Welcome to the third edition of “This Week in Quai,” an initiative by the development company of Quai Network, Dominant Strategies. This Week in Quai offers weekly updates to the Quai Community by aggregating popular Quai quotes and social posts from the past week and offering a schedule for upcoming events.
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What is Quai?
Quai Network is a pre-launch cryptocurrency. Quai is the first blockchain protocol that is simultaneously decentralized, censorship resistant, and infinitely scalable. Quai, in contrast to traditional cryptocurrencies, functions as a network of many interoperable blockchains braided together. Due to a breakthrough discovery that occurred during research on Proof-of-Work, Quai Network utilizes a new consensus mechanism, Proof-of-Entropy-Minima (PoEM), which eliminates all consensus-based forks, and enables all Quai nodes to remain in “perpetual consensus.”
Quote of the Week
“Scaling a blockchain exclusively through L2s is a terrible idea
As it comes with horrible UX & trust trade-offs; pushing people into centralization
Inevitably leading to failure; as users move to scalable chains instead
L2s have become the greatest source of corruption.”
– Justin Bons via Twitter, May 17 2023
Justin Bons is an independent cryptocurrency researcher and the founder of Cyber Capital, the oldest European crypto fund in the world. Bons has no connection to Quai or Dominant Strategies. In an elaborate Twitter thread posted on May 17th, Bons discusses the inherent shortcomings of Layer 2s.
Within the thread (which we highly encourage you to read in its entirety!), Bons defends 3 key points:
- Layer 2s have inherently weaker decentralization and security than Layer 1s.
- Layer 2s have an inherently worse user experience than Layer 1s.
- ETH developers have strong incentives to attempt to scale via Layer 2s due to venture funding.
These three points mentioned by Bons encapsulate the reason that Quai Network exists as a new Layer 1, and why our team at Dominant Strategies believes that the path to scalability lies in fixing the Layer 1 rather than utilizing off-chain solutions.
Technical Term of the Week
Multithreaded Execution (Blockchains) – The ability of a blockchain network to process multiple transactions or interactions simultaneously across different threads or sub-networks. The concept of multithreaded execution in a blockchain network can be likened to the way multithreaded CPUs operate, allowing for parallel processing within a single unit, increasing computational speed and efficiency.
Multithreaded execution in blockchains like Quai is similar to a factory assembly line branching into multiple lines, each working independently yet towards a common goal. Just like multithreaded CPUs improved computer speed, Quai’s multithreaded blockchain execution improves transaction speed and efficiency. Quai’s multithreaded execution means that many transactions can be processed at the same time across different parts of the network, preventing a backlog when demand is high.
At the heart of Quai’s multithreaded execution is the unique way Quai splits consistency (making sure data is the same everywhere) and consensus (everyone agreeing on the data) in the network. In traditional blockchains, everyone in the network must agree (consensus) before the data can be considered consistent. Quai, however, has smaller networks, each reaching local consensus and maintaining consistency before they are included in global consensus. This means transactions can be processed quicker, as they don’t have to wait for the whole network to agree.
Critically, security in Quai Network is maintained across all threads. All Quai chains are interconnected into a “braid” through the creation of “coincident blocks,” or blocks that are simultaneously valid in multiple Quai chains. The creation of coincident blocks to interlink the network’s threads relies only upon the process of merged mining.
Top Posts of the Week
- The Quai Network Telegram Sticker Competition by Dominant Strategies is ending Friday, May 26th:
- A discussion on how the system of fractional reserve banking originated under a gold standard:
- A discussion of the many developments that have occurred in Quai between the Bronze Age and Iron Age Testnets:
- Quai co-founder Dr. K answering the question “when Testnet?”:
- Quai University Calls have been collected into a YouTube Playlist:
- Dominant Strategies CMO Raleigh participated in a Twitter Space with Bepro Network to discuss all things Quai Network: https://twitter.com/i/spaces/1ynJOaweEVyKR/peek
- A recap video of Quai Network Presents: The Official Consensus 2023 Closing Party was posted on Twitter:
Upcoming Events
Quai Network Office Hours with Justin: May 30, 2023 @ 10am CST – Join Dominant Strategies team member Justin for a casual discussion/AMA on Quai Network’s technology.
Quai Network Community AMA: May 31, 2023 @ 11am CST – Join Quai co-founder Alan O. for a live Twitter Spaces AMA on the Quai Network ecosystem, what building on Quai will look like, and how development on the Iron Age Testnet has progressed.
Quai Network Office Hours with Max: June 1, 2023 @ 9am CST – Join Dominant Strategies team member Max for a casual discussion/AMA on Quai Network’s technology.
IRL Quai Network Community Meetup & Happy Hour: June 8, 2023 @ 6pm CST – Join the Dominant Strategies team and the Quai community for a meetup in the real world! The meetup will be hosted at Skinny’s Off-Track Bar in Austin, TX. If you show up in Quai merch, drinks are on us! If you don’t have any Quai merch yet, don’t worry – there will be plenty of swag there!
Join us to build a better blockchain.
Quai Network is an open-source Proof-of-Entropy-Minima blockchain network utilizing the capabilities of merged mining to increase throughput and security. Users of Quai Network will enjoy fast transaction times without compromising decentralization and security. Miners will have competitive mining opportunities across the many blockchains within the network.
Capable of thousands of transactions per second, the Quai Network is a new solution to scalability that is soon to be ready for mainnet release.
Terms & Conditions / Disclaimer
The entirety of the Quai Genesis grants program, including the content of this article, is subject to the Terms and Conditions outlined here.
Opinions, ideas, and statements shared in this update are delivered with numerous assumptions, risks, and uncertainties which are subject to change over time. There are multiple risk factors, including those related to blockchain, cryptographic systems, and technologies generally, as well Quai’s business, operations and results of operations, that could cause actual results or developments anticipated not to be realized or, even if substantially realized, to fail to achieve any or all of the benefits that could be expected therefrom. We reserve the right to unilaterally, completely, or partially change plans, expectations, and intentions stated herein at any time and for any reason, in our sole and absolute discretion, and we undertake no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statement, whether as a result of new information, future developments, or otherwise. ACCORDINGLY, WE RECOMMEND THAT YOU DO NOT RELY ON, AND DO NOT MAKE ANY FINANCIAL DECISION OR INVESTMENT BASED ON, THE STATEMENTS CONTAINED IN THIS UPDATE OR ANY OF OUR UPDATES/ARTICLES — INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO ANY SELLING OR TRADING OF QUAI TOKENS, ETHER, OR ANY OTHER CRYPTOGRAPHIC OR BLOCKCHAIN TOKEN, OR THE SECURITIES OF ANY COMPANY.
The views, opinions, and statements made in this update are those of an individual author and not those of any institution, University, or legal entity operating within the jurisdiction of The United States or beyond. There is no association between these views, opinions, and statements and any for-profit or non-profit entity, particularly with Universities, Foundations, and other Agencies located within the United States. Any perception of such an association is purely accidental, and will be rectified immediately if brought to our attention by the reader.