PLN Updates - Aug 15
Host an event at LabWeek23, Worldcoin reaches 2 million signups in one week, Compute Over Data launches Lilypad, and a new AI and Web3 accelerator from LongHashX.
⚙️ New Tool Alert: Worldcoin and the World App
Shipped: July 2023
What It Is: With a goal to authenticate humans online through biometric iris scans, while retaining privacy and providing financial incentives, Worldcoin officially launched at the end of July and garnered over 2 million sign-ups within one week. The project consists of World ID, a digital identity obtained through the now-famous Orb; a digital currency (WLD); and the World App. Built by PLN team Tools For Humanity, the World App contains each user’s proof of personhood and a digital wallet.
Why It’s a Big Deal: Co-founded in 2021 by Alex Blania and Sam Altman, Worldcoin has raised upwards of $125 million. In the age of AI, Worldcoin is designed to be a decentralized open source protocol that instantly verifies the identity of anyone, anywhere. Long Orb queues have already formed for people to sign up at 10 locations in the US, 17 in India, and three in Japan — and counting.
The Big Picture: Worldcoin aims to become the largest identity and financial public network, open to everyone regardless of their country, background or economic status. From banking to artistic copyright, the access to a free way to verify identity will become crucial in an age where misinformation is rife online. If you’ve seen the recent deepfakes of Tom Cruise, you’ll get it.
—> Read details in the Worldcoin whitepaper here.
🇹🇷 LabWeek23 Updates: Host an Event
LabWeek23 in Istanbul, Turkey, is coming up Nov. 13-17, alongside Devconnect. Swissotel The Bosphorus will serve as the hub for LabWeek23 with many events happening on the premise. Early schedule, FAQ and more information on LabWeek23 are coming very soon. In the mean time, we’re making it easy for you to host an event.
Please fill out ✍️ this form if you are interested in hosting an event at the Swissotel The Bosphorus. We'll work with you on some of the event logistics and general marketing so you'll be able to focus on agenda and programming, ticketing and registration, marketing to your specific audience, and everything else to make your event great. We also have created an Event Host Deck with room maps to help you plan your event.
One more thing, Astrofitters — PLN's go-to partner for swag, specializing in merchandise design, production, and event experiences — is offering a 20% discount on swag for LabWeek23, if you place an order before August 31! Learn more here.
📢 Meet Lilypad: From The Bacalhau Project
Lilypad v1 is here! With AI reaching mainstream adoption and advancing at a rapid clip, access to data and algorithms — and the processing power to train large language models — is more important than ever in order to avoid bias and fine-tune for important use cases. But this access can be very (even prohibitively) expensive.
Leveraging decentralized physical infrastructure networks (or DePIN) with L2 compute coordination and incentive layers (like Lilypad) enables a cheaper, more efficient, and more widely distributed marketplace.
Lilypad is part of a movement to unlock the next generation of web-scale dApps in Web3 to enable affordable, trustless compute — brought to you by the compute over data team behind The Bacalhau Project.
—> Try it for yourself (for free!) here. We had our fun:
❯ lilypad run sdxl:v0.9-lilypad1 "a corgi shot into space"
📡 Network Radar
Move over X (the artist formerly known as Twitter), Huddle01 has just launched Huddle01 Spaces, designed to offer a decentralized alternative to X Spaces. Check out this thread about it.
LongHashX in Asia has partnered with Protocol Labs to launch a niche Web3 accelerator focused on the intersection of Web3 and AI. The 12-week program offers two tracks for builders, both starting in mid-October. Teams and projects interested in applying for the program can read more here and apply directly using this form.
Fleek Network has released a new whitepaper that details the decentralized edge platform designed for the building and running of highly performant edge services. Read the whitepaper here and an executive summary in this blog post.
Fission has received an $800,000 grant from the Arcological Association and the IPFS Network Capital Pool to support further applied research of the InterPlanetary Virtual Machine (IPVM) protocols and the Homestar reference implementation. Read about it in this blog post.
With record-breaking heatwaves blanketing the planet this summer, this month’s Transcription blog post, on a talk given at SBS Boston, could not be more timely. Read about the startup Topl’s mission to incentivize impact beyond carbon offsets and register for the upcoming SBS Earth virtual conference here.
Mission Control, a no-code visual platform for building and running trustworthy generative AI workflows, recently launched Accelerate, a magazine covering developments in all things AI. Be sure to read this interesting (and slightly scary) essay about AI colleagues in the near future.
Open Data Hack, a three-week online hackathon, kicks off August 30. This event is all about sparking innovation in Web3 and open data to create solutions for the future data-centric economy. Don’t miss out — register now.
🔦 Spotlight: Bailey Meltabarger
Bailey Meltabarger is a lead in the People Solutions Team who assists with sourcing, training and retaining top talent for PLN teams. A mother of four who loves a good golf tournament, get to know Bailey in this fun Q&A. Hint: She loves/ needs coffee.
Tell us a bit about yourself.
Snapshot:
☕ x2 to function, cream and sugar
When in doubt, take the chocolate 🍫 route!
👨🏻 Logan, together for 11 years, married for 9, met in high school
👩🏻👦🏻👦🏻👶🏻 Elle (15), Dean (7), Reid (5), Hayes (3)
Hi there! I entered PL with 12+ years of HR experience. My degree is in Fashion Merchandising, which gets the most use when I am online shopping. I have worked in a few different industries (retail, logistics, fintech) where my focus has always been people. Most of my roles have been centered around PBP with extensions in HRIS systems, benefits, employee relations, and development.
Personally, I have two sisters, and my parents live 15 minutes from us. My husband and I bought a house in the town that we met in and went to high school in many years ago. HOMEBODY to the core, but we do try to travel about five times a year now that the kids are getting a little older and grandparents are still willing to keep them.
I can/ will speak exclusively in gifs.
How did you get into Web3?
I previously worked as the Director of HR for a payments company and was introduced to Protocol Labs through Stef Wykoff. That began my journey into the exciting world of Web3!
What advice would you give to someone joining Web3?
I spent my first few weeks at PL taking in every TED Talk, webinar, and recording of speakers like Juan Benet, Colin Evran, and Molly Mackinlay had ever made. That knowledge deep dive really helped me to better understand not only Web3, but the deep mission behind it all. The passion that they showed towards that mission really sets a fire in you that makes you want to do anything you can to be a part of it.
What challenges or rough edges would you like to see solved in Web3?
I think the biggest challenge I see is around privacy and security. While blockchain provides transparency and security, privacy remains a challenge. Balancing the need for privacy with the transparency requirements of decentralized systems is a complex task. Developing robust privacy-preserving mechanisms and enhancing security protocols are crucial to protect user data and assets.
I believe the ongoing research, innovation, and collaboration within the Web3 community are strong and up for the challenge.
What are your favorite podcasts or books?
Podcasts: Boys Club and HR Superstars
Books: Thinking Fast + Slow by Daniel Kahneman and Harry Potter… all of them ⚡
Tell us something you like to do for fun.
Chasing kids is most of my life outside of work. When we do get a minute, my husband and I enjoy attending golf tournaments. We have been to six different events so far! We also love spending time at the lake and pool.
🗓 Key Event: Fund Public Goods Hackathon
The first-ever Fund Public Goods Hackathon, hosted by Funding the Commons, will take place from August 11 to September 1. The virtual event is open to all skill levels and offers up to $63,000 in rewards for top projects. Don’t miss out on the opportunity to shape the future of decentralized funding ecosystems!
—> Sign up here.
📱 PLN Events
🚀 Bookmark the PLN Events Page for the most up to date events in the community. Sign up for these events coming up in the next few months:
Lab Day, virtual event, August 16 at 9am PST/4pm UTC
Funding the Commons, Berlin, Germany, September 8-9 (Apply to speak here)
FIL Dev Summit Singapore, September 12-14 (Buy tickets here)
FIL Dev Summit Iceland, September 25-27 (Buy tickets here)
🍿 Fun Corner
Read a good book or listened to an insightful podcast recently? Let us know.
📚 New Pick: Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
Recommended By: Harry Grieve, co-founder of Gensyn
What It’s About: This 1968 dystopian sci-fi classic is about the moral dilemma of a man who hunts near-human androids in a futuristic, desolate San Francisco. The real world doesn’t sound so bad anymore, right?
📝 Tips?
Have a suggestion for the next PLN Updates newsletter? We’d love to hear from you! Contact Sara Hamdan at sara.hamdan@protocol.ai.