The Development and Challenges of Privacy Technology in the Web3 Era

The origin of blockchain is closely linked to privacy technologies, especially in the field of cryptography. From elliptic curves to zero-knowledge proofs, these technologies highlight the importance of privacy economics in the Web 3.0 era. However, the reality is not as satisfactory. Certain privacy coins frequently face delisting from trading platforms, and there have even been cases of founders of privacy projects being arrested. Even though some emerging privacy projects can be listed on mainstream trading platforms, the geek spirit of privacy projects seems to be waning, and their ability to deliver final products cannot be considered perfect.

In the development and improvement of privacy products, blockchain projects may need to learn from their Web2 peers to enhance their technical capabilities and user experience.

Proton: Proving that Privacy Can Be a Quality Product Form

"Privacy is a feature, not a product itself." This statement highlights the importance of privacy in product design. Simply discussing the enhancement of product forms through privacy is not very meaningful; in other words, privacy also needs to find a suitable market. Some tech giants, although they infringe on user privacy to some extent, still have products that are highly popular, mainly due to their convenience and strong network effects.

In response to this issue, a certain email service provider's strategy is to build a complete product ecosystem. The scientific background from the European Organization for Nuclear Research has earned it a high level of credibility. Through cryptographic technology, open-source code, and product audits, they have created meaningful privacy products—users can achieve corresponding functionalities without relying on the services of certain tech giants.

Although the current network effects and scale effects are still unable to compete with the giants, the products they offer are sufficient to meet daily usage needs compared to their peers in the blockchain field, making them qualified alternatives.

This email service is different from traditional mail products, as it can be used without binding a mobile phone number and supports end-to-end encryption mode, ensuring the privacy transmission of emails. Before certain instant messaging software is regulated, combined use can create a higher level of commercial privacy experience.

It is worth mentioning that this company has also begun to venture into the Web3 space, launching its own cryptocurrency wallet. Unlike some trading-oriented products, this wallet has relatively simple functions.

The significance of this company lies in proving the feasibility of building products based on privacy technology. Unlike the advertising profit model of traditional giants, they adopt a paid system; and unlike the token economics system of their Web3 peers, they have not issued tokens. We can refer to this as: non-tokenized practice of cryptographic technology.

From Skiff to Emerging Privacy Projects: Tokenization of Cryptographic Technology

Compared to the companies mentioned earlier, some emerging privacy projects seem to have not yet found their market positioning, but have already started issuing tokens.

On February 9, 2024, a well-known collaboration tool announced the acquisition of a Web3 startup, marking the first case of a large Web2 product acquiring a Web3 startup. The acquired company did not take the route of issuing tokens, setting a new trend in the industry.

The services provided by this acquired company are similar to those of a certain tech giant's suite, including a document suite based on distributed storage and encrypted email services. However, its biggest problem lies in the poor design of the user interface, leading to a subpar user experience. This is also one of the biggest challenges faced by current Web3 products, as large products developed based on the limitations of underlying blockchain performance find it difficult to surpass the user experience of their Web2 counterparts.

In addition, the development of other Web3 privacy products has also been less than satisfactory. Some projects have gradually shifted their focus to the VPN field, while others emphasize applications in the AI field, and some emerging projects remain stuck in the technological narrative of the previous cycle.

Conclusion

In the current rapidly evolving blockchain ecosystem, certain classic privacy coins may seem somewhat unfamiliar to the new generation of users. However, they should be the last attempt to genuinely consider how cryptographic technology can be integrated with their own application scenarios following Bitcoin.

Recently, some well-known privacy coins have been delisted by major trading platforms, losing their primary sources of liquidity. Perhaps from now on, so-called privacy technologies will become part of market speculation. However, the story of Web3 privacy economics has not yet reached the point of final bankruptcy.