recently, 4EVERLAND has partnered with multiple DeSci projects to promote the decentralized storage of research literature. Certain data in DeSci, which is immutable, is suitable for permanent storage on Arweave, while data that is continuously updated fits better with IPFS and Greenfield. 4EVERLAND combines IPFS, Arweave, and Greenfield to establish a decentralized storage solution for DeSci, with cold backup data stored on Arweave and hot data access on Greenfield.

BAS

The BNB Attestation Service (BAS) serves as the foundational data protocol standard for BNB, aimed at generating certified verification information to integrate millions of trusted private data into the Web3 ecosystem, particularly to support AI data needs. The key features of BAS include:

• Decentralized Verification Service: By bringing Web2 and Web3 data on-chain, BAS provides cross-platform verification services, supporting information from exchanges like Binance and Coinbase, as well as data from social platforms like X and TikTok. Additionally, BAS can be utilized for research data verification services in DeSci, allowing results to be directly uploaded to the blockchain.
• User Sovereignty and Data Privacy: Users can actively upload data through dApp projects using datasets created by BAS and defined data format standards, reducing the need for third-party data labeling and clarifying processes, thus achieving proactive categorization and standardization of data, and returning data sovereignty to users.
• AI Training and Dataset Services: Through decentralized data verification, BAS provides the most reliable and usable data for AI training and dataset needs.
• Ecosystem Collaboration and Application: BAS has established connections with over 3,000 independent certifiers, more than 100 data resource providers, and over 100 ecosystem partners, supporting over 30 million verifications.

For Greenfield, the introduction of BAS enhances its data verification and management capabilities, further improving the platform’s security, transparency, and user control, making Greenfield a more robust decentralized storage solution. By integrating with BAS, Greenfield ensures data verification and compliance while providing efficient data management and permission control features.

Efforts for Sustainable Development in the Crypto Industry

Greenfield represents a crucial strategic initiative personally endorsed by Binance and CZ. Since its launch, it has been a significant ecological innovation within the BNB ecosystem. Unlike opBNB and BNB Chain, which directly cater to end-users, Greenfield operates more quietly behind the scenes, with its high performance and interoperability fostering the development of new narratives in the industry.

If the business model of DeSci is validated, coupled with Binance’s traffic support, it will undoubtedly significantly boost the prosperity of the BNB ecosystem, leading to widespread adoption of Greenfield. This article affirms the investment potential of decentralized storage, but from a broader perspective, what truly matters for countless crypto users and practitioners is whether the crypto industry can achieve sustainable development.

CZ, Binance officials, and Vitalik have recently emphasized the importance of DeSci, genuinely investing substantial resources to support this field. Even Binance’s official account has published research reports to validate DeSci. This is undoubtedly a significant innovative attempt, rather than merely promoting a concept. Behind the industry’s dynamics lies the vision of blockchain finance genuinely serving the market, realizing value, and contributing to society through blockchain technology.

References:

· Technology Research Report | Explore BNB Greenfield’s innovation path and reshape the future of data storage

· 4EVER Network Documents

· Does DeSci need to return to value or chase memes? Before a fork in the road, should you go left or right?

Disclaimer:

1. This article is reprinted from [BlockBeats]. All copyrights belong to the original author [Evan Lu , Waterdrip Capital, X: @Fisher256X]. If there are objections to this reprint, please contact the Gate Learn team, and they will handle it promptly.
2. Liability Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and do not constitute any investment advice.
3. The Gate Learn team translated the article into other languages. Copying, distributing, or plagiarizing the translated articles is prohibited unless mentioned.