LAB Radio

Well, you're going to find out in this episode!

Ashe Oro has been around the Blockchain space for many years and has even hosted a podcast called Liberty Entrepreneurs, helping his audience learn the virtues of freedom, entrepreneurship and sovereign money.

He began as a Computer Engineering student and eventually morphed into the Head of Business Development for Euro Pacific Bank.

In 2013, Ashe discovered how Cryptocurrencies and Blockchain tech can protect personal freedom due to its decentralized nature and ability to facilitate a free market of non-fiat digital currencies.

In the Blockchain community, Ashe is:

• Building SteemSmarter, an analytics and reporting platform for the Steem blockchain.
• Advising Chintai, a decentralised leasing platform on EOS blockchain.
• Advising SelfKey.org, a decentralised identification network on Ethereum blockchain.

"I help people build freedom. Everything else is details." ~Ashe Oro

On this episode of LAB Radio, Aaron Mangal dives in into more than just the "Blockchain" but rather uncovers the philosophical side of Cryptocurrencies including Anarchy and the experiences that shaped his views.

• How Ashe first discovered the Blockchain and what got him excited about it
• His political and economic philosophy
• His impressions of the scene and how its shifted over the years
• What Liberty Entrepreneurs is and how it began
• What Anarchy 3.0 is (and how it differs from 2.0 and 1.0)
• Why inflation is not the enemy
• How to break-up with your bank
• How content creators can earn Crypto
• What excites and scares him the most about Crypto

For show notes and more please visit: https://coinstructive.com/ep64-ashe

Derek Sorensen, Pyrofex Research Mathematician

Derek Sorensen is a Pyrofex Research Mathematician, has an MSc in Mathematics and Computer Science from the University of Oxford and is set to start his PhD this fall at the University of Cambridge, where he will study logic and topology.

"I'm a motivated mathematician who wants to solve new and exciting problems. I thrive in a challenging and changing environment, as a boring routine can seem a bit soul-sucking to me. I have learned programming languages, software programs, organizational structures and spoken languages in the past to solve problems and am willing to learn about anything to address new and changing circumstances I'm placed in. Challenges are exciting to me and I'm always looking for something bigger and better to sink my teeth into." Source

On this episode of LAB Radio, Aaron Mangal asked Derek all kinds of deep math questions like: What are proofs and algorithms? What are they for? What are some non-crypto use cases and of course what are the Crypto uses?

As stated on their website:

"Pyrofex Corporation is Utah Valley's first blockchain and cryptocurrency startup. Founded in the Spring of 2016 by ex-Googlers Mike Stay and Nash Foster, Pyrofex works hard to create the next generation of blockchain platforms, applications, and development tools. With its headquarters in the Riverwoods area of Provo, UT, Pyrofex has grown from a pair of co-founders to a team of around two dozen professionals. Our focus is on reliably delivering high-quality work and our reputation bears that out. Pyrofex was founded by mathematicians and computer scientists who wanted to build an engineering first company. One that hires special talent, gives them difficult and interesting work, and the tools and support to succeed."

CDelta is a proof of stake based Blockchain focused on high speed transactions and throughput for financial transactions. They custom built Cassanova, a leaderless optimistic pre-Nakamoto consensus protocol which is what CDelta runs on.

"Pyrofex introduces Casanova, a leaderless optimistic consensus protocol designed for use in the blockchain contexts. Casanova produces blocks in a directed acyclic graph (DAG) rather than in a chain and combines voting rounds with block production by singling out conflicting transactions.

C∆'s physical network achieves unparalleled performance by mirroring the shape of the Internet itself. Using a tiered network architecture, local validators connect to backbone validators with guaranteed priority bandwidth. Using this architecture, C∆ ensures the fastest block propagation and the lowest transaction confirmation latencies.

C∆ is unique among blockchains. Most blockchains are stuck finding a total ordering of all the world's transactions. This process is very slow because every block requires an expensive consensus-finding protocol. Using Casanova and a simple UTXO transaction model, the C∆ blockchain eliminates this work and finalizes most transactions immediately. Only when a user attempts to double-spend does C∆ perform expensive and slow consensus finding. As a result of this innovation, C∆ confirms most transactions at wire speed. An attacker can only make his own transactions slower, but cannot materially affect the throughput of the rest of the network." Source

Check out this video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmGGJcAdWks

• How Derek discovered his interest in Math
• His impressions of Cryptocurrenc from a math perspective
• What proofs are
• What algorithms are and how are they designed
• What consensus mechanisms are and how do they differ from algorithms (Plus Who creates them and how)
• Derek's thoughts on Proof of Work (PoW) algorithms vs Proof of Stake (PoS) and Delegated proof of stake (DPoS)
• His thoughts on Distributed Hash Tables (DHTs) and other Blockchain "alternatives"
• How their "Optimistic Consensus" is different/better than what's already out there
• The algorithm and consensus mechanism behind it
• How their customized Blockchain was built
• How the company plans to tackle adoption with so many other options on the market

For show notes and more visit: https://coinstructive.com/ep63-derek-pyrofex/

On episode 62 of LAB Radio, your host, Chris Groshong chats with Fazri Zubair, a Los Angeles native, about his journey into the blockchain and cryptocurrency space through gaming at Lucid Sight.

Lucid Sight is a gaming development studio, formed in 2015, located Santa Monica and has been building video games with frontier technologies like VR, AR and blockchain. Fazri and the two other cofounders had worked together in the past, had great chemistry and knew they all had to work together.

The entrance into blockchain for Fazri was through a friend of cofounder, Randy Saaf, who introduced them to Ethereum. The use cases for smart contracts and provable digital scarcity was too tempting for them to ignore back in 2015.

Some of the main issues they run into are UX/UI. The crossover from traditional gaming with in-game assets managed by a company producing the game to in-game assets controlled by the end user has a completely different feel. The end user has many barriers to entry, like understanding how to use wallets and obtaining crypto just to get started. Besides hardware, other issues exist like explaining digital scarcity and the basics of blockchain.

Two of Fazri's favorite games being released this year are CSC (Crypto Space Commander), a MMORPG and MLB Champions. MLB Champions is this millenniums version of baseball cards and fantasy sports. They have licensing agreements with the MLB and the MLBPA(MLB Players Association), making it the first of it's kind in the blockchain industry. Both games have marketplaces for items to be bought and sold. The game developer takes a cut from each sale. This marks a paradigm shift in the economics of gaming. The implications for game developers are vast and relatively untouched.

We get perspective from Fazri about growing up and pursuing a tech career in Los Angeles

Where he feels the industry is headed and his plans to stay at the forefront

The command economy vs. a free market economy in gaming

How mainstream adoption barriers need to be lifted

Why digital collectibles are easy for collectors to grasp

What designing and building games with economies entails

What problems may arise from real money economies in a gaming ecosystem

Further Reading and Resources

Lucid Sight Inc. | Website | Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter |

Fazri Zubair, Cofounder and CTO, Lucid Sight Inc.| Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter

MLB Champions | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Discord

Crypto Space Commander | Website | Facebook | Twitter | Discord

Welcome to the second episode of OG Crypto Series on LAB Radio, with the very talented, Alena Vranova, currently heading up Strategy at Casa Inc. There is no doubt that she is an OG in the world of Crypto and Blockchain. For those of you that don't know her past, she was pivotal to the formation of Satoshi Labs, TREZOR hardware wallet and Slush Pool to name a few.

Alena and I first met in August 2015 after the Keynote 2015 event in Los Angeles at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel. We had some mutual friends in the space already and we instantly connected. I vividly recall how much positivity and good energy she gave off.

After a business success, Alena likes to take some time to scan the field and find out what is calling to her next. And after leaving Satoshi Labs, she eventually landed at Casa, Inc. In this episode you will hear about why she chose Casa and how Casa's solutions are powering a safer and more user friendly environment for Bitcoin users.

What is the latest from Prague? And why it's a great place for crypto & blockchain innovation

The importance of building strong personal connections in a business setting

Her advice to entrepreneurs in the crypto and blockchain space

Inclusion, Diversity and Global Mentality perspectives

If she could change one thing about the industry, what would it be?

Alena is one the rare gems in this world, so if you ever get a chance to speak with her, do it. Her passion is obvious and she brings a great intensity to the table. She's also very cognizant of the position she is in now and how much good she can bring into the world. In this episode, you will also find out what the younger version of herself might think about where she is now.

Alena says the most important skill to have in business is "Listening". So we hope you enjoy the episode.

Further Reading and Resources

Casa Inc.| Website | LinkedIn | Twitter |

Alena Vranova, Strategy @ Casa, Inc.| Twitter | LinkedIn |

Welcome to LAB Radio episode 61. Chris recently spent some time in San Francisco and had the great fortune to run into Anthony Paglino at Starfish Network's coworking space. Starfish Network is an agnostic blockchain community focused on building web 3.0 and providing a space for the community to leverage for events and meetings. Starfish Network was started by Alicia Ferratusco when the SF community was feeling pangs over lack of community space. Anthony came to Starfish from Tampa because he believes in the necessity to build tools for the future and San Francisco is the place where it can be accomplished.

Anthony has an interesting past, which includes living in China after he graduated with a bachelor's degree in Economics in 2008. Instead of looking at the recession as a bad thing, he took the opportunity to focus on learning how the world's most populous economy ran. Anthony is optimistic and realizes timing as well as location are important components to success.

As a side project, Anthony is focused on how to token precipitous rainfall called RainCube. Aligned with his mission at Starfish Network, he hopes to help bring dApps into existence that benefit humanity and are easily replicable and adaptable. He believes blockchains will have some hyperlocalization in future, but still remain a part of the main chain.

We get perspective from Anthony about his time living in China.

Where he feels the industry is headed and his plans to stay at the forefront

Ideas around how we change the structure of economies to make them regenerative, rather than extractive.

The Starfish Network's mission and plan to build a decentralized coworking network.

How the path to enlightenment might be through cryptocurrency and blockchain.

What other projects Anthony is working on and much more.

Further Reading and Resources

Starfish Network | Website | Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter |

Anthony Paglino, Community Manager, Starfish.Network| Facebook | LinkedIn |

Raincube, Inc. | Website | Facebook | Twitter |

Welcome to episode 60 of LAB Radio. We had a chat with Daniel Popa, CEO of Anchor. Anchor is a "stable currency designed to preserve and enhance the value of your holdings. Anchor is pegged to the value of the global economy, protected by a safety net comprised of six pillars."

Daniel elaborates on his LinkedIn:

"Anchor is addressing one of the biggest issues in the global economy – how to preserve monetary value over time, stabilize the value of any given currency, lower its volatility and prevent devaluation.

Anchor aims to solve the problem of transparency, liquidity, guarantee and trust on a global scale and thus tackle these burning issues directly, with the introduction of stability, facilitated by a decentralized true stable token and backed by the purchase of sovereign debt as the backing for the two-token system.

Additionally, Anchor goes a step further than other cryptos, and proposes a solution for the systemic issue of instability in the financial markets in general. We have devised an innovative and universal monetary value measurement Standard, in the form of a Proprietary mathematical algorithm – the Monetary Measurement Unit (MMU).

The MMU is a true representation of the value of the global economy and an index based on the real GDP of more than 190 countries of the word.

In light of this, Anchor's value will be pegged to the MMU directly, providing a stable and dependable unit to store and preserve monetary value over many decades, as opposed to crypto and fiat currencies that are more susceptible to fluctuation as a result of market forces and the volatility of global and local economic landscapes."

How Anchor's System Works

• Who is Daniel Popa and his background
• What is Anchor and what problem they're solving
• Why we need another stable coin
• What is the MMU index and why its proprietary
• Why Anchor uses a two-token system
• What is the ultimate goal of the project and tokens? (Store of value, Investment vehicle)
• What resources he would recommend for people to learn more

For show notes and more please visit: LAB Radio

Welcome to episode 59 with Hailey Lennon, the Head of Legal and Regulatory Affairs for bitFlyer US. If you're not familiar with bitFlyer, don't worry, it's only the biggest cryptocurrency exchange in Japan. They have been in business since 2014 and are expanding throughout the US and European markets.

Hailey and I finally get to sit down and talk about what her new role at bitFlyer entails. When Hailey and I first met in 2015/2016 she was working with Silvergate Bank to help launch their banking platform for legitimate cryptocurrency companies. We get to find out how she ended up at bitFlyer after starting out with one of the biggest and most crypto friendly bank in the US. We also talk about the path that led her to where she is today.

Hailey and I both agree, more collaboration around compliance, regulation and oversight, even with competitors, is needed to advance the crypto and blockchain industry. There needs to be more open discussions and working groups stepping up to provide guidance to Regulatory Agencies while leading by example, not through lobbying. This is why bitFlyer and Hailey are leading the charge for a new organization called the Virtual Commodities Association, to which its founding members consist of Bitstamp, Bittrex and Gemini.

We dive into the differences between San Diego and San Francisco from a crypto perspective.

Where Hailey thinks crypto US and global regulation may be headed.

What are the goals for bitFlyer in 2019?

Creating Self-Regulating Organizations(SRO), industry standards and best practices for virtual commodities.

If she wasn't in the crypto and blockchain space, what Hailey thinks she would be doing instead.

If she had a magic wand, what would Hailey change about the industry.

If there is any cultural crossover or influence, since bitFlyer is originally from Japan? What's the environment at bitFlyer like?

Further Reading and Resources

bitFlyer | Website (US) | Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter USA | Twitter Japan | Twitter Europe

Hailey Lennon Head of Legal & Regulatory Affairs| Facebook | LinkedIn | Twitter

Vault Logic is a all-in-one kiosk containing a traditional ATM and multi Cryptocurrency BTM, while also featuring Cash as a Service (CaaS). Some of the features include:

This is not just a "ATM" only dispensing Cryptocurrency (of which it offers many beyond Bitcoin). It can handle buying cell phone minutes and will eventually allow users to pay bills through the kiosk.

There is also a feature where the machine will pay users a premium by offering higher than spot market prices to help clear the machine of cash.

There are also display ads on the machine which has a revenue share built in with the venue hosting the machines.

Here are the technical specifications of the machine:

We covered topics including how to pick a company to work with in the Blockchain space, what's the scene like and of course all about the Vault Logic Kiosk itself.

We also covered some bio-hacking and practices Cassi engages in to stay balanced in her busy work world.

This story about a stablecoin project called the Reserve Protocol is far different from most stablecoin projects you've heard of. Reserve's approach is to solve one of humanity's greatest challenges by creating an ethical and stable currency without government control. Combatting corruption of governments or central banks while protecting against hyperinflation are just a few of the driving forces behind this project.

I really enjoyed speaking with Nevin Freeman, Cofounder and CEO of the Reserve Protocol. Specifically, what really drew me to this project were the positive things that I noticed about the brand. I don't remember the last time I saw a blockchain or crypto company with a whole webpage dedicate to ethics. Nevin and I get to connect over the inspiration and motivation to take on a project of this magnitude. We take a bit of a deep dive into his background growing up and his desire to solve problems for humans across the globe.

Today there is a severe lack of transparency and trust in many of the world's monetary systems. Hundreds of millions of people live in countries without stable currencies, resulting in dramatic losses of wealth. This inability to effectively protect savings prevents people from planning for the future and bettering themselves. The world needs a stable, global, digital currency that gives people autonomy and control of their money.

This is not your typical cryptocurrency company or ICO. This team has a huge vision and the resume to back it up. They have more investors listed on their website than they have employees. This is not a measure of future success, but what it shows is people love solving problems and money is one of them. I hope a stablecoin solution emerges soon. Enjoy the show.

When will the Reserve Protocol launch?

Who is their target market and audience?

What the is plan to penetrate these markets?

Would the Reserve Protocol been able to help with issues like the "US Government Shutdown"?

How does Quantitative Easing devalue your savings?

Can the use of a stablecoin protocol like Reserve really incentivize better ethical engagements?

Further Reading and Resources

LinkedIn - Nevin Freeman

Twitter - Nevin Freeman

Facebook - Nevin Freeman

Website - Reserve.org

Telegram - Reserve Protocol

Twitter - Reserve Protocol

Facebook - Reserve Protocol

I had the pleasure of meeting Geovane and his colleague in a obscure little corner of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in the Eureka Park section. I was excited to find a really cool little yet powerful computer that is an alternative to Raspberry Pi (as well as befriend two awesomely Brazilian technologists). This unit is proudly made in Brazil and rivals their English counter part (the Pi).

On this episode of LAB Radio we caught up with Geovane Fedrecheski a computer science engineer, Ph.D candidate and team member of a Raspberry Pi alternative called Labrador.

Geovane Fedrecheski

"In my career, I have helped LG Electronics to deliver great mobile phones for all Latin America and collaborated in the creation of a free MOOC that teaches IoT for non-technical people. I have taught programming for both children and adults, co-founded and dropped out of a startup, and did theater classes for two years to enhance my communication skills. I currently do Research and Software Engineering at University of São Paulo, where I also happen to be a PhD student. I think computers shall help and empower people. Thus, as a scientist, my goal is to use technology to enhance peoples' lives."

Geovane is a Ph.D. student where he does research and development of a Internet of Thing (IoT) framework called the SwarmOS. This entails investigating how to best manage security authorizations in swarms of IoT devices. Geovane developed an access control and Blockchain solution as well as a network discovery algorithm. His work was published in various scientific journals and conferences.

The Labrador (Raspberry Pi alternative) is a fairly robust and powerful computer. One of the benefits Geovane mentioned when we were talking at CES was the potential for outdoor applications (like weather elements). Believe it or not, the Raspberry Pi is not ideal for outdoor locations which makes it a pretty poor choice for outdoor IoT applications (which are greatly needed for smart cities as an example).

As stated in their collateral:

"The Caninos Loucos Labrador board is a Brazilian Single Board Computer, with open Hardware and Software, that can be used to create Internet of Things applications.It is composed by two boards: the Labrador Core Board, which has all features of a modern computer, and the Labrador Base Board, which expands its communication options by providing a large variety of connectors.The modularity of the Caninos Loucos Labrador board allows for greater flexibility in hardware interface prototyping. Other Base Board models can be used, with specific functionalities required by custom applications.This board set features ESD (electrostatic discharge) protection, is compact, resistant, and can be used in a range of applications, from personal projects to commercial applications."

Here are more on the specifications of the board:

After listening to this episode you will learn:

• About Geovane's background and how he got into computer science
• What LSI TEC is
• What type of research and work he does in Internet of Things (IoT)
• What the Caninos Loucos single board computer is (Raspberry Pi alternative)
• Why and how did this project come about
• What its specs are and what can be done with it
• A few Blockchain use cases for the board
• Geovane's thoughts on CES 2019 and technology that got him excited
• What excites him the most about the state of technology (and the Blockchain)