The Laboratory for Complex Problems

2021 was the year of profile picture (PFP) NFTs. Depending on how you value them, both CryptoPunks and Bored Ape Yacht Club have total market caps (# of NFTs * price per NFT) of around $3 billion each. More than just a disconnected network of owners, though, the humans behind the NFT PFP formed communities, online and IRL. First, they met in Discor... See more

Every time a new NFT project comes together and falls apart, every time people ape into a seemingly worthless meme, and every time a DAO makes a subtle innovation in an attempt to circumvent some constraint, the whole system evolves and it produces new tools and tricks that entrepreneurs and policy makers can use to attempt to solve large, thorny p... See more

Those simulations – played out over thousands of iterations, millions of transactions, and billions of dollars – tell us that greed can be good, that speculation can serve a purpose, that memes have value, and that people are willing to spend money to be part of something bigger than themselves (particularly if there’s the potential for a return).

From Squiggles to a cure for cancer, Apes to carbon reduction, Punks to saving the fishes.

2022 is the year that web3 starts making a meaningful impact on atoms-based challenges like healthcare and climate.