6 Questions for Mitch Liu of Theta Labs

We inquire the buidlers successful the blockchain and cryptocurrency assemblage for their thoughts connected the industry… and propulsion successful a fewer random zingers to support them connected their toes!

This week, our 6 Questions spell to Mitch Liu, co-founder and CEO of Theta Labs — a decentralized video streaming level powered by users and built connected a caller blockchain.

Theta Labs is the enactment down the Theta Network — a fast, greenish blockchain designed from the bottommost up for media and entertainment. In 2019, Mitch launched Theta.tv, a decentralized livestreaming level that makes usage of tokenized bandwidth-sharing to marque video contented transportation faster and cheaper than mainstream alternatives. Most recently, Mitch and his squad launched ThetaDrop, an NFT marketplace powered by the Theta Network. 

Mitch has been an capitalist and entrepreneur successful the tech abstraction since 2007. He received a BS successful machine subject engineering from MIT, conducted probe astatine MIT Media Lab’s “Interactive Cinema” radical and received an MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

1 — What has been the toughest situation you’ve faced successful our manufacture truthful far?

I deliberation convincing stakeholders successful bequest industries that blockchain and Web3 technologies person a spot successful their industry’s future. Understandably, this wasn’t arsenic hard with the tech folks — caller technologies and caller ideas are benignant of their breadstuff and butter. But you’d beryllium amazed astatine however adjacent radical successful those spaces tin beryllium wedded to an older mode of doing things. It’s hard to wholly reimagine your industry. I don’t blasted anyone for that.

In media and entertainment, it has been a small much difficult. The modulation from television, vigor and Web1 to societal media and Web2 seemed beauteous intuitive. We’re traveling from a one-directional benignant of media to a shared, much collaborative model. Web3 and distributed ledger exertion are the aforesaid but turbocharged, and a small harder to wrapper your caput around. But we’ve started to spot a displacement successful the attitudes of media companies. Once radical recognize how, for example, sharing machine powerfulness and bandwidth to trim outgo and vigor depletion successful video streaming works, the conception clicks for them beauteous quickly. One day, Web3 volition look conscionable arsenic intuitive arsenic the TV. I truly judge that.

2 — What does decentralization mean to you, and wherefore is it important?

To me, decentralization means taking backmost power and sharing powerfulness with the radical and the broader community. Over the past mates of decades, we person sleepwalked into an net — a nine adjacent — that has placed acold excessively overmuch powerfulness successful the hands of excessively fewer radical and organizations. Tech giants similar Facebook (or Meta) are starting to recognize that, and they’re present trying to innovate and alteration their communicative to person users that they are inactive valued.

3 — When you archer radical you’re successful the blockchain industry, however bash they react?

I’m rather lucky. Most of my contemporaries are acquainted with what I bash and respond truly good to our enactment successful the blockchain space. I besides person an easier reply I tin usage if I privation because, successful truthful galore respects, Theta is successful the concern of media and entertainment, and it’s easier to understand. Blockchain is conscionable the exertion that allows america to adhd caller worth to the media industry, not needfully replacing the full industry.

4 — Which 2 superpowers would you astir privation to have, and however would you harvester them for good… oregon evil?

I would person to prime 1 for applicable reasons and 1 for fun. As overmuch arsenic I similar to sleep, it tin beryllium specified an inconvenience erstwhile you person truthful galore plans. I’d emotion to beryllium capable to walk much clip connected Theta. We person truthful galore breathtaking projects successful the works, and alternatively of spending my nights with my caput connected the pillow, it would beryllium large to crook that into productive clip — I’d person nary distractions!

My 2nd superpower would person to beryllium the quality to fly. Sure, it has a applicable proscription constituent (is that cheating?), but it would besides beryllium the top adrenaline rush. 

5 — If you didn’t request sleep, what would you bash with the other time?

I’d similar to walk arsenic overmuch clip arsenic imaginable with my friends and family. Life is excessively short, and it’s lone aft a hard week astatine your table that you recognize however small clip determination is for the bully things successful life. To unbend and unwind with the radical you emotion is 1 of life’s blessings, and I’d emotion to walk much prime clip doing it.

6 — What should we beryllium teaching our kids?

Things are astir ne'er arsenic hard arsenic they archetypal look to be.

Unless you’re blessed with unnatural confidence, taking connected a caller situation is ever difficult. But I person mislaid way of each the times successful my beingness erstwhile a task seemed intolerable yet I ended up either doing amended than expected oregon learning from the experience. And this has thing to bash with my earthy quality astatine immoderate fixed thing. From what I tin see, this is universal. Try your best, and it volition beryllium infinitely easier the adjacent time.

A privation for the young, ambitious blockchain community:

I would similar to privation them the champion of luck successful this space… and archer them to support connected innovating! It is them who volition pb america to planetary adoption. We’ll get there… it’s conscionable astir when.