The Metaverse Podcast - (Blockchain-attached) Storage, with Keyvan Sadeghi of Functionland
Primer: We are over-reliant on Web2 cloud services. What if you can decentralize away from them? Enter Box, a product by Functionland. It enables a private cloud-like storage, provides backups and resources to others on the network, and quietly earns FULA tokens in the background. Get the scoop from Keyvan Sadeghi in this episode of the Metaverse podcast.
Background
Have a Masters in Artificial Intelligence
Was looking for a job in Artificial General Intelligence (AGI)
Went to Hong Kong to work with Ben Goertzel on the OpenCog project in 2012
Artificial General Intelligence
The creation of algorithms to solve general problems instead of specific ones
Experience At Hong Kong
Used a linux machine for work
Had to do coding in Python, an open source language
“It made me who I am, the true open source believer, because of the fruit of that work, specifically, you would see your work. Instead of it being behind closed doors, it is out in the world for everyone to see, touch, and change.”
- Keyvan Sadeghi
Other Roles He Had
Created a health tech website knowledge base
Was responsible for creating the graph representation of that knowledge base
Started creating open source lego pieces. Brought this concept to Functionland
Was in the Cloud industry as well
OpenStack came along. Was trying to build on it
“During the past 10 years, don't be evil became evil. And that's made way for us to think hard from the first principles, how we can change it, and the scene of blockchain and Web3 technologies.”
- Keyvan Sadeghi
Monetization For Open Source
Funding has been solved for open source dev tools
Monetization for end user apps remained unsolved
Devs have to compromise user experience with ads and subscription to pay bills
Functionland’s Hardware
Hardware is called Box
It acts as your personal server providing you with computational and storage needs
It’s accompanied by a network with cloud-like features such as reliable backups, high availability, real-time collaboration and sharing
It’s a small cube-like device
Users just need to connect it to an app on their phone
Pricing:
Standalone version: USD $400
XL version: USD $1399
Protocol Labs, IPFS, And Functionland
Protocol Labs is the most widely used protocol for data sharing on Web3
IPFS enables people to share files on a P2P manner
Inside their Box, they have their own implementation of protocols made by Protocol Labs, libp2p, IPFS, etc.
The biggest problem with BitTorrent is that seeders would stop seeding and leechers who download and leave
In their FULA network, they incentivize people to keep seeding by offering daily rewards
Thoughts On Decentralization
Many blockchain deployments have been rightfully accused of being centralized
Many are run on Web2 infrastructure like AWS
Many IPFS deployments are limited geographically
They are collaborating with IPFS on a concept called local pools to solve the latency that IPFS is experiencing
Their Roadmap
Exploring how they can create a Web3 alternative to HTTPS
Have 3 protocols:
File protocol — a standard for communication
Graph protocol — for data persistence
AI protocol — does distributed computation for deep learning
One of their potential partners is Helium Network
Pre-Installed Apps And How Will They Manage Third Party Apps
Currently working on a photo app
Have 2 more apps in the pipeline:
A password manager
An alternative to Google Drive/Dropbox
“You don't need to go bankrupt to create an app and publish it for mobile devices. You can earn a constant income from it.”
- Keyvan Sadeghi
There will be no curation. Anybody can put whatever they want on it
Apps are installed on your phone, not inside the Box
Could have auditors to audit apps on the marketplace
Who Handles Customer Service?
Follows how Web2 does it — from peers and communities like Stack Overflow
Why Did They Decide To Go The Traditional Route Of Crowdfunding?
Started with Kickstarter originally
24 hours before going live on Kickstarter, they were informed that they could not launch on the platform
They cannot disrupt the supply chain industry and had to find creative ways to play with the traditional markets
Crowdfunding is a way to show that there’s appetite for their product
Had their crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo
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