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CAN YOU LEARN BLOCKCHAIN TECHNOLOGY IN MALAYSIA?

Yogi Nelson

Namaste Yogis.   Welcome to the Blockchain & AI Forum, where your blockchain and artificial intelligence technology questions are answered!   Here no question is too mundane.  As a bonus, a proverb is also included.  Today’s question was submitted by Ying in Thailand, and she wants to know if she can learn blockchain technology in Malaysia.

Ying, you came to the right place.  Your question shows you are aware that blockchain technology is spreading throughout the world.  The answer is yes, you can learn blockchain technology in Malaysia.  Let’s look at a Malaysian blockchain program and see what they offer.  We begin with the program name.

The name is not particularly creative, but it gets the point across—The Malaysia Blockchain Academy.  Simple and straight forward.  Their physical presence is in their capital, Kuala Lumpur.  A beautiful city, and worth a visit.  I hope to be there later this year.

The academy offers seven on-line courses and one in-person.  I’ll start by talking about the in-person course, named Certified Blockchain Technologist.  According to the Academy, this is an instructor led course designed for anyone who wants to understand blockchain technology.   The course offers to teach blockchain technology using real world examples, case studies and use cases.  By the end of the course you will create your own blockchain and wallet!  If you pass the final and complete a class project, you will earn a certificate that is recognized across the global.  Holy high tech, Batman.  Now an overview of their seven on-line courses.

The Academy does not explicitly indicate the order in which courses should be taken in, nevertheless I will suggest a sequence, beginning with Introduction to Hyperledger Blockchain.  What is Hyperledger Blockchain?  Hyperledger is an open source permissioned blockchain framework designed for global enterprises who want to have advanced privacy controls in place. It was started by The Linux Foundation and now backed by IBM, Intel and SAP Ariba.  What else is available?

Next, I suggest Blockchain Platforms and Framework as that course offers a deep understanding of the technology, with a particular emphasis on IBM technology. Who knows, maybe land a job with IBM?  After you finish those three classes, students are ready for courses four and five, both of which are practical and hands.

I suggest Create a Blockchain Network as the fourth course and Create an App Using Blockchain as the fifth.  These two courses are designed to teach students how to apply the lessons not just theoretical understanding.  That’s awesome, right?  Let’s cover the last three courses.

On to course six, Introduction to Polkadot technology.  I find this offering particularly useful.  Polkadot is a layer one blockchain with a world-wide reach.  Develop an expertise in Polkadot and you are immediately employable or even better create your own company!  Two more courses remain.

Checking in at number seven is a class focused on Fin-Tech.  Fin-Tech is an abbreviation for Financial Technology. Stop and consider all the technology associated with finance and banking and then visualize yourself at the center of that technology.  That is the point of the Fin-Tech class. 

We conclude with a crypto-currency course.  Unfortunately, the common narrative is that blockchain and crypto currency are one and the same.  They are not.  Crypto currency is just one of numerous blockchain applications.  Take this course and understand the technology behind crypto.

Time to go, but first a proverb from Malaysia, where they say:  A tiger dies leaving its stripes, a person dies leaving their name.

Until next time,

Yogi Nelson

Artificial Intelligence, blockchain association, Blockchains, China

WHAT ARE BLOCKCHAIN ASSOCIATIONS?

Yogi Nelson

Namaste Yogis.   Welcome to the Blockchain & AI Forum, where your technology questions are answered.   Here no question is too mundane.  As a bonus, a proverb is also included.  Today’s question was submitted by Kandy, and she wants to know what are blockchain associations?

Kandy, you came to the right place.  Although the definition may vary depending on the country, an association is generally defined as an organization comprised of businesses or individuals in a specific industry or trade collaborating to address common issues, set standards, and advocate for their shared interests and goals.  Members pay dues, and the association’s professional staff work on their behalf.  On to the blockchain association located in Washington, D.C.

Washington D.C. is not only the USA capital, it’s also the headquarters of associations.  Government capitals and associations are congenital twins.  Where one goes, so does the other.  As of 2022, over 3,400 associations were registered in Washington, including an association of associations.  Lol!  That is not a joke! 

The Blockchain Association in Washington has 100+ members.  Membership is restricted.  Individuals cannot join, only organizations.  Their mission is “… to advance the future of crypto in the United States, promoting potential of blockchain technology and shaping policy that ensures its success. We work with our members to educate policymakers about blockchain technology and its ability to pave the way for a more secure, competitive, and consumer-friendly digital marketplace.”  Holy shared interest, Batman! Let’s discuss blockchain associations around the world. 

As noted above blockchain associations basically function in a universal manner—they all advocate, educate, promote, hold events, etc.  Hence, I will only highlight one or two unique facts for a select few blockchain associations.

Canada—Blockchain Association of Canada.  Two fun facts about BAC.  First, BAC sponsors innovation challenges.  Second, BAC is headquartered in Vancouver not Ottawa (Canada’s capital).

Cayman Islands.  The Cayman Islands is an international banking center.  Therefore, we should not be shocked to discover the country is embracing blockchain technology.

China.  Several years ago, China declared blockchain a national priority technology and not surprisingly there are numerous national and international blockchain associations, including the UK-China Blockchain Association, the Hong Kong Blockchain Society, French-Chinese Blockchain Association.

Germany—Blockchain Bundersverband.  The German blockchain association has a working group focused on decentralized autonomous organizations. 

Mexico—Blockchain Association of Mexico.  We Latinos are known for coming late.  Lol. The Mexican Blockchain Association arrived early!  Lol!

Singapore–Blockchain Association Singapore (BAS).  The BAS has six working groups including one dedicated to stable coins and central bank digital currency.  If you know Singapore, you are not surprised.

Swiss Blockchain Federation.  Located in Bern (the capital) the SBF works across a range of topics, including bringing blockchain technology to the public sector.

United Arab Emirates—Government Blockchain Association of UAE. 

United Arab Emirates–Middle East, Africa & Asia Crypto & Blockchain Association (MEAACBA).  This is an international blockchain association.  Members hail from the Middle East, Africa, and Asia and the headquartered is in Dubai, UAE.  

United Kingdom–International Blockchain Association (IBA).  The IBA has offices in London, New York, and Dubai. 

Kandy, the research reveals an emerging picture.  First, blockchain adoption is growing fast.  Second adoption is increasingly international.  Third, beyond the USA, Dubai, China, and Singapore are blockchain hot spots. Fourth, crypto does not equal blockchain.  Blockchain is a technology with countless use cases that extends far beyond just crypto.  Five, policy makers are being educated around the world and that portends a brighter future.

I end with a proverb from Tunisia:  Like salt, he doesn’t miss any meal.

Until next time,

Yogi Nelson

Artificial Intelligence, Blockchains

AND NOW A WORD ABOUT AIRDROPS?

Yogi Nelson

Namaste Yogis.   Welcome to the Blockchain & AI Forum, where your technology questions are answered, mostly correct!   Here no question is too mundane.  As a bonus, a proverb is also included.  Today’s question, submitted by Danny in Los Angeles, and he wants to know about airdrops.

Danny, you came to the right place.  If you take the term literally, you might think someone is dropping air on your head which would be absurd!  Let’s start with a definition.

Airdrops is a term native to and used exclusively in crypto.  You won’t find reference to airdrops in any other market or industry.  Best of all, airdrops are free!  No charge.  Nada.  Zero.  However, nothing is truly free, meaning we must dig a little deeper.

Let’s start with the obvious; airdrops are a marketing strategy.  The point is to raise awareness and adoption of the project doing the airdrop.  Holy obvious, Batman! Generally, start-up blockchain companies are most likely to engage in airdrops.  The first airdrop occurred in 2014 by AuroraCoin, in Iceland.  El Salvador gave every citizen $30 of Bitcoin to those who installed the government built crypto wallet.  A government-built wallet from a corrupt government to encourage a decentralized money system.  Holy, are you serious, Batman!

Airdrops vary.  I’ll explain a few staring with Standard.

Standard Airdrop.  Standard Airdrop is the simplest.  Participants need only provide their wallet address and basic information. The airdrop quantity may vary depending on several factors, including number of participants, and the amount available, to name just two.

Bounty Airdrop.  To earn bounty airdrops, users must perform certain tasks.  Tasks vary, but generally revolve around raising project awareness, e.g., posting on social media, tagging a company, retweeting a post.  Some projects award airdrops for recruiting other users, think multi-layer marketing, Batman!

Holder Airdrop.  Holder airdrops are often automatic and based on a formula of quantities of tokens a holder possesses, and duration held. It is a way to reward commitment and loyalty.  Only the financially faithful, Batman!

Exclusive Airdrop.  As the name suggest, exclusive airdrops are reserved for selected individuals.  Who are the exclusive?  Generally, they are people who spend the most time on the project, contribute to the project, post about the project, and/or stake their holdings with the project.  Staking is generally the most effective way to get airdrops.  Holy, hoity-toti, Batman! 

Raffle Airdrops.  Raffle airdrops occur when a project decides to give away X number of tokens, based on a lottery.  However, the lottery may not be completely random.  The lottery may be weighted to give advantage to holders.     

If nothing is free nor perfect, what are the downside of airdrops.  In a word–SCAMS!  I’ll give you two scam types, starting with dusting.

In a dusting scam, the thief will send micro amounts of a valuable coin, e.g., Bitcoin, to a recipient.  The idea is to entice the victim to attach their wallet to a crooked phishing website, via a legit service such as Metamask, to claim their airdrop.  After a user connects their wallet and enters their password the scammer drains the stash!  Holy, where is my money Batman!  The second is enticing market participants to invest in a fraudulent, or non-existent project.  Either way your money is vaporized!  Two more quick points.  Tokens from airdrop projects might be worthless because the project fails, and/or token illiquidity.  Hence, keep the champagne on ice but the cork in the bottle!  Lol!

I end with a proverb from Niger:  Ashes fly back into the faces of those who throws them.

Until next time,

Yogi Nelson

Blockchains

ARE BLOCKCHAINS AND CHARITIES A PERFECT MATCH?

Yogi Nelson

Namaste Yogis.   Welcome to the Blockchain & AI Forum, where your technology questions are answered, mostly correct!   Here no question is too mundane.  As a bonus, a proverb is also included.  Today’s question, comes from Lisa in Naperville, and she wants to know if blockchain technology and charity are a perfect match?

Lisa, you came to the right place.  Prior to your question, I hadn’t considered a possible marriage between blockchain technology and charity work.  That’s my fault.  The answer is … read this article and decide for yourself!

In traditional charity, benefactors expect their donations will be accepted and deployed congruent with their intent by the charity administrator.  In other words, based on trusting intermediaries.  What if there was a technology that would remove the need for trusted intermediaries? Suppose that technology allowed a peer-to-peer exchange of value, without permission, and need for trust because all transactions are subject to verification on a digital distributed ledger for anyone to confirm, at any time, from anywhere?  That would be incredible! Breaking news, the technology exist–its blockchain combined with crypto currency!  Holy obvious, Batman! Hold on, the tsunami of reasons for pairing blockchain with charity are only beginning to flood in. 

Blockchain technology removes unnecessary intermediaries, making the donation process faster.  For example, donations can be sent and received directly on-chain, making transactions quick.  What perhaps previously took 8 steps, and several middlemen, can be reduced to maybe 4 using blockchain technology.  However, this pairing goes beyond the removal of intermediaries.

With blockchain technology benefactors can verify transactions independently.   In other words, matching blockchain and charity flows beyond eliminating middlemen.  The point is there is no need to trust because the proof is in the blockchain.  Sweet! 

A third reason is efficiency.  Charities that utilize smart contracts, via blockchains, have a tremendous advantage over their competitors.  With smart contracts, charities can automate transactions when predetermined criteria are satisfied.  Thus far we have faster, more efficient, and trustless reasons.  Let’s talk about international charities. 

Speaking from personal experience, sending money overseas is expen$$$ive and s-l-o-w—but not with blockchain technology.  With a couple of mouse clicks money is sent instantly and for just pennies.  Moreover, with blockchain and smart contracts the potential pool of donors is worldwide, making it reason number five!  You are on a roll now Batman, please mention NFTs.

Charities need to raise awareness to succeed and issuing NFTs could be a means to draw attention.  NFT stands for non-fungible token, therefore each NFT is unique.  A charity could raise funds by selling a series of NFTs or an NFT collection set in a raffle, for example.  Holy storytelling, Batman! 

Using blockchain technology for charitable purposes is not worry free.  For example, crypto currencies fluctuate in value; hence, a benefactor may exceed their intended donation, or under deliver.  Either way, it complicates budgeting for the charity.  Sending stable coins is a possible solution because they are pegged to specific assets, i.e., U.S. Dollar, Euro, Yen, etc. but that too could be a hurdle. 

What hurdle?  The challenge of the digital divide.  Not every charity organization has the technical skills to handle crypto currencies.  Cyber security may be a challenge.  For instance, transactions can be hacked or compromised.  Send out the Bat signal! 

Government regulations are always a consideration.  Some nations permit charities to accept crypto donations; others might incarcerate in the BIG house for doing so! 

I end with this Panamanian proverb: If you want no disappointments, don’t indulge in illusion

Until next time,

Yogi Nelson

Blockchains, China, cryptography, Patents, Yogi Nelson

WHY ALL THE FUSS ABOUT 3924 3924, 3924, 3924, 3924, 3924, 3924

Yogi Nelson

Namaste Yogis.   Welcome to the Blockchain & AI Forum, where your technology questions are answered, mostly correct!   Here no question is too mundane.  As a bonus, a proverb is also included.  Today’s question, submitted by Albert from Iowa and his question is, why the number 3924?

Albert, you came to the right place.  Let’s talk about this number, 3,924.  According to the Blockchain Global Patent Authorization, as of December 2020, there were 3,924 patents granted for blockchain technology worldwide.  For a new technology, 3,924 is a staggering number and as I said previously the number reflects 2020 statistics.  Holy worldwide adoption, Batman!

This naturally leads to the next question.  What countries lead in blockchain patents?  According to Lexology, U.S. companies accounted for 39% of all patents granted, South Korea comes in second with 21%, and China was a close third at 19%.  In other words, the US, South Korea, and China accounted for 79% of all blockchain patents globally up to year 2020.  But that is backward looking data.  If we want to understand the next wave, we must examine pending patent applications as that tells a forward-looking story. Okay, let’s do it.

In Digital Finance by Baxter Hines, he cites The Block as the source for pending patents.  According to that source, Chinese companies should dominate the next wave of blockchain patents.  In fact, the top five companies with blockchain patents pending are all Chinese.  Tencent, Alibaba, and Ant Financial alone have 1,263 patents pending whereas the top three American companies (Walmart, IBM, and Microsoft) have only 123.  Is there more to the story?  I think so.  Read on. 

Let’s go back to 2019.  In 2019, Chinese President Xi Jinping identified the advancement of blockchain technology as a national priority and declared China will “lead the next wave of digital transformation” and called for greater study, investment, and regulation.  What happened next?

Well, in typical top-down authoritarian fashion, more than 35,000 firms responded to Xi’s appeal by registering their companies as “blockchain related” and expanding the use of blockchain technology into their businesses’ operations.  Holy jumping right on the task, Batman! But hold on there is more to the story.

Of the 35,000 that responded only 730 qualified for the Chinese government’s blockchain certification (2%).  Nevertheless, more than 10,000 blockchain patent applications were filed!  But quantity and quality are not always synonymous, and the Chinese government approved only a small fraction of the applications.  Perhaps, Xi needed to be more explicit in his order.  I suggest he try this next time: “Listen up comrades.  We need lots of high-quality world class blockchain patents.”  Lol!

Research and development into blockchain technology is big business.  There is a battle for blockchain technology supremacy between the US and China, with South Korea in the hunt also.  The winner of this battle will have an advantage across many developing technologies, including artificial intelligence (AI).  Many technology analysts are forecasting a fuse of blockchain, AI, and the internet of things (IOT) converging into a tsunami of tech advancements in the next decade.  Hold on to your safety belts, Batman!

I close today with a proverb from Denmark, where people say:  Never advise anyone to go to war or to marry.  Wise words indeed!

Until next time.

Yogi Nelson