The most recent conversation between Elon Musk and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin seems to have shifted from trolling to legitimate discussion.
Earlier this morning, the Tesla founder mysteriously tweeted āEthereum.ā Seven minutes later, he took it back with a cheeky ājkā (ājust kidding.ā)
Musk continued to poke fun, even after Buterin invited him to attend an Ethereum developerās conference. Now, Musk actually asked Buterin a serious question: whatās Ethereum good for?
What should be developed on Ethereum?
ā Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 30, 2019
āAĀ globally accessible financial system, including payments, store of value, also more advanced stuff like insurance,ā said Buterin, beforeĀ referring to a smart contract system that would automatically file insurance claims for hurricane relief should extreme wind be nearby.
Buterin then outlined anĀ idea to replace current Facebookās sign-in function with Ethereum accounts. This supposedly removes intermediaries, but would only be worthwhile once workable decentralized recovery schemesĀ have been developed.
Curiously, Facebook has reportedly been recruiting engineers for a āsecretiveā blockchain division. Earlier this year, CEO Mark Zuckerberg touted replacingĀ Facebook Connect with a decentralized system.
Buterin went on to suggest a peer-to-peer marketplace for internet connections. He pitched identity, reputation, and credit systems for those with few resources, like refugees.
(5)
* p2p marketplace for internet connections / incentivized mesh networks
* Identity, reputation and credit systems for those that currently have few resources (eg. refugees)
* Decentralized DNS alternatives (eg. https://t.co/aTRxfTlXpC)ā Vitalik Non-giver of Ether (@VitalikButerin) April 30, 2019
āAll sorts of registries should be published on chain for security and easy verifiability,ā Buterin added. One potential example would be cryptographically verifiable university degreesĀ on the blockchain. These already exist.
Other suggestions were to experiment more with decentralized autonomous organizations, or use crypto-economics to prevent spam on social networks and reward publishers of good content.
It appears the chatter between Musk and Buterin has tapered off, at least for now. You can read the full thread here.
Did you know? Hard Fork has its own stage atĀ TNW2019, our tech conference in Amsterdam.Ā Check it out.Ā
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