In a decade we are going to look back on Externally owned accounts (EOAs), blockchain accounts controlled by a private key, as primitive. With an EOA, if you lose your private key, all your assets are lost. You’ll need a native token on every chain you use to pay for gas, and many transactions require multiple steps (e.g. submitting an approval transaction before a swap). The user experience is clunky.

To enable the average person to hold cryptoassets, we need solutions to manage private keys that are easier to use and more secure. The current solutions offer easy-to-use key management but make concessions on security and privacy. Fortunately new technology will enable private key management solutions that are still seamless but without the drawbacks of legacy solutions.

To use web3 applications, users need an easy way to get money from their bank account or credit card into crypto. Many applications send users to exchanges like Coinbase to buy their first crypto, but moving back and forth between an app and an exchange is clunky and confusing for users. Only highly motivated users make it.

Innovators have started building NFT marketplaces, prediction markets, web3 gaming applications, etc. for everyday users, but these applications are held back by the complexity of using web3. Before using a web3 application, users must set up an exchange account, buy crypto, set up a wallet, write down their seed phrase, transfer crypto to their wallet, figure out how to bridge between chains, hold a native token on every chain to pay transaction fees, and more. It's an intimidating and error-prone experience.