Analysts at a16z have identified the key trends in the crypto market for 2024:

A New Era of Decentralization

Analysts emphasized the mission of decentralization, aiming to democratize systems through neutral and composable infrastructure, fostering competition and ecosystem diversity, and expanding choices and ownership rights for end-users.

UX Restart

Experts lamented the lack of significant changes in UX since 2016. It remains complex for ordinary users, involving private keys, interacting with dapps, and sending signed transactions.

Development of Modular Technological Stack

According to analysts, the advantage of monolithic architectures lies in providing deep integration and optimization through what would otherwise be modular boundaries. This leads to increased performance, at least in the early stages.

Integration of AI and Blockchains

Specialists believe that decentralized blockchains serve as a counterbalance to centralized artificial intelligence. Currently, AI models can be trained and exploited by a limited number of tech giants due to significant computational and data volume requirements.

Transforming P2E into Real Games and Earnings

Analysts pointed out the need for games that are both interesting to play and offer players the opportunity to derive greater benefits from their activities.

Cryptography Guarantees in AI-Created Games

Experts noted that AI agents in Web3 games must have guarantees: they are based on specific models, and these models operate without distortions. Otherwise, games will lose integrity.

Formal Verification Becomes Less Formal

According to specialists, there is a need for more accessible formal verification methods in software and especially in smart contract development. Technologies have emerged recently that have simplified this task.

NFTs as Brand Supplements

Analysts reminded that an increasing number of well-known brands are introducing ordinary consumers to digital assets in the form of NFTs—Starbucks, Nike, Reddit. Tokens can strengthen customer identity, connect physical goods with their digital copies, and even serve as the basis for new products and experiences with the most dedicated enthusiasts.

Popularity of SNARKs

Analysts highlighted that SNARKs allow for the cryptographic proof of certain computational loads to unreliable verifiers, making forgery impossible. In the past, computing such proof required 10^9 computational efforts compared to initial calculations; recent advancements bring this number closer to 10^6.