In movies, screenwriters always include a term known as a premise covenant. It is the part of the story where the audience enters into a new world.
One of my favorite examples is in the first Harry Potter movie, when Hagrid takes Harry to Diagon Alley, the magical shopping district that introduces him (and us) to the wizarding world.
So far, Web3 has not delivered on the promise of its premise: open source software that runs directly on the blockchain.
“Developing a web 2.0 application is still very easy simply because the ecosystem is mature and enjoys a large and thriving developer community,” says Devin Abbott, director of design and development tools for React and web3 applications.
Full TechCrunch+ articles are available to members only
Use discount code TCP PLUS ROUNDUP One or two year subscription to save 20%
According to Abbott, the Web3 development community is approaching “an inflection point where our tools will become very powerful,” but “that doesn’t mean Reddit is doing away with its Web 2.0 cloud servers.”
So far, most of the Web3 buzz has come from investors and journalists, so Abbott’s perspective as a developer makes this a worthwhile read.
Most of Web3’s early use cases don’t interest me. Then again, I’m not a developer, so I didn’t appreciate the value of mobile gaming, GPS, and cloud storage until they were product-market-friendly and integrated into my smartphone.
Today, I wouldn’t consider buying a device that can’t help me find a restaurant or hotel. When it pops up, I suspect the Web3 Killer app will be just as useful.
Thank you for reading
Walter Thompson
Editorial Manager, TechCrunch+
@your main actor
3 ways to hire well for your startup
Image Credits: Andrepopov (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images
For entry-level startups, “This is arguably the worst time to be looking for talent,” says Champ Sutipongchai, founder and GP of Creative Ventures.
Lucky hiring managers may think that mass layoffs have tipped the balance, but “generally, there haven’t been workers doing core business.”
Startup recruiting is often likened to scenes from heist movies where the characters gather team members: it’s an accelerated process designed to fill knowledge or experience gaps, not necessarily to find the best.
“Whenever possible, it’s much better to slowly integrate a great candidate as a consultant or part-time contractor and let things take their course,” writes Sutipongchai.
“Just as a customer explains the product, companies need to pilot their most important employees as much as possible.”
8 questions to answer before your startup faces technical due diligence
Image Credits: Expected (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images
Outsiders study several aspects to determine the value and quality of a startup, and codebase health is one of them.
That’s only part of the story, writes Matt Van Itali, founder and CEO of codebase analytics company Sema.
No myth can cover the secrets buried in GitHub and Jira once technical due diligence begins.
To help companies prepare for TDD, Van Italy has written a primer on eight questions that founding teams should be able to confidently answer. Tomorrow, we’ll run through his detailed TDD checklist.
To better thwart ransomware attacks, beginners should get the basics of cyber security right
Image Credits: Bryce Durbin / TechCrunch
Creating ransomware-resistant systems isn’t a top priority for early-stage startups, but many companies don’t even follow basic best practices, to their detriment.
“Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) on everything you have,” says Cathy Moussouris, founder of Luta Security. “Enable it on every account you have.”
Last week at TechCrunch Disrupt, Moussouris and Brett Callow, Emsisoft threat analyst, said that it is important to invest early in locking down their systems starting with MFA.
“It’s a matter of layering security upon layer of security,” Callow said. “MFA, along with employee training — in conjunction with other things — all serve to reduce risk.”
Black startup founders raised just $187 million in the third quarter.
Image Credits: Getty Images
The recession appears to be negatively impacting the ability of black founders to raise capital.
“When the venture capital industry catches the flu, unrepresented founders catch the pneumonia,” said Tiana Tucks, an investor at Coreful Capital.
In Q3 2022, Crunchbase reports that black founders raised just $187 million, “a decrease of nearly $1.1 billion from Q3 2021 and a significant decrease from the $594 million raised in Q2,” writes Dominic Madori Davis.
Investors are sitting on mountains of cash: where is it going?
Image Credits: H-gal (Opens in a new window) / Getty Images
Whatever happens in the public market, bees make honey, and venture capitalists raise money: that’s all they do.
But since the “tremendous price correction” in the public markets, VCs are increasingly collecting dry powder, Irving investors Jeremy Abelson and Jacob Sonnenberg wrote.
More disappointing news for founders: Investor fundraising is “on pace to end the year at $172 billion,” but capital deployments have slowed.
“Dollars are flowing and will continue to flow, but it will be more capital for small companies,” they write.
Now “traditional SaaS is too expensive and full of secondary” sectors such as web3, life sciences and agtech will attract more investors, he predicts.
