2 years ago
Recently, I spoke with Justin Rezvani, the laminitis of Zion, a decentralized, open-source, utility-based societal media protocol that is built connected apical of Bitcoin.
The speech focused chiefly astir wherefore Zion is necessary, alternatively than what Zion is, and I recovered that to beryllium telling astir the larger intentions for the project. The absorption was little astir selling a merchandise and making a bottommost line, and much astir the necessity of decentralizing societal media arsenic we presently cognize it, challenging existent powerfulness structures and empowering creators to person nonstop relationships with their consumers portion focusing connected education.
I anticipation you bask this speech arsenic overmuch arsenic I did.
What is Zion?
Zion is an exertion built connected the Lightning Network that facilitates creators and their audiences to person a much intimate acquisition engaging with each other.
Every idiosyncratic connected the web is moving a afloat Lightning node and it's a existent peer-to-peer network. It's not a centralized system. It's not similar a accepted website. It's really peer-to-peer nodes, peer-to- adjacent computers, communicating done an open-source protocol, which is the Lighting Network.
How does Zion assistance streamline the process of moving your ain Lightning node, and what does that mean for a idiosyncratic experience?
Using Zion is precise quick, fundamentally with a one-click checkout and a recognition card, you tin beryllium up and running, not lone having a afloat Lightning node that you're moving yourself, but besides having a pre-provisioned channel, each successful a non-custodial manner, with your backstage keys held connected the instrumentality itself. And I deliberation that's the innovation where, you know, you person this afloat sovereignty of your information and you person each of the accusation stored connected that node encrypted.
I deliberation the aboriginal of wherever we're going is this quality of cryptography to beryllium capable to unafraid messages connected a non-centralized server successful an individualized mode and having aforesaid sovereignty of not lone your bitcoin, but besides your data.
One cardinal happening radical whitethorn announcement successful the setup of a Zion relationship is that there’s a checkout function, requiring a recognition card, which does mean that you’re paying for something. This is simply a spot antithetic from the exemplary we typically spot successful Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and others. What is it you’re paying for, and why?
You're paying to rent a afloat Bitcoin Lightning node. That's what you're really paying for. And past our bundle comes successful arsenic a relay, the customized bundle that's built onto the node, which is free.
So, if you're moving your ain node, you're much than invited to spell to our GitHub, and download each the relay docs. We person everything dockerized. You tin bash that. If you're moving your ain afloat node, the happening is, there's a batch of complexity with doing that due to the fact that past you person to fig out, well, however bash you make static IP addresses that determination the domain implicit quickly?
These are things that we don't person enactment for yet, but if you tally your ain node, you're much than invited to bash it. So technically erstwhile you articulation Zion, you're not joining Zion. You're not paying to articulation Zion. You're paying to tally a afloat Bitcoin Lightning node. And past it has the bundle attached to it that allows you to entree Zion.
The existent large favoritism is you're not paying to articulation this societal network. It's your ain Lightning node. And you're capable to bash galore different things with this Lightning node. It comes with a pre-provisioned channel. All of your information is past stored connected this node arsenic well. So, it's a small spot antithetic than paying for a societal network.
Sovereignty And Censorship
Censorship and information postulation are not caller problems, but the solutions for them astir surely are. Bitcoin is an inherently trustless and permissionless system. We’ve begun to spot the emergence of caller companies, similar Gettr, which are promising not to censor their users. The occupation with Gettr is that we spot ourselves wrong the aforesaid spot systems of the past, hoping that things volition change.
How does Zion disagree from societal media platforms similar Gettr, and what volition this caller property of societal media look like?
The aboriginal of societal media, first, it needs to beryllium built connected a monetary layer. The 2nd portion is it has to let for permissionless innovation, which means that it's unfastened source. Next, the protocol has to beryllium focused connected adjacent governance versus level governance. Next, it has to beryllium censorship resistant, which means that the protocol has layers of censorship absorption built into it.
The adjacent portion is that the creators ain everything. And past the last portion is that determination are integer spot rights for the radical that usage the work done encryption. You ain things done layers of encryption. This is my “north star” thesis connected the aboriginal of societal networks. Gettr doesn't fulfill a azygous 1 of those pieces of the network.
What astir the large question of censorship successful today’s societal landscape? How bash you get kicked disconnected Zion?
Now, the investors person asked questions astir amerciable worldly happening and what bash you bash if amerciable worldly happens? And the information is [that would lone apply] if we person a ineligible announcement saying this is an amerciable act, and if we are someway hosting the node, which is precise unlikely, right? Let's conscionable enactment a script together, here.
If someone's doing thing nasty connected the internet, bash you deliberation they're going to spell to person a hosted node with a work to spell bash the nasty things that they're trying to do? Probably not. They're astir apt gonna aforesaid big it successful their house. But the honorable information is that, you know, we volition abide by immoderate ineligible request that's enactment towards us.
Platforms Vs. Protocols
What is the cardinal quality with Zion arsenic a inferior protocol, alternatively than being a societal media platform?
If radical look astatine america and say, “Oh, Zion, conscionable different platform,” you're inherently incorrect astir our technology. We are a protocol inferior furniture that allows nodes to peer-to-peer pass with each other.
You person your ain node. You're not sitting connected Zion. That's your node. You're buying a node, aforesaid custody of your information. You mightiness beryllium moving it astatine home, your ain server astatine your ain house. We are conscionable a browser to entree that information, right?
If 2 radical talk, similar calling each different connected the phone, are you going to blasted AT&T due to the fact that they had the tube sitting nether the crushed and that allowed a telephone telephone to happen? Of people not, you would ne'er accidental that!
The crushed this amerciable enactment happened was due to the fact that of AT&T telephone lines underneath the ground, that'd beryllium the astir absurd happening to say, right?
It's someone's ain sovereign telephone and idiosyncratic else's sovereign telephone and they're talking to each different crossed the web. And I deliberation that's the aforesaid acquisition that we're talking about. Zion is not a platform. It is protocol, furniture rails that fto nodes pass successful a peer-to-peer way. That's the difference.
Conclusion
Big information companies person captured our identities arsenic the astir invaluable plus successful a integer property portion bearing down connected their users with their ain opinions astir the mode we, arsenic a society, should enactment oregon disseminate information. Freedom and sovereignty are halfway ideals to Bitcoiners, and I bash judge the folks astatine Zion support these values astatine their foundations.
What is the aboriginal of this dynamic and however does Zion acceptable in?
I deliberation that the aboriginal of wherever we're going with audiences is the adjacent furniture of the creator economy, which is you tin present beryllium a nonrecreational user of content, which means that if you're portion of a assemblage and you station a truly comic meme, different radical tin wage you successful that assemblage for that.
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