The scientific revolution was the original “Don’t trust, verify.”

Long before crypto adopted the phrase with its transparent, decentralized blockchains.

See…

Before the Scientific Revolution, knowledge was based on the authority of powerful institutions. People were expected to accept the explanations provided by these authorities without question.

However, the pioneers of the Scientific Revolution -- Galileo Galilei, Francis Bacon, and Isaac Newton -- challenged this status quo. They encouraged individuals to question established beliefs and to seek evidence and proof for themselves.

They promoted the idea that the universe is governed by natural laws that can be discovered and explained through scientific inquiry.

This shift in thinking blew open the quest for knowledge, as it implied that anyone with curiosity and an organized approach could contribute to our understanding of the world.

Individuals were empowered to directly engage with the process of knowledge creation, rather than relying solely on the interpretations and explanations provided by authorities or institutions.

That’s why…

If I had to choose ONE thing that has me most excited in crypto right now…

It’s Called DeSci

Short for decentralized science, the convergence of crypto x science.

Despite the obvious regulatory challenges, it’s also one of the BIGGEST asymmetrical bets in crypto.

By way of explanation, let me propose to you one of the most important questions in the world:

How do we motivate the next generation to solve the world’s biggest problems?

Not only that…

How do we get those people to work together? How do we de-silo the sciences to make problem-solving more interdisciplinary?

Michael Gibson, founder of 1517 fund, explains the problem:

“Our current education system blinds people to what the frontier is. You don’t get to know what these unsolved problems are until you spend 12 years studying a field. I don’t even think people know what it would take to become great within a field.” 

That speaks to the old (current) way of doing science:

It’s isolated (little to no data sharing), competitive (rivalry funding), political (agenda-based), opaque (behind closed doors/hard to reproduce), bureaucratic and centralized (top-down), and prestige-based (the most prestigious rises to the top).

On the other hand…

The new way -- the way DeSci suggests -- is participatory (crowdsourced), cooperative (data sharing), nonpartisan (knowledge for knowledge’s sake), transparent, decentralized (bottom up), and solution-based (the best solutions rise to the top).

Sure, it’s idealistic, but…

DeSci proponents recognize one thing the old way has forgotten: incentives matter.

Bad incentives turn molehills into mountains. Good incentives trample molehills by moving mountains.

DeSci aims to open access to funding, resources, and knowledge, creating a more transparent, collaborative, and efficient ecosystem for scientific breakthroughs.

If DeSci succeeds in unleashing a new wave of scientific breakthroughs and accelerating the pace of innovation, the value created could be orders of magnitude greater than anything we’ve seen before.

Moreover, we can distribute the control and ownership of scientific funding, infrastructure, and intellectual property so that more people can participate in the upside. (So that more people will participate.)

A Hypothetical: BioDiscover.

Let’s take a hypothetical scenario, based on my research so far in actual DeSci projects…

Imagine a DeSci platform called "BioDiscover" that focuses specifically on accelerating drug discovery and development.

The platform operates on a native token called "BIDI."

Now, you do your due diligence.

BioDiscover works closely with regulators. It’s partnered with established institutions. It has solid governance and compliance frameworks. It has obtained the necessary licenses and approvals.

In your country (whatever country that might be), Biodiscover is legit.

As an investor, you see the potential in BioDiscover to disrupt the traditional drug industry and decide to invest. You purchase 50,000 BIDI tokens during the platform's initial token offering at a price of $0.10 per token, for a total investment of $5,000.

Meanwhile, let's say there's a tiny biotech company called "CureCo" that specializes in developing novel cancer therapeutics.

CureCo has a promising drug candidate but lacks the funding and resources to advance it through the costly and time-consuming clinical trial process.

CureCo decides to leverage the BioDiscover platform to raise funds and collaborate with a global network of researchers.

They create a project proposal on the platform, detailing their drug candidate, its potential impact, and the funding and resources needed to bring it to market.

They also agree that a portion of the intellectual property goes to BIDI holders through novel forms of NFTs called IP-NFTs.

Distributed Intellectual Property

The concept behind IP-NFTs integrates legal and smart contracts to enforce ownership and manage intellectual property on the blockchain. This system allows for the secure and transparent transfer of rights and assets, making it easier for researchers to monetize their inventions and findings in the digital age.

IP-NFTs allow data related to the research to be stored and accessed by the token holder(s). This data can be encrypted or public, depending on the use-case and whether the data is proprietary. This also allows the owners of the data to monetize the data, selling it to other research labs.

(Note: Future possibilities for IP-NFTs include enabling decentralized governance of research assets, facilitating DeFi (Decentralized Finance) interactions, and allowing fractional ownership of IP assets. This could potentially transform how research funding and collaboration are conducted, making the process more accessible, transparent, and efficient.)

Researchers from around the world review CureCo's proposal and decide to contribute their expertise to the project. Some researchers offer to conduct preclinical studies to validate the drug's efficacy, while others volunteer to design and manage the clinical trials.

Investors on the BioDiscover platform, including yourself, see the potential in CureCo's project and decide to allocate a portion of their BIDI tokens to fund it.

The platform's smart contracts automatically distribute the funds to CureCo and the participating researchers based on predetermined milestones and deliverables.

As the project progresses and achieves key milestones, such as successful completion of preclinical studies and initial human trials, the value of BIDI tokens increases. Investors who funded the project early on see their holdings appreciate in value. (BIDI investors in CureCo will see additional benefits as CureCo allocates their BIDI treasuries to early investors.)

Also, the BIDI token itself is gaining traction as more biotech companies and researchers flock to the platform to access funding and collaborate on groundbreaking projects.

The increased demand for BIDI tokens drives up the price, benefiting all token holders, including early investors like yourself.

Fast forward a few years, and CureCo's drug candidate has successfully completed clinical trials and is approved for market launch.

The company's project tokens on the BioDiscover platform have skyrocketed in value, delivering crazy returns to early investors.

At the same time, the BioDiscover platform has become a go-to destination for biotech innovation, with hundreds of projects and thousands of researchers collaborating to advance medical breakthroughs.

The BIDI token has become a widely traded and valuable asset, with a market cap in the billions of dollars.

As an early investor who recognized the potential of the platform, your initial investment of $50,000 has grown to a staggering $5 million, representing a 1,000x return.

Impossible? No. BUT…

This example illustrates how a DeSci platform like BioDiscover could create value for all stakeholders in the biotech ecosystem:

→ Investors can access a diversified portfolio of cutting-edge biotech projects and benefit from the appreciation of the platform's native token.

→ Biotech companies can raise funds, collaborate with top researchers, and accelerate the development of life-saving therapies.

→ Researchers can contribute their expertise to meaningful projects, earn rewards for their work, and be part of a global network of scientific innovators.

Of course, this is just one possible scenario, and the actual performance of any DeSci platform would depend on many factors: market conditions, regulatory environment, and the quality of the projects and participants.

However, it demonstrates the transformative potential of DeSci to create a more efficient, collaborative, and rewarding ecosystem for all stakeholders in the biotech industry.

Projects to watch:

Molecule: A platform developing the IP NFT framework to enable funding and management of research projects using blockchain.

VitaDAO: An organization launched with Molecule's help that funds and supports longevity research projects using IP NFTs.

LabDAO: An organization working on enabling collaboration and transactions between researchers and labs using IP NFTs.

As always, we’re on the lookout for opportunities in this space.

Members of our Early Stage Crypto Investor research will get any specific recommendations we publish in the future.