It’s giving 2019 vibes all over again!

I took a break from everything-online for almost 2 years and coming back to crypto feels like joining a new college! A lot of things to catch up on, yet, a lot of similar trends!

Back in 2019, I remember everyone talking about DeFi protocols and yield farming when they were getting started. Market dominated with news of people making crazy profits trading and staking new trendy coins. Now in this last quarter of 2023, the bear market is slowly fading and the hype is coming back to the Web3 world.

This time, I’m already seeing new hashtags and names gaining attention. Some of them are just a rebranding of the existing projects. It is interesting to see how they’re transformed into form a whole new category.

When it comes to Web3, it’s the tech upgrades and innovative solutions what interested me the most. I love the experience of trying out those inventions hands-on!

This year, I don’t see myself making a lot of such experiences since the projects I see are out of my interests. However, I’m keen on learning how these newcomers work and how it impacts the existing infrastructure. So, here’s the list of categories I’m looking up to this year to learn and explore:

GameFi

The first ever decentralized game I tried was Splinterlands. I used Steem blockchain back then and I guess you can easily use it using Hive blockchain. However, I very soon understood it is not for me, I could barely make any progress! The video games I’ve played so far are Mario, Angry birds and Subway surfers. That’ll show you how far away I’m in the proper gaming arena.

However, I know people who are into gaming and spend a lot of time there. My nephews and their craze for games also inspire me to learn more about it.

As far as my knowledge goes, NFTs provide an excellent solution in owning the gaming assets. I’m excited to see the new advancements DeFi brings to the gaming industry.

GameFi is essentially the integration of blockchain technology and Decentralized finance systems to create an open market to own and trade gaming assets for players. I’m on the lookout for projects involved in this area.

DePIN

Helium was the only projects I knew that used a physical product from the Web3 space. Their WiFi routers brought decentralization to the wireless internet connections creating a people’s network. It was a challenge for me to learn and understand LoRaWAN and Helium’s tokenomics.

They used the hashtag DeWi for Decentralized WiFi till the first half of the year, 2023. However, with the upgrades and expansions to different areas, I see the term Decentralized Physical Infrastructure Networks or DePINs evolving.

This is another area I’m looking up to. At first, I was confused why anybody needs decentralization or even a crypto token associated with them when there are traditional routes that work just fine. However, learning the potential use cases and solutions it brings, I’m excited to see the changes in this area.

I’m looking out for more such physical infrastructures that use decentralization in their technology.

Real-World Applications

I’ve read and written about many real-world use cases of blockchain in various fields ranging from Shipping, Healthcare and Agriculture. However, I’m not well aware of any products out there in the market that offer any such mentioned services or use the technology.

I’m keen on figuring this out, what are the roadblocks and how are the ones in the market performing as well. It is interesting to see such changes in technologies getting integrated in our lifetime!

Easy to use Interfaces

One of the main issues I have had and still have explaining crypto or blockchain to my friends is the complicated interface. I’m looking forward to simple and easy-to-use interface in projects in the field of DeFi, NFTs and more.

Web2 provide a seamless experience for everyone with attractive and minimalistic UI/UX. I hope Web3 spaces especially the decentralized ones focus on minimizing this friction in the recent future. That will be a huge turning point for mass adoption as well.

Regulations

We are already seeing an influx of institutions getting into blockchain and crypto investments. I think it is time we have clear regulations around the crypto assets and how it is handled so that more people can get in to this space confidently.

Many countries are coming up with laws to regulate the industry which is a good sign for the mass adoption. It is not very practical for everyone to understand or even follow the core principles of Bitcoin or decentralization. However, it is important for people to adopt this technology for it to grow. Regulations will play a huge role in making it possible.

Well, I already see a lot of buzz around the crypto and blockchain again after a long quiet year. The end of 2023 might see an interesting turn of events for the industry and I’m all in for it!