BSV Blockchain recently held its annual DevCon on 20 May 2024 at the London ExCel Convention Centre. The DevCon aimed to empower developers to leverage the BSV blockchain as an infrastructure for novel applications, services and businesses.
Transaction processors are an important partner for any service or business that relies on the BSV blockchain. One of these service providers is called Gorilla Pool. Kurt Wuckert Jr (Founder of Gorilla Pool) presented his company and gave the audience not only an overview of Gorilla Pool’s services and products but also of how the BSV blockchain works as a data transfer layer.
Rethinking value
Wuckert highlighted widespread misconceptions about digital currencies at various levels, particularly in terms of their financial value. He criticised that digital currencies are primarily seen as assets, whose value is measured in fiat currencies. He argued that the BSV blockchain in contrast to this, facilitates data transfers and that there is a convergence between money and data.
Wuckert also challenged the notion that it is necessary for a distributed ledger that everyone runs a node on personal devices, deeming this impractical for a global financial network. Instead, he argued to leave the job of processing transactions to professionals. This way, everybody can focus on just the aspects of the blockchain that are relevant to their operation.
Demystifying blockchain infrastructure
Wuckert provided a comprehensive overview of transaction processing and network infrastructure. He explained that to connect to the BSV network, one needs a wallet to broadcast transactions, and nodes, ranging from small to large computers, compete to add transaction data to the blockchain.
Specialised devices called ASICs use brute force to prove reliability and trustworthiness for writing transactions. Processing nodes earn subsidies and transaction fees by validating blocks. He stressed the importance of making it easier to build applications to increase transactions and profits for both users and miners, likening this to telecom companies encouraging data use on their networks.
The power of data
Wuckert highlighted the vast data opportunities with the BSV blockchain, noting that trillions of megabytes of data are created daily, including emails, social media interactions, and financial transactions. He emphasised that BSV aims to handle this massive amount of data by integrating global financial systems and the Internet.
He explained that proof of work was originally designed to filter out junk data, such as email spam, and can be applied to broader internet data management to ensure privacy and relevance. Wuckert appreciated developers working on these challenges and underscored BSV’s goal of improving data utility and efficiency.
Efficient data management on the BSV blockchain
Addressing the issue of managing data on the BSV blockchain, where all data is chronologically ordered and includes both trivial and critical information, Wuckert said they follow a two-pronged approach. This involves overlay networks and efficient indexing/filtering to better manage data.
With Gorilla Pool, users can subscribe only to the data they need, reducing unnecessary processing. He promoted Jungle Bus, a service that allows companies to run a minimal indexer for their specific data needs, cutting costs and improving efficiency by focusing on relevant transactions.
He also mentioned ARC, an ingestion engine for getting data into and out of blocks, enhancing the blockchain’s value as a data technology. Wuckert emphasised Gorilla Pool’s role in providing simple tools and services, promoting cooperation within the BSV ecosystem.
