February 20, 2018. We got the chance to talk with the CEO of Applicature, Ihor Pidruchny. Our topic was related to Proof of Stake, its benefits, and Applicature’s future plans regarding PoS, Ethereum, and other projects.
Applicature is a boutique blockchain agency with headquarters in San Francisco, California. It provides a wide range of services: the Applicature team works on projects involving the development of smart contracts, customization of blockchain solutions, technical consultancy on token sales, initial coin offerings and many more.
Q: It’s known that recently, Applicature launched its own Proof of Stake Consensus Protocol on Ethereum (AEPoS), which is a big deal. So, Ihor, do you think Proof of Stake is better than Proof of Work, from the technology’s point of view?
A: Oh, well, a huge benefit of Proof of Stake is its eco-friendship. You know, nowadays, the environment is in danger, and it’s unacceptable to burn a vast amount of electricity and other resources.
In proof of work, one has to rely on computing power. Basically, people have to invest in expensive hardware, GPUs, etc., which burn tons of energy, in order to solve transaction puzzles and get rewarded.
In Proof of Stake, there is no mining. In order to be rewarded, you have to put your stake to the block. Proof of Stake gives all contributors and token holders a greater ability to participate and achieve rewards based on their stake, regardless of how much computing power they have.
This operation can be done from any computer or device, and there is no need to burn electricity. Thus, Proof of Stake is actually more available for the average person.
Q: I do agree with you, the environmental question is essential nowadays. But what are the other benefits of Proof of Stake?
A: Proof of Stake is also much more secure and stable, because Proof of Stake is actually immune to 51% attacks. The Proof of Stake system makes any 51% attack extremely expensive.
Q: How does Applicature Ethereum Proof of Stake actually work? What is it based on?
A: Applicature’s Proof of Stake is an adaptation of Peercoin PoS, but adapted to Ethereum’s rules. Why Peercoin? Because it’s one of the most reliable and time-tested currencies. We used a core concept of Peercoin’s Proof of Stake: coinage. Your reward is based not only on the amount of your stake, but also on the amount of time you hold coins in your wallet. Basically, the chances of makeing a successful stake are proportional to the amount of time we spend holding cryptocurrency. The longer you hold your money, the higher your chance of getting rewarded.
Q: What about limits…are there any on the amount that can be staked?
A: Not really, but it could be said that there are limits on the probability of a successful stake. Once the maximum probability is reached, an additional amount of staked coins won’t change it.
Q: Well, I see, but is there a minimum deposit for making a stake?
A: No, but too small an amount used for a stake will not result in successful staking.
Q: What amount of Ether would you recommend for holders to put on the stake to benefit and profit?
A: It’s not easy to speak about these numbers. We understand that Ether might not be available for everyone. It’s actually around plus or minus 1,000 ETR. Numbers closer to 10 will become possible as soon as we start sharing.
Q: Thank you, Ihor! Do you think the Ethereum network would work better in case of network congestion by using the Proof of Stake protocol?
A: Oh, you never know, and you can’t predict it, but it should work better, because the reason we switched to Proof of Stake was high demand from our clients. We still have clients asking us about permissioned deployments. Proof of Work wasn’t always there to complete certain objectives, so we had to find another way out, and I assume we have done it successfully!
Q: Yes, you have certainly done a great job! I’m actually curious… Did you faced any difficulties during the development of Proof of Stake?
A: You know, actually, development is simple, but…adoption is tough. We should all unite to support and give back contributions to the undelivered infrastructures we all use. We use Ethereum to reduce the amount of Initial Coin Offerings, write smart contracts, and think of possible blockchain solutions to change the world. Thus, we have to contribute to Ethereum and make it even more effective and global.
Q: Yes, I see. And last but not least, what are the future plans regarding the Ethereum Proof of Stake protocol? Are you going to support any other projects?
A: We do help some other public projects as well. The more you help,the more you develop. We’re always ready to support and help the community, and just do whatever we can.
Speaking of Ethereum,we do see our future in Ethereum, because Ethereum is one of the most interesting projects with the strongest support in the community, and we’re going to stick to Proof of Stake and see what it brings us. Still, we’ve got a huge amount of work ahead, and we’re ready to move on!
