What is a Real Web 3 Layer 1?

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I was listening to the presentation by starkerz during the Web3Berlin Conference which I found from here and learned the characteristics of a real Web 3 Layer 1 and let me share them today based on my own understanding and also include how Hive fits in.

So What is a True Web 3 Layer 1?

💥It should have a neutral Layer 1.

It should have systems that are neutral and are regulated by the community themselves. Neutral Layer 1 (base layer) further means that:

There is no ICO, no pre-mine, no VC funding which makes everyone start at zero tokens and users mine tokens as they use the chain hence it takes away the moral authority of the government to regulate the chain. Users mine tokens as they go.
Ownerless. There should be no company behind it nor an entity to contact so it cannot be censored or restricted in any way.
No CEO
The most critical infrastructures are incentivized by the chain.
Most reputed infrastructure regulators should be elected by the community. They have a say on the chain.
No smart contracts

Starkerz mentioned that in order for a chain to maintain what he calls a "Universal Digital Human Rights" (UDHR) where users have an equal right to transact on the chain no matter the race, background, location etcetera, a chain's base layer should have a neutral base layer and satisfies the criteria mentioned above.

👉 The Hive blockchain ticks off all of them. There had been no pre-mine, no ICO and no VC funding for Hive. Witnesses are incentivized by the chain and they are voted on by the community too. And there are no smart contracts on Hive's base layer.

💥 Feeless Layer 1

In order to have a feeless base layer, it should create stake-based resource access. People can't transact more with zero tokens on the chain. Users have to stake to be able to have the right to do more transactions. It is not trustless if there's a fee on the Layer 1.

👉 Hive transactions are free, users don't need to pay HIVE or HBD to transact. It is Resource Credits based so transactions are basically free but without RCs, one cannot transact more unless he stakes tokens or receives delegation from others.

💥 Text Data Availability and State Recall

Data should be immutable. Users have true account ownership. Users own their own social media accounts and followers list. No one can take these away from them.

👉 Data on Hive are immutable. The Also, users have complete control over their own accounts. They own their followers list. They have their own keys to their accounts.

💥Autonomous Rewards or Incentivized Stakeholders Distribution

Miners, critical infrastructure regulators, content creators and curators are all rewarded. Distribute rewards (tokens) to as far more possible to people or community members who contribute or taking par in the ecosystem.

👉 Hive blockchain rewards the witnesses or node operators (who were voted on by the community based upon reputation and trustworthiness), its different users or content creators (author rewards) and its curators too (curation rewards).

Those who are voted in are able to validate the transactions, add new blocks and signal to run new code. This allows the other nodes to maintain the ledgers, keep track of all balances in each wallet. Here is where the incentive for good behavior enters. Anyone who operates against the interests of the chain can be voted out. (Source)

💥Decentralized Security on Layer 1

Miners should be elected by the community to run the base code that create the State Recall and each one have an equal say regardless of their stakes. This is way more decentralized and makes it free from external regulations.

👉 Hive has its own governance where the community vote for witnesses that run the nodes. And the top 20 node operators have equal voice no matter how much their stakes are.

It uses the DPoS mechanism where "the super majority system evens out the votes of the consensus block producers. Vote totals from the community determine who is in consensus. There is no weighted voting in these matters. Each consensus block producer has one vote. Once super majority is reached, the changes go live." (Source)

Conclusion

Although Web 3 seems to be one of the buzzwords of these days and we read or hear people speak about it but not because they say this chain or that is Web 3 and it truly is. A blockchain has to tick off all the above-mentioned characteristics (and probably others that have not been included) to be considered as such. And I believe that a real Web 3 is continuously being worked on like Hive is.

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