Shapella.
What does it mean to you?
Most people I know are excited or confused about it. If you were among the confused, allow me to explain. Shapella (a combination of the words ‘Shanghai’ and ‘Capella’) is the final step in the Ethereum blockchain’s transition from a Proof of Work to a Proof of Stake consensus. My friend and co-founder, Govind, captured what this means in a thread on Twitter. Give it a read if you still have questions.
This is another sign that BUIDLing continues in crypto whether it is a bull market or bear market. A few weeks ago, Bitcoin crossed the $30,000 threshold for the first time since June 2022, livening up the market after a long bear run. This is one of the many cycles the crypto market has been through in the past. And as builders who believe that the blockchain and crypto are unstoppable, we’re unfazed by these cycles. I spoke about this, and how my own personal failures shaped me, in a candid chat with Shrabonti Bagchi from the Mint Lounge.
Fitness and mindfulness were some of the goals I’d set out for myself at the start of this year. So here’s a progress update: I’ve been able to exercise and meditate almost everyday for the last 4 months (with the exception of some travel). I’ve discovered that ever since I’ve started making a deliberate effort to prioritize my health, my productivity has gone up. I put in the same number of hours but I’ve seen a substantial improvement in my creativity and efficiency. It really goes to show that to do our best work, we must first take care of ourselves.
Moving on, if I had to recommend another read for this month, it would have to be a16z’s State of Crypto report for 2023. It shows that Web3 and crypto have grown in leaps and bounds despite the bear market and the year marred by high profile scandals. It also contains the State of Crypto Index, a tool to track the health of the industry from a technological perspective. My favorite takeaway is about the pace at which ‘Zero-knowledge’ systems are developing. Simply put, Zero-knowledge systems that help blockchain-based digital tools to scale without compromising privacy. I’m excited to see the kinds of use cases it opens up for Web3.
In other news, we’re in the final stages of launching new products that will help our users invest in other asset classes as well. We’ll launch it to a select set of users very soon. If you’d like to be one of them, reply to this email with your name, registered email address and phone number.
