In blockchain technology, where decentralization has often been overshadowed by volatility and speculation, an ambitious project emerges to redefine the narrative. OpenValue (OV) aims to leverage blockchain’s inherent transparency and security to create a more equitable value recognition and reward system.
As the vice president of engineering and a co-founder of OpenValue (former Agora Labs), Boris Lapouga spearheads the project. His almost two decades of software engineering experience and deep blockchain expertise have inspired its development. Driven by a passion for revolutionizing value recognition and exchange, Lapouga set out to transform OpenValue from concept to reality.
Boris Lapouga (Photo credit: Boris Lapouga)
The Genesis of OpenValue
Lapouga’s role was crucial from the outset, as he joined the company when there was no working proof of concept yet for the entire OpenValue ecosystem. His mission was to create a market simulation program that would mimic multiple actors creating content (such as researchers), investing into content (such as investors, universities or regular people) and citing content through financial value links to create references between various content pieces such as articles or research papers, driving the price of cited pieces up. This initiative significantly departs from conventional applications of blockchain technology, focusing instead on democratizing the access of research and content creation funding.
Lapouga’s technical contributions were critical to this vision. He led a team of engineers and data analysts to create agents that simulate complex behavior with predefined or randomized settings, showing how money will be distributed in a densely populated market.
Additionally, he created a private blockchain network, allowing OpenValue to test in a real blockchain environment. He mathematically proved that the initial hypothesis upon which OpenValue was built was working. This validation gave the company a solid reason to move forward with building a production solution.
Charting New Blockchain Territories with OpenValue
As creators and researchers struggle to gain direct financial benefits from their work, OpenValue introduces a token-based system that links a piece of content’s value to its community engagement and citation. This offers a novel approach to content valuation that empowers creators like never before.
Content uploaded to the platform is associated with a pool of tokens representing a stake in the content’s value. As the content garners citations and purchases, the value of these tokens appreciates, creating a direct financial incentive for creators. This system rewards originality and quality and fosters a supportive ecosystem where knowledge and creativity are financially sustainable.
Under Lapouga’s leadership, several foundational components were developed for OpenValue. He crafted the simulator’s user interface (UI) and created graphs representing content value and value link connections. Lapouga also devised a JavaScript SDK simulating Uniswap V3 functionality, which is crucial for developers to have ease of integration, smart contract interaction, development efficiency, error handling and security, and access to community and support. He also established the OpenValue logic for trading, creating content, and integrating a Web3 wallet and connection layer between the Web2 UI application and the blockchain.
Introducing “Value Links” Transforming Value Contributions
“OpenValue is not just another blockchain venture but a bold reimagination of how value is attributed and exchanged in the digital age,” Lapouga declares.
One of the most creative aspects he introduced is “value links,” a concept akin to academic citations but imbued with financial significance. To cite a work, users must purchase tokens associated with that content, contributing to its overall value. This approach benefits the original creators and fosters a more interconnected and financially supportive community of content sharing, departing from traditional citation methods.
Lapouga notes, “We’re creating a movement that recognizes and rewards the true value of contributions in the digital realm.” His work is essential in OpenValue’s economic model, presenting a compelling case for a new form of investment in content. This model promises to provide a direct financial return to content creators, challenging traditional funding mechanisms and potentially transforming how research and creative work are supported.
Navigating Blockchain’s Expanding Horizon
Projections for growth in the blockchain industry are striking, with estimates suggesting an increase from $17.57 billion in 2023 to as much as $1431.54 billion by 2030. This surge is driven by blockchain’s expanding applications beyond its initial financial confines into supply chain management, decentralized finance (DeFi), and healthcare, showcasing its potential to revolutionize traditional business models and transaction records. Amidst this backdrop of innovation and growth, Lapouga harnesses blockchain’s capabilities to enhance transparency and decentralize content valuation with OpenValue.
Despite the challenges posed by the cryptocurrency bear market in 2022, the blockchain sector’s robust growth projections underscore its resilience and potential for further expansion. OpenValue, in particular, exemplifies the innovative spirit of the blockchain industry, illustrating how technology can create more equitable systems for value recognition and reward in the future.
Charting the Future of Blockchain Technologies
As the conversation around OpenValue and its implications for the future of blockchain continues, Lapouga remains reflective yet optimistic. “OpenValue demonstrates the potential and power of blockchain to provide meaningful change,” he says. “While challenges are inevitable, the potential to create a more equitable system of value recognition is too significant to ignore.”
With Lapouga at its helm, the project highlights Lapouga’s blockchain expertise and passion for societal improvement through technology. Through his work, he challenges the foundations of value and is actively rethinking the potential for a better future in the digital age. As the world watches, his work at OpenValue may well chart a new course for the future of blockchain and beyond.
