Taiko Secures $37M to Develop Censorship-Resistant Web3 Infrastructure

Taiko’s Mission: Decentralizing Social Platforms for Greater Good

In the tumultuous world of cryptocurrencies, a group of visionaries remains committed to harnessing blockchain’s potential to decentralize various aspects of human life. Taiko‘s founder, Daniel Wang, is one such idealistic entrepreneur who believes in the power of decentralized networks to resist censorship and promote freedom of expression.

“I hope the next generation can grow up being free and able to say anything on the internet. There won’t be progress if there is no freedom to criticize.”

The Quest for True Decentralization

Wang initially set out to build a decentralized social app on Ethereum, but discovered that none of the existing layer 2 solutions were genuinely decentralized. Determined to fill this void, he founded Taiko in March 2022 to create the infrastructure layer necessary for truly decentralized social applications.

Taiko’s Rapid Growth and Funding Success

Taiko has quickly gained traction, raising $37 million across three funding rounds. The company’s Series A round, which closed with $15 million in funding, was led by prominent investors such as Lightspeed Faction, Hashed, Generative Ventures, and Token Bay Capital. While the exact valuation remains undisclosed, Taiko has confirmed its unicorn status.

Preparing for Mainnet Launch and Fostering Developer Community

The recent funding will be used to prepare for Taiko’s mainnet launch. The company has allocated $30 million in grants to developers and its latest testnet has already attracted over 1.1 million wallet addresses and 13 million total transactions. Taiko aims to be a public good, similar to Ethereum, where no single entity owns the network.

The Challenges of Building a Decentralized Social Network

Ensuring True Decentralization

Wang argues that many existing social networks claiming to be decentralized often fall short of delivering on that promise. An ideal decentralized social app should allow users to own and control their content, ensure data privacy and security, and resist censorship, thereby promoting freedom of speech.

Balancing Content Quality and Safety

One of the biggest challenges facing decentralized social apps is maintaining content quality and safety without a central curator. Wang suggests the use of an intermediary layer, or “relayer,” to filter content and attract diverse user bases while reflecting the unique perspectives of the underlying decentralized social network.

Incentivizing User Participation

Another challenge lies in incentivizing users to create desirable content. In the web3 domain, where teams may not hold ownership, it becomes crucial to embed token incentives within the system. However, this necessity can sometimes shift focus away from developing a genuinely useful product and towards prioritizing profit generation.

“We are 10 years from crypto’s mass adoption, but every technology is built on an existing technological achievement.”

Despite the challenges, Wang remains optimistic about the future of decentralized social networks and Taiko’s role in enabling their growth.