The nonfungible token (NFT) industry has experienced some market turbulence over the past few months, but this hasn’t stopped both Twitter and Instagram from making moves into an industry that some estimate could be worth $231 billion by 2030. This comes off the back of Twitter having recently announced NFT Tweet Tiles and Instagram releasing an array of different NFT-related tools, and many NFT enthusiasts are naturally starting to deliberate which one will come out on top as the go-to social media platform for NFTs. Going by their unique value proposition and recent events, it is evident that Instagram currently …

The internet — arguably the greatest invention in human history — has gone awry. We can all feel it. It is harder than ever to tell if we are engaging with friends or foes (or bots), we know we are being constantly surveilled in the name of better ad conversion, and we live in constant fear of clicking something and being defrauded. The failures of the internet largely stem from the inability of large tech monopolies — particularly Google and Facebook — to verify and protect our identities. Why don’t they? The answer is that they have no incentive to …

While censorship resistance and privacy are not the same thing, they are closely intertwined. When the government or another entity, such as an advertiser, can track everything you do, they can also sanction you for bad behavior. Instead of working backward to try and cover up seismic cracks in Web2 with duct tape, it may be time to move full speed ahead on ensuring these same mistakes don’t happen in Web3. By being proactive, the purported internet of the future could actually protect our private information and prevent overzealous or oppressive censorship before these issues become unmanageable. Using crypto to …

Like many people, I was originally dubious of Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter given his historic tendency to make bold promises but later back away. That said, there is merit to his idea of adding a subscription layer to Twitter and using it to both improve curation and diversify away from advertising. If you believe in the core values of crypto, you should believe in it. To see why, we need to revisit the basics of Bitcoin (BTC). Most people focus their attention on the coin, but the more remarkable thing about Satoshi Nakamoto’s invention was the design of the …

Giant companies like Apple have made a fortune by centralizing their powers and profits and expanding their product and services network to be a part of people’s lives in as many ways as they can. Until recently, however, Apple had also demonstrated an ability to tunnel-focus its efforts to stay relevant and up to date with what consumers wanted, what mattered to them and what they needed most from the tech giants they rely on. It seems that this is not strictly true anymore, and that is a real shame. In its updated App Store guidelines unveiled on Oct. 24, …

People are often skeptical about Web3, many of them influencers and digital content creators. Notably, many of those most reluctant to embrace Web3 are very successful on Web2. Since they’ve mastered monetization on popular Web2 platforms such as TikTok, Twitch and others, why bother learning the rules of a new game? The current regulatory debate around restricting TikTok in the U.S. provides a salient example of the risks associated with Web2 platforms, and why embracing Web3 can both benefit and protect influencers and their fans. The value add of Web3 is twofold — autonomy and insurance. Let’s hope this TikTok …

Lonely hearts in Silicon Valley are reportedly falling prey to a wave of “pig slaughtering” crypto scams via dating applications. An investigator for cybersecurity company Sift found that one in 20 people who approached her on dating apps in San Francisco was working the scam. Pig slaughtering, or butchering, is a type of scam in which an individual/group puts in weeks or months of work to build a fake relationship with the victim, metaphorically fattening them up. The end goal is to get the victim to invest in crypto via either a duplicated version of a legitimate website or by …

Billionaire tech entrepreneur turned venture capitalist Marc Andreessen says that Web3 and its underlying blockchain technology reminds him of the rise of the early internet. Andreessen, better known today as the co-founder of the blockchain-focused venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), originally found success by developing the first widely used web browser called Mosaic and then founded Netscape Navigator, which dominated the browser market throughout much of the 1990s. Appearing on the Bankless podcast alongside investment partner and colleague Chris Dixon, Andreessen said that increasing adoption and a flurry of development in Web3 appears remarkably similar to the rush of …

In terms of policy, Greg Tanaka calls himself a legislator for the digital age and possibly the most pro-crypto person running in this election cycle. A member of the Palo Alto City Council, he has set his sights on the United States House of Representatives seat for California’s 16th, the Silicon Valley district. In an interview with Cointelegraph, the self-described nerd exuded enthusiasm and spoke with an unwavering smile about crypto and the financial system. Legal DAOs and crypto tax holidays “It’s the first form of truly better money,” Tanaka said of crypto. “More benefit goes to the people creating …

A16z, a VC company with investments in Protocol Labs, Polychain Capital and Opensea among others, is now planning to raise $4.5 billion for its latest fund which is focused solely on cryptocurrencies, according to a report by U.K newspaper Financial Times. Last week, Andreessen Horowitz’ venture capital firm reportedly said it would raise $3.5 billion for its VC fund, as well as another $1 billion for web3 seed investments, with the plans to be announced in March. The firm is ready to eclipse the $2.2 billion it raised in June 2021, which was at the time the crypto industry's largest. …

Global software giant Apple is recruiting for a new business development manager specializing in alternative payments, signaling that the iPhone maker is gravitating toward digital assets. The new job post for “Business Development Manager – Alternative Payments” was posted to Apple’s careers website on Tuesday. The new hire will be responsible for leading alternative payments partnerships and defining new commercialization streams. Apple is seeking a business professional with more than 10 years of experience, including a five-year track record “with alternative payment providers, such as digital wallets, BNPL, Fast Payments, cryptocurrency” and others. While the job posting is compelling, Apple …

Twitter may be the next major company to purchase Bitcoin, according to the tech firm's chief financial officer. In an interview on CNBC’s Squawk Box today, Ned Segal, who has served as the CFO of Twitter since 2017, responded to questions about how Twitter would react to Tesla’s recent $1.5 billion Bitcoin (BTC) investment this week. Segal said the tech firm was watching other companies closely, and discussed potentially adding the crypto asset to its own books or using it for Twitter employees' salaries. “We’ve done a lot of the upfront thinking to consider how we might pay employees should …