Progress demands interaction, collaboration, and friction. For a budding innovation to have a chance, it needs to attract the attention of investors, partners, promoters, and other interested parties. In the current cacophonous crypto/web3 ecosystem, attention is difficult to command and give.

Standing out is not new. The sparklemuffin (Maratus jactatus) is just one example of how far life is invested in grabbing attention.

In nature there’s a positive correlation between the magnificence of the display and the “upside” of the potential “collaboration” (it is called Sexual Selection). In the crypto/web3 ecosystem, with exorbitant pay-per-access, being seen on the big publishing platforms and via leading influencers is not an indication of good stock. It is an indication of money and connections. We’ve created a twisted evolutionary process that favors the rich and savvy over the viable, technologically-sound and value-adding.

A rough trichotomy divides the early web3 innovation market to Innovators/entrepreneurs, supporters, and publishers (curators/promoters). The latter is the proverbial middleman. In an ideal world part of its mission would be to deliver relevant information to the relevant people at the right time. Unfortunately high demand coupled with the desire to maximize short term profit has eroded that mission. The result is that the innovators/entrepreneurs can’t get in front of the supporters and they cannot access a merit-based pool of potential innovation. Bummer.

Think of it like this. The current (mostly early stage) web3 innovation market is like a super exclusive, dark and noisy nightclub. If you don’t know the right people to get you on the list, or if you don’t have enough money to grease the bouncer, you’re not getting in. If you manage to get in (either as a patron or as a supporter), you find yourself in a dark, super noisy space with blinding strobe lights looking for one or two unidentified supporters. They too are looking for you; they too do not know what you look like; and they too are overwhelmed by the cacophony. It’s an environment designed to make a desired match unnecessarily difficult.

Chapter 2: Orchestra — “The pretty obvious if you think about it accord”