Taiko’s Vision for a Censorship-Resistant Internet
While the crypto space often faces volatility and speculation, a growing movement is leveraging blockchain technology to decentralize digital ecosystems for societal benefit. At the forefront is Taiko, a web3 infrastructure startup founded by serial entrepreneur Daniel Wang, which recently closed a $37 million funding round to build a truly decentralized internet.
The Decentralization Imperative
Wang’s mission stems from a belief in blockchain’s potential to combat censorship.
- Distributed data storage and community-driven moderation can empower free expression.
- “Without the freedom to criticize, there’s no progress,” Wang emphasized at an Ethereum developer conference.
Initially aiming to create decentralized social platforms on Ethereum, Wang identified a critical gap: existing layer 2 scaling solutions sacrificed decentralization for efficiency.
Why Ethereum’s Layer 2 Falls Short
Ethereum processes just ~15 transactions per second, prompting the rise of rollups—secondary chains that batch transactions to reduce congestion. However:
- Most rollups centralize key functions (e.g., sequencers).
- This undermines web3’s core ethos of decentralization.
Taiko was launched in March 2022 to address this, offering a fully decentralized layer 2 optimized for scalability without compromising autonomy.
Funding and Growth Trajectory
Taiko’s \(37M raise spans three rounds, including a **\)15M Series A** led by:
- Lightspeed Faction
- Hashed
- Generative Ventures
- Token Bay Capital
Additional backers include Wintermute Ventures, OKX Ventures, and Amber Group. While valuation remains undisclosed, Taiko confirms unicorn status.
Key Allocations:
- $30M developer grants to spur ecosystem growth.
- Recent testnet activity: 1.1M+ wallet addresses, 13M+ transactions.
Building a User-Owned Social Future
Wang envisions Taiko as foundational infrastructure for truly decentralized social networks, critiquing current “decentralized” platforms like Lens and Farcaster for relying on semi-centralized systems.
Pillars of Decentralized Social Apps:
- User ownership of content.
- Data privacy and security.
- Censorship resistance enabling free speech.
Challenges Ahead
Decentralized networks face hurdles:
- Content moderation: Without centralized curators, platforms risk hosting harmful material.
- Incentive models: Token-based systems must balance profitability with utility.
Wang proposes “relayers”—intermediary layers that filter content based on community standards, fostering diverse user bases.
The Road to Mass Adoption
“We’re a decade away from crypto’s mainstream use,” Wang acknowledges, but stresses that technological progress is iterative. Taiko’s infrastructure aims to lay the groundwork for a freer, more open internet—one transaction at a time.
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