Now is the time for ZDNet’s editorial staff to review the technologies that will mark the year 2022 in their imprint. After open source and the cloud, we are now talking about blockchain technologies.
2022, the year of the blockchain? Probably not
Blockchain platforms are generally based on open source. However, although they are linked to data, this is a whole different story. Let’s say it right off the bat: was 2021 a breakthrough year for blockchain? Not really. Will the year 2022 be a breakthrough year for the blockchain? Probably not.
But that is not the question. The sudden rise of blockchain in 2017 was rather abrupt and premature. The concepts and technology are still under development, while mainstream adoption is still sluggish.
Speaking in terms of the development cycle, blockchain is currently going through the trough of disillusionment. But that doesn’t mean it’s unimportant. I repeat: the potential for transformation is there, but there is still a long way to go, both technically and from an organizational and operational point of view.
Time for disillusionment?
In 2020, the term “DeFi”, powered by the blockchain, became known. In 2021, DeFi hit the wall of reality. DeFi is the acronym for “Decentralized Finance”. In short, the promise of DeFi is to be able to eliminate middlemen from all kinds of transactions. In 2020, DeFi experienced strong growth, sometimes justified, as noted last year.
Unsurprisingly, in what is becoming a habit in the blockchain world after ICOs (initial coin offering), scammers have flocked. Rug Pulls, a scam system associated with DeFi, accounted for 37% of all blockchain scam revenue in 2021, up from just 1% in 2020, for a total of $ 2.8 billion .
Additionally, as Gartner notes, cryptocurrency prices have plummeted in recent months. However, as the release continues, it is important not to confuse the value of the blockchain with the most recent price of the various coins. Volatility (as well as scams and failures, one might add) is to be expected as the cryptocurrency markets organize themselves. In the meantime, blockchain innovation is advancing steadily.
Thanks Bitcoin!
Bitcoin, the most popular blockchain-based cryptocurrency, has been upgraded under the code name Taproot. Taproot is considered a tool for developers to integrate new features that will improve privacy, scalability, and security.
Ethereum, the second blockchain-based cryptocurrency, has continued its long, winding path to break away from proof of work and move into proof of stake. After releasing the Beacon Chain after years of research and development in December 2020, on August 5, 2021, Ethereum’s “London” upgrade was successfully launched on the mainnet as the last hard fork before the transition to Proof-of-Stake / ETH 2.0.
But what is perhaps more important is that we have seen the notion of multiple blockchains take off in various alternatives to Ethereum. In March 2021, we saw the big comeback of IOTA. In October 2021, IOTA released “smart contracts” – the basis of DeFi – while supporting Ethereum interoperability and multi-blockchain networks.
The rise of Polkadot
Polkadot, the proof-of-stake blockchain that Ethereum co-founder Gavin Wood began building to address Ethereum’s flaws, launched parachains in 2021. Polkadot relies on a network of parallel blockchains called ” parachains “, which can manage their own assets and ecosystems while maintaining interoperability between blockchains. This is also how Polkadot supports smart contracts.
Much like his co-founder Gavin Wood, Charles Hoskinson continued his path after developing Ethereum. Cardano is another proof-of-stake blockchain, which at one point was the “third coin” of the cryptocurrency. Cardano recently added smart contract capabilities.
Finally, Chainlink, the oracle blockchain service, has also moved towards smart contracts, after introducing off-chain reporting, a new general framework for secure computing.
Source: ZDNet.com