Lotte World Unveils Theme Park Maps in Metaverse Platform The Sandbox

Singaporean Researchers Devise More Effective DAO VotingResearchers at the Singapore University of Social Sciences have come up with a more efficient governance model for decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs).Photo by Shubham Dhage on UnsplashDAO governance reviewThe scientists presented their work via a paper titled “Voting Schemes in DAO Governance,” which was published earlier this week. The paper is due to appear in the Annual Review of Fintech in due course.The research paper initially sets out with a review of the different forms of voting currently used to affect DAO governance in the various early stage projects that are already up and running. Having taken a deep dive into existing approaches, the research team of Qinxu Ding, Weibiao Xu, Zhiguo Wang and David Kuo Chuen Lee decided that they could go one better themselves.Their review encompassed eight current approaches including the following: token-based quorum voting, knowledge-extractable voting, conviction voting and reputation-based voting. Each voting scheme was then evaluated based on the following factors:Efficiency: An assessment of the speed at which proposals are selected and approved.Fairness: Each voter should have equal rights to vote.Scalability: The degree to which storage, computation and communication needs can be adjusted relative to the number of voters.Robustness: An assessment of the relative resistance of the voting scheme to attacks and collusion.Incentive Schemes: The extent to which DAO members are motivated to vote.Following on from that analysis, the scientists put forward a hypothetical voting mechanism with design considerations relative to fully decentralized and permissionless DAO governance. When it came to ratings, the holographic consensus approach scored highest, with a “high” rating in the categories of efficiency, fairness and robustness, dropping down to medium when it came to scalability. None of the other approaches came close.In trying to go one better, the team took the holographic consensus approach and set out to create their own hypothetical voting mechanism based on this model. As evidenced from the paper, they tried to effect improvements to this approach:“We know that the downside of the conviction voting mechanism is that it takes time to approve an urgent proposal. To address this concern, we introduce a blind betting mechanism: each member could choose whether to bet on any proposals with a certain number of their tokens.”The researcher’s hypothetical model allows stakeholders to gamble their tokens on the likelihood of a proposal passing or failing. The logic with this approach, they claim, is that it would speed up the governance process, while making it more robust at the same time.In concluding remarks, the researchers acknowledged that all approaches were not without their pros and cons. They point out that the further development of DAOs shouldn’t be confined to a static organizational future. While they believe that their own hypothetical scheme is in theory superior, they acknowledge that it too has flaws. With that, the realities of implementing it in the real world may be a challenge.

Jeff “Jihoz” Zirlin, one of the co-founders of Sky Mavis, the Singapore-headquartered development firm behind both Axie Infinity and the Ronin Network, has faced a significant setback as some of his personal crypto wallets have fallen victim to a hack.Photo by GuerrillaBuzz on UnsplashFunds drained through Tornado CashThe hack has resulted in the loss of approximately $9.7 million worth of ether (ETH). The breach, which occurred on Feb. 23, saw two crypto wallet addresses associated with Zirlin compromised. The perpetrator managed to abscond with 3,248 ETH, funneling the stolen funds through Tornado Cash, a privacy-focused Ethereum mixer. The alarm was raised by PeckShield, a blockchain investigation firm, which identified the compromise of a "whale wallet" through the Ronin Bridge. PeckShield attributed the breach to a "wallet compromise," which facilitated unauthorized outbound transfers of funds. PeckShield's investigation revealed that the pilfered 3,248 ETH was initially dispersed across three different wallets before being funneled into Tornado Cash. This service, notorious for its use by hackers seeking to obfuscate the origin and traceability of illicit funds, served as a conduit for the stolen assets. Confirming the attack and remarking on having had a “tough morning,” Zirkin outlined on social media that “the attack is limited to my personal accounts, and has nothing to do with validation or operations of the Ronin chain.” He emphasized the implementation of stringent security protocols across all chain-related activities, seeking to reassure stakeholders of the company’s commitment to safeguarding user assets. Although specific details regarding the breach remain undisclosed, Zirlin's statement suggests a leakage of the private keys associated with his personal wallets, granting unauthorized access to the hacker. Ronin Network securePeckShield’s revelation prompted Aleksander Larsen, co-founder of Ronin Network, to swiftly respond, affirming the robust security measures of the Ronin Bridge. The social media post that Larsen had responded to, which he claimed to have an “extremely misleading title,” was later deleted. Larsen suspected that the breach stemmed from a wallet hack rather than a flaw within the bridge itself. Notably, Ronin had been targeted in a high-profile attack in March 2022, orchestrated by the North Korea-backed Lazarus Group, resulting in a $625 million loss.In response to this previous breach Sky Mavis initiated a comprehensive overhaul of Ronin's core systems to bolster decentralization and mitigate future vulnerabilities. $112M Ripple co-founder hackIn a separate incident, Binance intercepted $4.2 million worth of stolen XRP, part of the $112 million hack targeting Ripple co-founder Chris Larsen's personal wallet on Jan. 31. Unlike the Axie Infinity breach, the perpetrator behind Larsen's hack refrained from leveraging crypto mixer services or decentralized exchanges, enabling Binance to track and immobilize a portion of the illicitly obtained funds. Axie Infinity, heralded as a pioneering "play-to-earn" Web3 game, has emerged as a lucrative platform, enabling players to earn cryptocurrency and trade in-game assets via blockchain technology. Since its inception in 2018, the game has amassed $1.3 billion in revenue, underscoring its prominence within the burgeoning blockchain gaming ecosystem. 

Superblock Rolls Out Crypto Wallet, Garnering Over 680K Pre-RegistrantsSouth Korean blockchain startup Superblock has successfully rolled out its own cryptocurrency wallet, named Over Wallet, according to a report by local news outlet Newsis. The wallet has already amassed over 680,000 pre-registrants since April, ahead of its official release.Photo by Shubham’s Web3 on UnsplashAccessibility and cost reductionOver Wallet serves as the mobile crypto wallet for the Over Protocol, a blockchain mainnet developed based on the paper published by Superblock’s CEO, Kim Jae-yun. The Over Protocol distinguishes itself through its accessibility, offering enterprises interested in the Web3 industry an opportunity to reduce costs associated with infrastructure investment and service operation.With the introduction of Over Wallet, Superblock empowers users with the capability to collect and manage Over points. The company plans to add functions for the management and transfer of token assets to provide an even more optimized user experience.Currently, Over Wallet is available for download on the Apple App Store and Google Play Store.Mainnet launch next yearAs part of the preparations leading up to the Over Protocol’s mainnet launch in the first half of next year, the Over Community Access Program (OCAP) has also been unveiled. OCAP enables users to earn Over points by completing various tasks. These accumulated points can then be used at the Over Protocol pop-up store, a side event scheduled for the annual blockchain conference, Korea Blockchain Week 2023, taking place in Seoul in September. The event will collaborate with KREAM, a resale and trading platform catering to collectors of limited editions.Superblock CEO Kim has a notable background, having founded Decipher, a blockchain study group at Seoul National University, in 2018. During the establishment of Superblock, Kim successfully secured funding from investors Spring Camp and Naver Z, both affiliates of the Korean search engine giant Naver.There has been additional support that underpins Superblock’s commitment to blockchain ventures. Last October, the company partnered with Shinhan Securities for technological cooperation. Subsequently, in February of this year, Superblock raised a Series A funding round of 9 billion KRW ($7 million). Investors in this round include notable names like conglomerate SK Inc., game developer Netmarble, and venture capital firm DSC Investment.