TZ APAC: Community Interview with Katherine Ng (English and Tagalog)
TZ APAC celebrated with an exclusive anniversary AMA with Managing Director Katherine Ng on the entity’s newly launched Discord channel.
This article is available in English and Tagalog.
Last Friday (30 June 2022), Tezos celebrated four years since the network launch. Here are some of the milestones Tezos has hit in the past four years:
- 10 upgrades
- Over 2.4 million blocks
- Over 100 million transactions
- Over 2 million funded accounts
TZ APAC celebrated with an exclusive anniversary AMA with Managing Director Katherine Ng on the entity’s newly launched Discord channel.
Here’s a recap on some of the questions that were addressed.
Q: What are the advantages and features of Tezos as a blockchain?
There are many reasons why Tezos is competitive not only in the NFT scene, but also as a blockchain.
One advantage is the self-governance aspect, which has allowed for Tezos to upgrade 10 times over the last two years, more than any other blockchain on the market.
Additionally, each one of these upgrades have focused on delivering lower gas fees to users and greater smart contract ability to developers.
Another advantage, and one of the most important, is that Tezos has a relatively small carbon footprint which makes it much more energy-efficient than other Proof-of-Work blockchains.
Q: As an artist who wants to enter the world of NFTs, why is Tezos a better blockchain to start on as compared to the other networks?
As one of the first and longest running Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchains, Tezos operates without the large energy requirements required of other types of blockchains.
It only costs a fraction of 1 tez to create (or “mint”) an NFT on Tezos – that means Tezos NFTs are eco-friendly and more accessible for people around the world.
Many small artists are moving to the Tezos blockchain because of its low cost mint price. It’s also really easy to start and put your work out there.
Besides the low cost and energy efficiency, Tezos also boasts of a very strong artist-led community. It was recently the Tezos Art Week, and you can read more about the Tezos community of artists here.
Moreover, NFT sales have in fact surged on Tezos-based NFT marketplaces such as fx(hash) and Objkt.com, while competing marketplaces were experiencing periods of decline. Furthermore, major brands also regularly choose to build on Tezos.
All of this could be attributed to the fact that Tezos NFTs are regarded an “anomaly” in the NFT space — the works are often considered a bridge between technology and traditional art, rather than “crypto art” or profile picture (PFP) NFTs like popular projects Bored Ape Yacht Club and CryptoPunks.
Q: After the Jakarta upgrade, does the wallet still need to choose the network? For example, the rollup of Ethereum requires network selection.
Tezos recently launched its 10th upgrade – Jakarta with a new feature called Transaction Optimistic Rollups, which will introduce Layer 2 addresses to the blockchain.
This is a stepping stone to the more permanent and unique Enshrined Rollups which are under development by the various Tezos developer teams, and you can see it as a short-term and experimental scaling solution. This can be changed in future protocol upgrades, should the community desire it.
The second major advancement in Jakarta 2 are Michelson Tickets, an exciting new way for Tezos developers to avoid centralized smart contracts for tokens. Think of them as a more trust-minimized, decentralized version of Tezos FA2 tokens and Ethereum ERC-20 tokens.
Once these features are fully rolled out, it’s likely that Ethereum developers and ones from other POS chains will migrate to Tezos.
To find out more about the latest Jakarta upgrade, click here.
Q: Tezos is now home to some of the biggest NFT marketplaces. Does Tezos NFTs have a fragment function?
Tezos is an open-source blockchain and all projects and people who want to develop applications on it are welcome.
If there is a demand for fractionalisation, there will definitely be people who will fill the need in the market, so it all depends on the product-market fit.
We have seen fx(hash) being conceived to fill the demand for a generative art platform on the Tezos ecosystem, so anything is possible.
Q: Does Tezos have plans to develop a stablecoin?
Yes, this is on our radar. USDT recently announced that it will launch on Tezos. This launch will further highlight Tether’s dedication to pioneering collaboration and interoperability within the growing digital asset space and we hope that it will attract other stablecoins as well.
Q: Does TZ APAC have any events for developers or users in the next few months?
TZ APAC and Tezos India are bringing back the TezAsia hackathon – one of the most-anticipated Web3 hackathons in Asia, with over 10,000 sign-ups.
TezAsia welcomes aspiring newcomers, advanced coders, students, professionals, and blockchain enthusiasts. Participants stand a chance to win $100,000 in prizes and an additional $100,000 in early-stage grants. The hackathon opens up opportunities to work with the best dApps, platforms, mentors and Tezos-based entities in the ecosystem.
Registrations are still open, and you can sign up here to begin developing your Web3 project now.
Q: It’ll be the Web3 world in the future. What role would Tezos play?
Web 3.0 is a reshaping of the global network using cryptocurrencies and blockchain. Relying on these two technologies, the future Internet can communicate with each other without manual intervention or centralized supervision, and complete the verification and recording of transactions.
Since last year Tezos has onboarded name brands and institutions such as GAP, Evian, Redbull, Manchester United, the National University of Singapore (NUS), and more, with a goal to be the bridge to onboard institutions into the Web3 world.
For example, TZ APAC’s partnership with NUS Computing to set up the Centre for Nurturing Computing Excellence will see students being empowered to learn from real-world industry experts in fields such as blockchain technology, cloud computing and data science.
But it doesn’t end here – the Tezos ecosystem will continue to empower creators, developers, institutions and enterprises to explore and embrace blockchain technology.
Tagalog
Nitong Biyernes (30 June 2022), ipinagdiwang ng Tezos ang ikaapat na taon matapos ang kanilang network launch. Ito ang ilan sa mga milestone sa nagdaang apat na taon:
- 10 mga upgrade
- Higit 2.4 milyong mga block
- Higit 100 milyong transaksyon
- Higit 2 milyong mga funded account
Nagdiwang ang TZ APAC na may eksklusibong anniversary AMA kasama ang Managing Director na si Katherine Ng sa bagong lunsad nitong Discord channel.
Narito ang recap sa ilang mga tanong na kaniyang tinugunan.
Q: Ano ang mga advantage at feature ng Tezos bilang isang blockchain?
Maraming dahilan kung bakit competitive ang Tezos hindi lang pagdating sa NFT, pati na rin bilang isang blockchain.
Isang advantage nito ay ang kakayahan nitong mapamahalaan mag-isa o ang aspetong self-governance nito. Ito ang nagpapahintulot sa Tezos na mag-upgrade ng higit 10 beses sa dami ng upgrade nitong nakaraang 2 taon, pinakamalaki kung ikukumpara sa iba pang blockchain sa merkado.
Dagdag pa rito, ang bawat isang upgrade ay nagpokus sa pagbibigay ng mas mababang gas fee para sa mga user at mas mahusay na smart contract para sa mga developer.
Isa pang advantage, na isa sa pinakamahalaga, ay ang mas maliit na carbon footprint ng Tezos kaya naman mas energy-efficient ito kumpara sa ibang Proof-of-work blockchain.
Q: Bilang isang artist na nagnanais na pasukin ang mundo ng NFT, bakit Tezos ang mas magandang blockchain para magsimula kumpara sa ibang mga network?
Bilang isa sa una at pinakamatagal nang mga Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchain, ang Tezos ay gumagana nang hindi nangangailangan ng malaking energy requirement na siyang kailangan sa ibang mga blockchain.
Nagkakahalaga lamang ng maliit na bahagi ng isang tez para makabuo (or maka-”mint”) ng isang NFT sa Tezos — ibig sabihin, ang Tezos NFT ay eco-friendly at naa-access ng mas maraming tao sa iba’t ibang panig ng mundo.
Maraming mga maliliit na artist ang lumilipat na sa Tezos blockchain dahil sa mababang presyo ng pagmi-mint. Gayun din, mas madali magsimula at maglagay ng iyong mga gawa rito.
Bukod pa sa mababang presyo at energy efficiency, maipagyayabang rin ng Tezos ang napakalakas nitong artist-led community. Makikita ito sa nakaraang Tezos Art Week, at maaari kang magbasa tungkol sa Tezos community ng mga artist dito.
Dagdag pa rito, ang sales sa NFT, sa katunayan, ay lumago sa Tezos-based NFT marketplaces na tulad ng fx(hash) at Obkjt.com, samantalang ang mga naglalabang marketplaces ay nakaranas ng ilang mga sandali ng pagbaba. Gayun din naman, ang mga major brand ay regular ding pinipili ang pagbuo sa Tezos.
Ang lahat ng ito ay maiuugnay sa katotohanang ang Tezos NFT ay kinikilalang “anomaly” sa NFT space — ang mga obra ay kadalasang kinokonsiderang tulay sa pagitan ng teknolohiya at tradisyunal na sining, at hindi isang “crypto art” lamang o profile picture (PFP) NFTs tulad ng mga sikat na proyekto na Bored Ape Yacht Club at CryptoPunks.
Q: Matapos ang Jakarta upgrade, kailangan pa rin ba ng wallet na mamili ng network? Halimbawa, ang rollup ng Ethereum ay nangangailangan ng network selection.
Kamakailan lamang, inilunsad ng Tezos ang kanyang ika-10 upgrade – Jakarta kasama ang bagong feature na tinatawag na Transaction Optimistic Rollups, na siyang magpapakilala sa mga layer 2 address sa blockchain.
Ito ang simula sa mas permanente at kakaibang Enshrined Rollups na nasa ilalim pa ng development mula sa iba’t ibang Tezos developer team, at makikita mo ito bilang isang short-term at experimental na scaling solution. Ito ay maaaring mabago bunsod sa mga posibleng protocal upgrade sa hinaharap, kung nanaisin man ito ng community.
Ang pangalawang malaking advancement sa Jakarta 2 ay ang Michelson Ticket, isang bago at nakakapanabik na paraan para sa Tezos developers na maiwasan ang mga sentralisadong smart contract para sa mga token. Tignan mo ito bilang isang mas trust-minimized at desentralisadong bersyon ng tezos FA2 tokens at Ethereum ERC-20 tokens.
Sa oras na ang mga feature na ito ay tuluyang mailabas, posibleng ang mga Ethereum developer at ang ilan mula sa ibang mga POS chain ay lumipat na sa Tezos.
Upang malaman pa ang ibang mga impormasyon tungkol sa Jakarta upgrade, tignan lamang dito.
Q: Ang Tezos ay tahanan na ngayon ng ilan sa mga pinakamalalaking NFT marketplaces. Ang Tezos ba ay mayroon nang fragment function?
Ang Tezos ay isang open source blockchain at ang lahat ng proyekto at tao na gustong mag-develop ng application dito ay tinatanggap.
Kung mayroon mang demand sa fractionalization, siguradong magkakaroon ng mga tao na pupuno sa pangangailangan sa market, kaya ang lahat ng ito ay magdedepende sa magiging product-market fit.
Nasaksihan natin ang pagbuo sa fx(hash) upang tugunan ang demand sa generative art platform sa Tezos ecosystem, kaya anumang bagay ay posible.
Q: Mayroon bang plano ang Tezos na mag-develop ng stablecoin?
Oo, ito ay nasa radar na namin. Kamakailan ay inanusyo ng USDT na ito ay ilulunsad na sa Tezos. Ang launch na ito ang magtatampok sa dedikasyon ng Tether na magsimula ng kolaborasyon at interoperability sa loob ng lumalaking digital asset space at hinahangad nila na makapang-akit ng iba pang mga stablecoin.
Q: Magkakaroon ba ng events ang TZ APAC para sa mga developer at users sa mga susunod na buwan?
Ibabalik na ng TZ APAC at ng Tezos India ang TezAsia hackathon – isa sa mga pinakahinihintay na Web3 hackathon sa Asya, na may higit 10,000 mga sign-up.
Hinihikayat ng TezAsia ang mga aspiring newcomer, advance coder, mga estudyante, professionals, at mga blockchain enthusiast. Ang mga kalahok ay may tsansang manalo ng $100,000-halaga na mga premyo at karagdagang $100,000-halaga na early-stage grant. Ang hackathon na ito ay magbubukas ng oportunidad na makapagtrabaho gamit ang mga pinakamagagandang mga dApp, platforms, mentors at mga Tezos-based entity sa ecosystem.
Ang registration ay bukas pa rin, at maaari kang mag-sign-up dito para masimulan mo nang mag-develop ng sariling mong Web3 project.
Q: Ang mundo ay magiging isang Web3 world na. Ano ang magiging papel ng Tezos dito?
Pinaninibago ng Web 3.0 ang global network gamit ang cryptocurrency at blockchain. Kung patuloy tayong sasandig sa dalawang ito, sa internet ng hinaharap ay maaari nang makipag-communicate sa isa’t isa nang walang manual intervention o sentralisadong superbisyon, at makumpleto ang verification at recording ng mga transaksyon.
Simula nitong nakaraang taon, ang Tezos ay nakapagsama na ng mga kilalang brand at institusyon tulad ng GAP, Evian, Redbull, Manchester United, the National University of Singapore (NUS), at marami pang iba, na may hangaring maging tulay sa pagsali sa mga institusyong ito sa mundo ng Web3.
Halimbawa, ang kasunduan ng TZ APAC at NUS Computing na magtayo ng Centre for Nurturing Computing Excellence ay makakatulong s amga estudyante na matuto mula sa mga real-world industry expert sa larangan tulad ng blockchain technology, cloud computing at data science.
Pero ito ay hindi nagtatapos rito – ipagpapatuloy ng Tezos ecosystem ang pagpapalakas sa mga creator, developers, mga institusyon at mga negosyo upang tulungan silang galugarin at yakapin ang blockchain technology.
This article is published in collaboration with TZ APAC: TZ APAC: Community Interview with Katherine Ng
Disclaimer: BitPinas articles and its external content are not financial advice. The team serves to deliver independent, unbiased news to provide information for Philippine-crypto and beyond.
