A Look at Seattle-based RChain’s Plans to Build a Scalable & Safe Blockchain 🚨 This article is 6 years old...
A Look at Seattle-based RChain’s Plans to Build a Scalable & Safe Blockchain
3 min read
Updated: Sep. 9, 2018 at 7:09 pm UTC
Cover art/illustration via CryptoSlate. Image includes combined content which may include AI-generated content.
Improvement is iterative. That’s what we see right now as a slew of blockchain startups strive to make iterative changes to the fundamental features of blockchain platforms like Bitcoin and Ethereum.
Introducing RChain
There are several blockchain platforms striving to be the solution to these problems. Founded by Greg Meredith, RChain is one of the latest blockchain initiatives to try and solve some of the problems plaguing the development of a large-scale blockchain ecosystem.
RChain is a blockchain platform that’s the product of the Rchain Cooperative, a blockchain development organization based in Seattle, Washington.
With an eye on security, scalability, and capability, RChain aims to supplant the dominate blockchains with a better version of themselves. RChain is nothing if not ambitious.
According to GeekWire,
“RChain claims that it will provide ‘content delivery at the scale of Facebook and support transactions at the speed of Visa.”
Since Facebook has more than 2 billion active users and Visa can process 40,000 transactions per minute, that’s a pretty lofty goal.
So how does it work? Watch this short video (1:51):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qftq9S34xgg
The RChain’s Private Token Sale
To fund the project, RChain performed a private sale for its RHOC token with hopes of raising $15 million. RHOC is an ERC20 token with a $20 million hard cap with one RHOC worth $0.20 during the ICO.
Initially, the token launch drew attention because of the high entry cost. Individuals had to place a minimum investment of $50,000 to participate.
The token launch drew attention once again when it raised more than $5 million toward the project in just a single day.
Aside from their audacious aspirations, one thing that sets RChain apart is its commitment to blockchain development. Unlike many ICOs that operate exclusively to maximize profits, RChain requires investors to commit to doing something.
Greg Heuss, an RChain adviser, notes,
“We’re forcing buyers to say yes, I’ll do something to help, whether it’s looking at our financial models, stand up a node, or be a validator on the code…It’s not an investment – it’s a purchase and a promise to do something.”
This may be RChain’s most endearing asset. They boast an earnest desire to proliferate blockchain technology and to be an active part of solving its most puzzling questions. This is demonstrated by the fact that the funds from their ICO are being put towards software development.
In addition to the general crypto-mania sweeping the world, part of the enthusiasm for RHOC may originate with the outcomes of their developers retreat at the end of the year. At their meeting in Salt Lake City, the team made several developmental decisions that should clarify their approach going forward.
They released a transaction pricing model that is more nuanced and divides the costs into four categories:
- Computing
- Networking
- Memory
- Storage
Finally, RChain identified a specific enterprise use case to target. By addressing supply chain issues for pharmaceuticals, RChain has a targetable and tangible industry in its sights.
Although the crypto-boom has created a significant amount of wealth through ICOs, it seems like everyone is chasing the most sustainable value by developing or investing in the first blockchain-based platform to achieve wide adoption at the enterprise level.
To their credit, while many blockchain platforms identified supply chain management as a natural enterprise endeavor, few have narrowed the field as specifically as RChain has.
There is no guarantee that they will be successful, but their attempt is worth following. That’s the only clear consensus around RChain. It offers no guarantees, but it’s an interesting endeavor that’s worth following.
