How do you know how well an industry/technology/product/.. does?

One way to check is to find out the two contextual (from economic, technological, social, …other perspectives) extremes of that industry/technology/product/…

Let’s have a go at Bitcoin/blockchain.

If you go to Etherscan, click on top menu item Tokens and then View Tokens, and if you search for “fuck,” below is the screenshot from few days ago.

This of course is just one extreme, negative one, illustrating at once absurdity, creativity and ambition one can find in crypto space. While some of those tokens are placeholders, some like FUCK Token have a website and give an impression of an upcoming product. The F-word derived tokens allude to Facebook and Ethereum. Unsurprising.

For a positive extreme, check out DeepRadiology, which employs both deep learning (Yan LeCun, father of deep learning, is their advisor) as well as blockchain to “applying the latest imaging analytic deep learning algorithm capability for all imaging modalities to optimize your facility service needs.“

DeepRadiology uses AI to process myriads of data and blockchain to store and distribute it efficiently and effectively. Both time to process, for example, a CT scan and relevant costs are an order of magnitude less than the incumbents. Everyone wins.

And while Q1 2018 was bearish for all cryptocurrencies, whether rest of 2018 will be bearish or bullish is still a question. Either way,  due to maturing crypto market, more educated/pragmatic crypto investors/enthusiasts and less easy-to-get crypto, the focus is now on technology itself, which is what’s needed, in long-term.

Lastly, for your education – and entertainment! – have a read of this list of 100 cryptocurrencies described in 4 words or less.