Today was a big day. We deployed our smart contract for the first time. Now all submissions and curations are being recorded on chain for the first time.

We’re now building an onchain cultural archive that’s first of its kind. I can’t comprehend what this means full magnitude, but I’m excited we made it this far. For two years, I’ve pushing for this and now we’re here.

I believe Web3 lasting hallmark will be leading humanity away from an advertising internet to a curated internet. For the time being, there will be two options for people to choose from. Right now, we only have ads and because of them, an inferior experience on the internet.

Think about this:

There are 5.6 billion daily searches on Google. The best information hidden behind ad supported search results. Every 5.6 billion users are knowingly being underserved and have no other options (besides search hacks). Who wins? Two parties - Google and Advertisers.

No one is browsing the internet, we’re all searching for things. The internet is active space of discovery.

The ad market deteriorates our experience, our time, and our knowledge. Last year, That gave us an idea. We’re inviting a handful who’s taste we trust. To Help us Build A Portal to the Curated Internet.

The global digital ads market grew at 14% CAGR between 2016 and 2021. In 2021, the global digital ads market was $468.0 billion. The recommendation in Web3 will eat this and may be larger the ad industry is today.

TRILLIONS will be made on chain by curators who help consumers cut through the noise. NFTs are one monetization tool they’ll use. In music, where curation solves the discovery problem for rising artists and early adopters, NFT’s are a natural way to incentive discovery and spread of culture. This works across mediums.  

*For now, every transaction on Phlote generates an NFT timestamp of that moment. Now we get to answer questions like: Do these NFTs have value? Are they liquid? What control do we have over either? *

My theory is that the value of any asset generated on chain will be directly related to what it’s associated with - what art, which artist, which curator, which previous owner, etc.? Scarcity is an interesting concept in the arena of curation because these NFTs capture moments that are inherently unique. They were created to crystalize a moment that someone else could potentially be purchased for status, to participate in the legacy of an asset, or maybe vintage will matter a lot. Every second matters when you’re making history.

Congrats to the team for achieving this awesome milestone! We couldn’t move forward without making this important step.