how to build (& scale) in web3
🛠️ Builder resources: *New* talks from our 2023 Crypto Startup School, now available!
The next generation of startups isn’t just advancing web3; it’s laying the groundwork for a more open, decentralized internet. But the industry know-how, shifting trends, and emerging tools in the space can be difficult for builders to navigate — whether they’re new to crypto, coming from other domains, or are more seasoned founders. That’s why we started Crypto Startup School in 2020, and recently relaunched it with a new cohort: to connect builders with the resources, expertise, and networks they need.
Over the past ten weeks (and counting), we’ve covered topics like go-to-market, community, product-market fit, technical & research deep dives, policy, and much more. And now, we’re publicly sharing the curriculum with everyone, starting with 5 videos on: strategies for pricing; the basics of cryptography for blockchains; protocol design; the big picture; and lessons learned in strategy, growth, & operations in the business of open source (with Uniswap Labs). We’ll continue to share 25+ more talks through near-weekly “drops”, so be sure to subscribe to our channel for updates.
watch the first batch of talks here
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🔗🧩 Deep dive: On data availability sampling
Data availability sampling — which is applicable to advances in computing, networking generally, and especially blockchains — helps ensure that all necessary blockchain data has been made available to nodes without straining the network. It is therefore important for scaling blockchains.
Data availability sampling also features heavily in “danksharding”, a series of planned upgrades to Ethereum; and also paves the way for more advanced blockchain networks and user applications (including future stateless clients). The next danksharding milestone is EIP-4844, the Ethereum upgrade known as “protodanksharding”, which is planned for later this year. [Both “danksharding” and “protodanksharding” were named to reference Ethereum Foundation researchers, Dankrad Feist and protolambda (now at OP Labs).]
a16z crypto researcher & cryptographer Valeria Nikolaenko, with Stanford cryptography professor and a16z crypto research advisor Dan Boneh, survey how data availability in danksharding works. They also propose modifications to the underlying technique that may improve data recovery (e.g., requiring not 75% but 25% of shares to recover a block). Finally, both of them explain the concepts (and some of the math) involved in our latest podcast episode, hosted by a16z crypto’s Robert Hackett.
read their piece / share
listen to the discussion / share
related readings:
FAQs on danksharding & protodanksharding - Vitalik Buterin
a technical analysis of protodanksharding - Michael/ grizzly-answer-991
see/ hear also:
📖 read about why the major Ethereum upgrade The Merge (2022) mattered - by Ali Yahya
🎧 listen to “Ethereum, the Merge and beyond” - with Tim Beiko, Tim Roughgarden, Ali Yahya, and Sonal Chokshi
--Sonal Chokshi, Stephanie Zinn, Tim Sullivan, Robert Hackett / a16z crypto
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