"Interview Date: December 5, 2023"
1. You can briefly introduce yourself
Hello everyone, my name is Gavin. I first worked for Motorola in Hangzhou for two or three years. During that time, I was responsible for the DVB task of the entire set-top box in Taiwan. During this period, I read the code of the Internet cloud computing operating system that Motorola has accumulated over more than 20 years. Around 2016, I joined the research and development of a large national blockchain project. We are working on a digital ticket chain prototype that will last for several months. In this project, I took on the core underlying research and development work. During this period, I spent seven days on my own to change the POW version of the python version of Ethereum client into the POS version.
Later, I switched to Bytom in 2017 and spent a year building the entire Bytom chain from scratch. In 2018, I decided to start my own business. In the process, I launched some interesting products. One of the projects had a market value of US$300 million at the time, and the number of BTC that could be cross-chain was as high as 100,000, and it was possible without financing. Remarkable achievements have been made. During the entrepreneurial process, I not only focused on the technology field, but also got involved in private communication and social software. A private communication software I developed has reached tens of millions of downloads, and the number of users on the chain has reached five to six million.
In addition, I also created a BTC full-chain financial system that aggregates 18 chains. 1.1 million cross-chain transaction exchanges were completed on this system, and TVL reached 20 million US dollars. In May and June, I launched bitbox, an inscription tool, and successfully gained about 20% of the market share.
2. Can you share your opportunity to join the circle?
I got to know BTC a long time ago, but I only entered the currency circle in 2016. During that time, Motorola was acquired by Google and later sold to China's Lenovo, resulting in the layoff of Motorola's entire Hangzhou unit. While I was re-searching for a blockchain job, I stumbled across a correspondence. At that time, one of the core developers of Ethereum was recruiting training personnel to organize a research summer camp on central bank digital currency, so I signed up. The summer camp lasted for four months and was designed to organize personnel to conduct experiments on blockchain technology. This experience allowed me to start learning and trying to develop related technologies on Ethereum.
Core content: I entered the currency circle in 2016. When I was looking for a new job, I accidentally discovered a letter about the research and development of the blockchain project of the Ethereum core development organization. Participated in a four-month summer camp to learn blockchain technology applications on Ethereum.
3. What are your main projects now?
We are currently focusing on developing BEVM, a BTC two-layer system that supports P2P networks that are fully compatible with VM virtual machines. We have also done BTC cross-chain. The development of the blockchain field began five years ago. The technology initially adopted was slightly not decentralized enough. It mainly used light nodes and BTC’s native 15-fold multi-signature technology to ensure BC interaction. security. We are now working on BEVM to further improve security and enable fully decentralized BD, supporting up to 1000 nodes. Therefore, BEVM is a BTC layer2 network that combines Taproot schnorr signature technology, Mast contract, and POS consensus composed of BTC light nodes.
In October 2021, this decentralized BTC cross-chain technology successfully applied for and obtained Chinese patent certification, verifying the feasibility of our technology. We have 3 main narratives for the development of BEVM. The first is BTC EVM, which is to transplant the Ethereum system to BTC, only using BTC as gas fee, and keeping other aspects unchanged, to build an ecosystem similar to the entire Ethereum. Secondly, the second narrative we are conducting is BTC to EVM, which is similar to the model of issuing USDC and USDT on various chains. We also bring BTC to different chains, but in a decentralized model, using taproot The decentralized BTC cross-chain solution of the shnorr signature combination mast contract brings BTC to the smart contract platform of each virtual machine. This is our current main work direction. The third narrative is BEVM-stack. We package this decentralized BTC layer2 technology into a one-click BTC layer2 framework, allowing any team that is good at market operations to deploy their own BTC layer2 with one click, eliminating a lot of Development costs.
Core content: We focus on the development of BEVM, a BTC two-layer system that supports P2P networks and is fully compatible with VM virtual machines. We began to explore blockchain five years ago, using light nodes and BTC multi-signature technology to ensure BC interaction security. Now committed to the development of BEVM, combined with Taproot Schnorr signatures, Mast contracts and BTC light nodes, to build a fully decentralized BTC Layer2 network that supports up to 1,000 nodes. Has obtained Chinese patent certification. Development directions include BTC EVM, BTC to EVM and BEVM-stack to simplify the deployment of BTC Layer2 and reduce development costs.
4. What do you think of the development of the BTC ecosystem?
In the long run, I believe that the BTC ecosystem satisfies the Law of 28 and has become the largest and most difficult to copy business logic in the entire currency circle. It has the most difficult to overcome market barriers, namely capital flow and capital volume. The market value of BTC accounts for 50% of the entire cryptocurrency market, so BTC is almost unshakable in terms of market value and status. In the future, it will be difficult for other cryptocurrencies to surpass BTC. However, this also means there is a huge gap in the market.
We predict that the BTC ecosystem will reach 20% of the total market value. Equivalent to 20% of 21 million BTC, that is, the final market value of the entire BTC ecosystem will roughly reach about 4.2 million BTC. This is why we started focusing on the BTC ecosystem 7 years ago, because we firmly believe that it has huge potential.
Core content: In the long run, I believe that the BTC ecosystem conforms to the Law of 28. It is the largest and most difficult to copy business logic in the currency circle, and has market barriers that are difficult to surpass. BTC is almost unshakable in terms of market value and status, accounting for 50% of the entire cryptocurrency market. It is expected that the BTC ecosystem will reach 20% of the total market value, which is about 4.2 million BTC. This is the reason why we focused on the BTC ecosystem seven years ago, because we believe it has huge potential.
5. Which type of BTC project do you think has more potential for development in the future?
Currently, the BTC ecosystem is in its initial development stage, and BTC is applicable to the proven Ethereum model. Each track is full of potential, such as BTC's native collateral and stablecoin issuance, as well as technologies such as BEVM. Already emerging projects such as BRC20 have a variety of formulas and show great potential. These potentials will be dispersed in different tracks, and the BTC I mentioned earlier occupies 20% of the market value share, which shows that BTC has great potential.
Therefore, I personally think that BTC has the greatest potential among all tracks. This is because in the BTC ecosystem, we can compare the development of Ethereum. At present, the valuation of Ethereum layer 2 has reached billions of dollars. For example, the valuation of Ethereum Layer 2 Scroll made by a Chinese team has reached 3 billion US dollars, and other leading projects have reached more than 8 billion US dollars. In contrast, the ecological market value of BTC is predictable. By comparing the market capitalization of BTC and ETH, we can predict that the market capitalization of BTC should be about three times the market capitalization of ETH. Therefore, there is no doubt that the market value potential of the BTC ecosystem is the largest. Because various ecologies will be nurtured on the BTC platform, the BTC ecology will be redistributed, and the innovation of business models will be promoted. This creates a trend that is likely to continue in the future.
Core content: Currently, the BTC ecosystem is in its initial development stage, absorbing the proven model of Ethereum. Each track shows great potential, including native staking and stablecoin issuance. BTC accounts for 20% of the market capitalization, showing its huge potential. Compared with other tracks, I think BTC has the greatest potential, because the Ethereum Layer 2 project has achieved a valuation of billions of dollars, and the ecological market value of BTC can be expected to be about three times that of ETH.
6. Can you share an experience that impressed you?
One of the most unforgettable experiences was when we were working on ChainX. We launched a project involving BTC cross-chain. The logic was to mine pcx by locking BTC and dot. After the launch, in an instant, the entire dot lockup reached 30% to 50% of the total dot amount, which was locked to the ChainX network through signature transactions. At that time, dot had not yet been launched on the main network, and the market value may not be high. However, later, the highest unit price of dot in circulation has reached fifty US dollars. According to this valuation, the market value of locked dots should be at least tens of billions of dollars.
Secondly, in addition to dot lock-up, I also have a strong feeling about BTC lock-up mining. 4 or 5 years ago, a large amount of BTC has been locked since Bitcoin. At that time, locking BTC to ChainX required the BTC wallet to support opreurn transactions, which led to the incompatibility of many BTC wallet products, such as imtoken, the head wallet of the ETH network. However, because there were many users locking BTC at the time, the imtoken wallet It is actively compatible with btc wallets that can send opreturn transactions. Although it was not as popular as BRC20 now, at least there were hundreds of thousands of BTC locked up before and after. According to current estimates, this is an astronomical figure. This is what surprised me the most, because when we were working on ChainX, we had no financing at all. It was purely from a development perspective, just for fun and technical discussions, and never considered the logic of commercialization.
Core content: The most unforgettable experience was when I was working on the ChainX project, I launched a solution involving BTC cross-chain, locking dot to mine pcx. In an instant, dot lock-up reached 30% to 50% of the total, and the market value reached at least tens of billions of US dollars. In addition, a large amount of BTC was locked in ChainX 4 or 5 years ago. Although the products were not compatible at the time, the phenomenon of dot and BTC lock-up was still eye-catching. Because at that time we were only starting from a technical perspective, purely for fun and technical discussion, without commercial considerations, this was what surprised me the most.
7. What areas do you plan to delve into next?
In my 7 years of experience in the cryptocurrency industry, I have always adhered to the original intention that has never changed. My goal is to make BTC practically applicable, not just limited to being a tool for value storage and value collection. I believe that BTC has the potential to become a world currency and should therefore be widely used in various business fields. To achieve this goal, I have studied many technical ecosystems in depth, including projects such as Polkadot, Cosmos, and Sui. I have also contributed to these projects, both in terms of development and community building.
Although I have participated in many technological ecological explorations, my original intention remains the same, which is to better serve BTC through various technical means so that it can be integrated into everyone's life. I hope that BTC can enter the public eye and enter every home, just like Alipay, so that everyone can personally experience the benefits brought by BTC. My efforts have always been towards this goal.
Core content: In my 7 years of experience, I have always insisted on applying BTC to practice, beyond the function of value storage and collection. I pursue making BTC a world currency and promoting its widespread application in various business fields. Through in-depth research on the technology ecosystem, I have made some contributions in both development and community building. Despite being involved in multiple technology ecosystems, I have always adhered to the original intention of making BTC serve the public, hoping that BTC can be integrated into everyone's life and become a popular tool like Alipay, so that everyone can enjoy the benefits of BTC. My efforts have always been working towards this goal.
