AMA Recap: Swash meets Titans Ventures

The start of the week came with a new AMA between Swash and the Titans Ventures community over on Telegram.

This Monday, Swash’s CMO joined Vietnam’s top blockchain startup incubator to explore how Swash fits into the crypto arena and targets the data economy with a decentralised approach.

Titans Ventures has supported leading DeFi organisations as Boson Protocol, a key partner of Swash with an aligned vision for the new age of data.

Naturally, the Swash and Titans communities have similar interests, and the AMA reflected that enthusiasm, with an overwhelming number of questions ranging from Swash’s technology to its crypto incentive systems.

Follow the entire chat with Titans Ventures.

Firstly, please make a brief overview of your team and some prominent features of Swash.

Chloë:
Sure!

I’m proud to be working with one of the most skilled and diverse teams in the blockchain space, all with strong backgrounds in software dev, cybersecurity, and blockchain. The team have been working together for over a decade across various industries including enterprise, research, application security, media & advertising, to name a few. We’re lucky to count our advisors as part of the team too. We work closely with them and many of them are founders in the space already so they know what works. Others are coming more from a data privacy and even a data buyer perspective, so we’ve got all angles covered.

Swash is a movement for reimagining data ownership. It’s an ecosystem of tools and services that enable people, businesses, and developers to unlock the latent value of data by pooling, securely sharing, and monetising its value.

• People can share their data to earn without compromising their privacy.
• Businesses can access high-quality, zero-party data in a sustainable and compliant way.
• Developers can set up and build systems within a collaborative development framework with ease.

Swash’s live product already has over 60K users! It takes just a few minutes to install and is available on all major browsers. Swash allows for people to capture, pool, and sell their data while receiving their share of the profits it generates, while they surf the web as normal.

Please share with us the mission and vision of Swash in the near future.

Chloë:
Swash’s mission is to create a fair data economy by giving profits back to people. It’s a movement for reimagining data ownership by enabling all actors of the data economy to earn, access, build and collaborate in a liquid digital ecosystem for data.

We’re getting closer to this vision by launching the First Wave Solutions as part of the Swash ecosystem:

• Data Union: Optimising individual agency as a collective force by rewarding union members for the value of their data.
• sIntelligence: Bringing unique insights to businesses across all industries through a customisable, comprehensive web-based platform.
• sApps: Expanding the Swash ecosystem with the tools, community, and culture for building the next era of data solutions.
• sCompute: Uniting innovation with access by making on-site data computation capabilities a reality.

Check out this blog or our whitepaper for extra details!

Could you update us on some of the ongoing events at Swash that can delight most of our community members?

Chloë:
Sure! We have different events happening, including AMAs, interviews, podcasts, panels, and other kinds of features. The best way to follow and be up-to-date is by following our social channels but also by joining the Swash mailing list!

Selected questions from the community on Twitter

Swash promises truly passive income. But how do I opt-in to be part of this performance model? In terms of the percentage of assets generated, how much can an average user earn? Is it necessary to be a $Swash holder to be able to have these benefits?

Chloë:
You can opt-in by installing the browser app, then, when the new products and services have been built, you can choose to opt-in to them to receive even more value back.

The price of data is difficult to answer, as the industry is notoriously shady. As Swash grows, we hope to shine light on that. Regarding what people can expect to earn, there has been research on it: Some estimate $5–10 per month, others estimate $200, some say $2000, and another says up to $24K per year! The data industry is vast and the EU Commission pegs it at around $3 trillion dollars!

If you use Swash, you’ll receive $SWASH tokens and will be able to benefit, so it’s very easy 😊 It takes only a few minutes to install the app, and we prioritise being as user-friendly as possible.

As far as I know, strong backers and partners in the crypto market might bring such huge value to new projects. During this point, can you reveal some of the investors and partners of Swash? Are you going to establish more strategic partnerships in the future?

Chloë:
Happy to!

We work with some of the best minds in the space. Our partnerships include Chainlink, Streamr, Ocean Protocol, Outlier Ventures, Boson Protocol, Amasa, 1 World Online, Tapmydata, Crunch Digital Media, and the DPPA. The world of decentralised data is an incredible, collaborative space to be! We’ve been working with some of them for several years already. You can read all about them and the work we do with them here.

Swash token built for both BEP-20 and ERC-677. It is rare to see tokens that have ERC-677 support because others mostly use ERC-20. Why did Swash opt to deploy its Ethereum Network support under the ERC-677 interface? What could be its advantages against the commonly used ERC-20?

Chloë:
The reason we chose ERC677 instead of the ERC20 is because the ERC20 standard isn’t well designed for cases where a contract wants to execute actions after receiving an ERC20 token. ERC677 has all the benefits of ERC20 while addressing its limitations (e.g. executing actions after receiving an ERC20 token).

It is more advanced and allows for more functionality which is why it’s also used by the likes of Chainlink. It’s fully compatible with all the ERC20 and mainnet infrastructure and tools while offering a better UX experience and lower costs!

What are some highlights of Swash technologies that help it compete with other blockchain infrastructures? How can you combine all the concepts of technological revolution to apply them in the real world, thus enabling users to cultivate new realities of data ownership & value creation?

Chloë:
Sure, so some of the ways we’re doing this include:

• Working with some of the best minds in the web 3 space including Chainlink, Streamr, Ocean Protocol, Outlier Ventures, Boson Protocol, Amasa, 1 World Online, Tapmydata, Crunch Digital Media, and the DPPA.
• Operating on a ‘better-than-free’ model where users are paid for something they already do.
• A working product with over 60K users, all benefiting from Swash’s data value redistribution.
• A pipeline of innovative products and services (Data Union, sIntelligence, sApps, and sCompute). Check the website for more details!
• Swash believes in people power. It’s community-driven.
• Beyond-blockchain solution, on the way to mass adoption.

Also, the ecosystem is fuelled by the $SWASH token. It will be a cross-chain utility and governance token with multiple uses within the ecosystem, including:

• To Incentivise: As an incentive system, Swash tokens are used for distributing revenue to users in return for their participation in the ecosystem.
• To Transact: All data transactions across all marketplaces, platforms, and applications will be distributed in SWASH. This includes value generated within the business intelligence and analytics platform (sIntelligence), the data computation environment (sCompute), and solutions developed utilising Swash technology (sApps).
• To Multiply: People can individually and collectively contribute the value of their data to social development causes and use it for value exchange both within and outside the Swash universe, such as redeeming earnings for products or by staking liquidity.
• To Govern: Swash token holders can vote for projects they wish to see receive funding from the Swash DAO fund, decide on new roadmap developments or modifications, and to take part in token-related decisions.

I noticed that your project is very active in holding giveaway and airdrop events for the community. My question is, apart from airdrops and giveaways, what other marketing strategies have you implemented to increase community awareness of the potential that your project brings?

Chloë:
The main marketing for Swash so far has been through a referral program (which was very successful, we expanded from 5000 to 50,000 in a few months!). We will be sharing some giveaways and a new type of referral system soon, so watch this space.

We also work alongside some of the best names in web 3, including Chainlink, Streamr, Ocean Protocol, Outlier Ventures, Boson Protocol, Amasa, 1 World Online, Tapmydata, Crunch Digital Media, and the DPPA. The world of decentralised data is an incredible, collaborative space to be and that has really helped to push Swash to the forefront of this space. You can read more about our partnerships here.

Swash has already caught the eye of major media publications, including Harvard Business Review, Forbes, CoinDesk (this feature just went live), and Cointelegraph, to name a few. Also, Mozilla Foundation, Aapti Institute, and the ODI have included Swash in their research as a pioneering example of an alternative data institution.

Moving forward, the Swash mailing list will be a key area where people can get the latest news on the project and our IDO. You can also follow our updates on Twitter and Telegram. We share regular blogs and Spotlight Series videos to showcase our partners and advisors. Here’s a recent one with Bruce Pon, Founder of Ocean Protocol. Swash swag is coming soon too.

Open questions from the community on Telegram

Swash offers an excellent service for monetizing the users’ data, however I would like to know about the privacy measures and regulation of the data in question. Do you use any encryption method? How do you ensure that it will not be leaked or stolen from external parties?

Chloë:
That’s a very important topic and something we highly value at Swash. Firstly, Swash doesn’t collect anything sensitive! You’ll be asked to verify your email while installing the browser app (so we know you’re not a bot 🤖), but that won’t be used for anything else. (Although, if you do want to receive our email newsletter and be the first to receive our updates, you can sign up here!).

The kind of data Swash collects can be found in the Privacy Policy within the onboarding screens. One thing we do for trust is to be as transparent as possible. Certain UX features, such as the ‘Data’ tab within the current extension allows you to see the data that is captured and remove it before it’s uploaded if you decide not to share it. Also, there’s a toggle which allows people to switch Swash on and off for different sites, giving people more control.

Also, all data is anonymised and end-to-end encrypted before being added to the Data Union and Swash has completed a Data Protection Impact Assessment (DPIA) for the Information Commissioner’s Office here in the UK.

Can you list a few of the great features of the project that put Swash ahead of the competition? What is the competitive advantage your platform has that you feel most confident in?

Chloë:
Sure:

• Swash puts people first, it has a model where people receive income for something they’re already doing (surfing the internet).
• Because it’s opt-in and rewards users for the value of their data, Swash data is high-quality and unique for data buyers (making it more valuable for users).
• Data is unique in the sense that, the more of it there is, the more valuable it becomes. The data industry is already huge and it’s only going to keep growing.
• Swash is easy to use, even for audiences who don’t know much about crypto, getting us closer to mass adoption.

What are the main targeting countries of SWASH and what are the main problems you are resolving?

Chloë:
We haven’t specifically targeted one country because everyone can benefit from Swash, but we have attracted a lot of users from Europe mainly because the majority of the team and partners are based here.

The problems Swash solves for each ecosystem actor is:

• People do not have ownership over their data. They are unable to control what happens to it; how it is collected, used, and sold, and do not receive any of the profits it generates. They lack the technical capabilities to regain control and to get remunerated for their contributions, leading to a lack of balance and an extractive approach to data collection. As a result, an estimated 81 percent of adults feel like they lack control over their data.
• Businesses (like advertisers and brands, market intelligence and analytics companies, AI/ML startups, hedge funds, and agency networks) currently pay for expensive, low-quality data that is collected without user consent or knowledge. They are burdened by data silos, slow and expensive intermediaries, and wasted resources on advertising fraud and bots.
• Developers, like data scientists, struggle to access large amounts of high-quality data and spend 45 percent of their time cleaning bad quality datasets. These resources could be spent on innovation, which would be an estimated six times faster with improved access to data sources. Tech entrepreneurs are limited in their ability to communicate with their users and to reward them for their contributions. They also lack access to a developers environment that caters to their needs at different stages.

The solution:

For people:

• Regain ownership and receive passive income as they surf the web
• Collectively invest value of data into social development
• Exchange data value for alternative ecosystem benefits

For businesses:

• Access high-quality, zero-party data at scale
• Save time and money by eliminating intermediaries and reducing ad fraud and bots
• Improve the reputation and sustainability of business practices

For developers:

• Accelerate innovation due to improved access to diverse data
• Be part of a new generation of data solutions
• User acquisition through incentivisation mechanics and communication

Is there any plan in place for #Swash to attract non-crypto investors? It is critical to a project’s success to attract non-crypto investors. What ambitions do you have to raise awareness of non-crypto space?

Chloë:
Great question. Swash is designed in a way where people don’t necessarily need to understand crypto, blockchain, or the world of data to be able to start earning, so even less tech-savvy people can get involved and, if they like, automatically donate to their chosen social goods org. Increased size and improved diversity within Swash data makes it more valuable, returning even more value back to Swash members!

One way we’ll be doing this is with a donations feature, so people can automatically donate the value of their earnings to their favourite social goods organisations. This is a great way to get Swash to new audiences without them needing to understand crypto first!

What is the tokenomics of the #Swash project? How can I buy a $SWASH token?

Chloë:
This will be shared soon, make sure to join our Telegram channel and mailing list to be the first to know!

About Swash:

Swash is an ecosystem of tools and services that enable people, businesses, and developers to unlock the latent value of data by pooling, securely sharing, and monetising its value.

People share their data to earn while retaining their privacy. Businesses access high-quality, zero-party data in a sustainable and compliant way. Developers set up and build systems within a collaborative development framework with ease.

Swash is reimagining data ownership by enabling all actors of the data economy to earn, access, build and collaborate in a liquid digital ecosystem for data. Stay tuned for the latest updates on the IDO.

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Originally published at https://swashapp.io on September 30, 2021.