Destined for this Crypto & AI Revolution

My Beginnings

My formative years unfolded in the vibrant city of San Francisco. I was born to a father and mother who went across the world together to embark on the journey in the land of the free. In the early days, my father grappled with the challenge of employment but eventually secured a role within the municipal fabric of San Francisco as a probation officer. Meanwhile, my mother devoted herself to the bustling household, nurturing me and my two siblings. 

This period led to a phase of stability, propelling us into the comforts of middle-class life amidst a city celebrated for its diversity and beauty.  From an economic perspective, San Francisco changed from being a global financial center to one of the tech capitals of the world. I’m fortunate to be from a city on the forefront of innovation.

After high school, I went across the Bay to UC Berkeley. Uncertain of my path, I opted for pragmatism, earning a BS degree in mechanical engineering. My professional journey began in the South Bay with Pacific Bell (AT&T), where I took on the role of an outside plant engineer and manager, overseeing the telecommunications infrastructure of the quaint city of Mountain View.

Within two years, I had made significant strides at Pacific Bell. I aspired to exert a greater influence and shoulder more responsibility.  Yet, I swiftly came to understand that our professional trajectories were frequently dictated by the hierarchical structures above us.

This realization prompted me to acknowledge that making a substantial impact required broadening my skill set and deepening my understanding of business and management. This period coincided with the height of the dotcom bubble, a time when the startup scene was intensely vibrant. I made several calculated attempts to immerse myself in this environment, including submitting my resume at Google HQ, though these efforts did not come to fruition as the bubble eventually burst.

The collapse of the dotcom era was a profound learning experience for me. It led to the loss of a significant portion of my savings, including funds entrusted by my mother and sister, prompting a deep reflection on the transient nature of value and the importance of understanding how to accurately value companies. This spurred a keen interest in the fundamentals of investing, cash flow, and valuation, which I eagerly explored throughout my MBA program at UC Irvine. My inclination towards business, finance, economics, and investment seemed natural, though it was likely my insatiable curiosity that facilitated my learning process.

After completing my MBA, I furthered my education in investments, obtaining my CFA charter. The insights gained from the dotcom era, combined with my exploration of Austrian Economics, complemented my formal education and encouraged a more critical examination of the economy.

Believing that my greatest contribution could be in the realm of financial advisory, I aspired to guide others through the complexities of finance and investment, seeking independence and control over my professional destiny as a consultant.

However, despite my aspirations, my reluctance towards sales impeded the growth of my consultancy, steering me towards a focus on investment research and analysis for well-established firms. My skepticism towards the foundational aspects of the economy, along with a cautious approach to traditional assets, often tempered my enthusiasm for the advisory field.

Advocacy for Liberty

My journey into understanding not just the economy but the wider societal framework began in earnest in 2007. It was then that I started to closely follow Ron Paul, a figure who stood out in the political landscape for his staunch opposition to the unjust wars in the Middle East, predicated on misinformation. Paul's grasp of sound monetary and economic principles, his resistance to banker bailouts, his calls for curbing profligate spending, and his opposition to the expansion of our already colossal national debt resonated with me. His critique of monetary expansion, specifically quantitative easing, and his advocacy for the dissolution of the Federal Reserve marked him as a beacon of fiscal responsibility and liberty.

Motivated by Paul's principles, I committed myself to volunteer efforts for his presidential campaigns in 2007 and 2008. I spearheaded several grassroots initiatives in 2011 and 2012, going as far as establishing a SuperPAC that garnered substantial funds. Our united endeavors—canvassing thousands of doors, placing thousands of calls, and leading an extensive grassroots campaign in Iowa—resulted in a notable triumph for Paul, securing 22 of the 28 Iowa delegates for the primary convention.

Another particularly memorable campaign achievement was orchestrating a strategic and unconventional outreach operation. This initiative significantly boosted voter turnout and propelled Paul to an unexpected second-place finish in the Washington state primary, just before Super Tuesday.

The fulfillment derived from influencing political campaigns was immense, but even more gratifying was the knowledge that we had managed to enlighten, energize, inspire, and share transformative ideas with countless individuals. These ideas—centered on truth, peace, liberty, and the virtues of free markets—remain the cornerstone of my advocacy for freedom.

Exploration into Cryptocurrency

My initial encounter with Bitcoin occurred in early 2010, introduced to me by a fellow political activist. At the time, my steadfast commitment to gold and skepticism towards the notion of "self-printed" digital currency made me dismiss Bitcoin as a mere curiosity, seemingly no better than the flawed Federal Reserve and fiat currency system.

However, my perspective began to shift after encountering Erik Voorhees's compelling blog article, "BITCOIN – THE LIBERTARIAN INTRODUCTION," in mid-2012. Voorhees's insights illuminated the potential of Bitcoin as a digital currency that combines utility with scarcity, laying the groundwork for an entirely new economic paradigm.

This revelation propelled me into the heart of the cryptocurrency movement. I started to immerse myself in monthly meetups in San Francisco, where I crossed paths with visionaries like Brian Armstrong, who was conceptualizing Coinbase; Roger Ver, known as "Bitcoin Jesus," who evangelized about Bitcoin's transformative power; Jesse Powell of Kraken; and Jed McCaleb, who was already pioneering Ripple. My explorations also led me to experiment with mining and delve into Satoshi Nakamoto's seminal whitepaper, which further fueled my enthusiasm.

As my journey with Bitcoin continued to evolve, so did my interest in other cryptocurrency projects. I shifted focus towards Ripple and then expanded my curiosity to Stellar, Bitshares, and Steemit. This broadening perspective eventually encompassed a wider array of ecosystems such as Ethereum and EOS, along with numerous other innovative cryptocurrency and token projects that constitute the expansive landscape of the digital currency ecosystem.

Venturing into the Tech Startup Arena

Motivated by the conviction that cryptocurrency represented the future and promised to revolutionize our entire economic landscape, I made the strategic decision to transition from the realm of financial services to the dynamic world of tech startups. The prospect of continuing to navigate the conventional investment pathways seemed increasingly incompatible with the transformative potential I saw in blockchain technology.

My primary ambition was to catalyze the mainstream adoption of blockchain technology. Immersing myself in startup knowledge became my new quest. Fortunately, residing in the SF Bay Area placed me at the epicenter of startup culture and afforded me access to an abundance of resources. I absorbed invaluable insights through local meetups, delving into software development, growth marketing, funding strategies, product-market fit, and the intricacies of bootstrapping startups.

Peerhub, now inactive, marked my initial foray into the startup sphere in 2014.  Envisioned as an Ebay-like marketplace, Peerhub aimed to facilitate transactions using cryptocurrencies. However, after developing a minimum viable product (MVP), it became apparent that widespread adoption of cryptocurrencies would be a gradual process, complicated by price volatility. 

In response to this challenge, I established Bitcash in 2015, a payment application that utilized a US dollar-pegged stablecoin, employing Bitshares technology to offer a more stable medium for exchange.  Since its bootstrapped inception in 2015, Bitcash has navigated through a series of iterations, developmental pauses, and efforts concentrated on crafting early Minimum Viable Products (MVPs) that address payments, onramps, and exchange trading. Initially built on the Bitshares platform during 2015/16, we transitioned Bitcash to the EOS framework from 2018 onwards. Despite the utility of a stable currency, it dawned on me that only a fraction of people were inclined towards spending cryptocurrencies. The predominant interest lay in investing, holding, and wealth accumulation, rather than expenditure. In light of this realization, my current focus is on devising a solution to streamline the process for individuals to engage with cryptocurrency, enhancing the ease of entry and exit from this digital financial ecosystem.  At present, our leading service is a peer-to-peer onramp in Nigeria, which has attracted over 3,000 registered users in its beta phase. Moreover, we've developed internal DAO tools aimed at enhancing organizational efficiency, crafted an intuitive and streamlined payments wallet, and devised simplified decentralized finance (DeFi) trading smart contracts slated for future release. Over the years, we have assembled a robust and committed core team, complemented by part-time and decentralized contributors specializing in marketing, development, and infrastructure. Our goal is to become a paragon of efficient and effective organization through the utilization of our DAO technology.

Deep Dive into Cryptocurrency: Education and Cash Flow

My journey through the cryptocurrency world has been extensive and multifaceted. From organizing and attending meetups to investing, trading, and constant learning, I've navigated the complexities of a domain that spans technology, economics, business, and law. The learning curve is formidable, with thousands of cryptocurrencies and tokens each accompanied by diverse opinions on their viability.

Recognizing the critical role of education in fostering comfort and confidence among those entering the crypto space, I acknowledged the challenge posed by the relentless pace of activity. It's a realm too vast for anyone to track comprehensively. This realization spurred the creation of 100x Investors, a platform dedicated to providing content and education for both novice and seasoned crypto investors. Initially launched as a virtual web conference attracting over 500 attendees and featuring prominent speakers, it proved to be profitable.  My efforts expanded to co-organizing the World Crypto Economic Forum in 2018, headlined by Nick Szabo, a luminary in the crypto field. The forum drew more than 1,000 participants, achieving significant revenue. These ventures marked my first successful startup projects that gained traction and generated cash flow.

However, reflecting on the years spent in this sphere prompts a critical question: Which crypto projects have truly achieved mainstream adoption and a sustainable economic or business model? Bitcoin, with its status as a digital gold and a store of value, stands out as the singular, undisputed success story. Decentralized finance (DeFi) initiatives and activities on Ethereum also emerge as notable achievements. Yet, beyond these examples, much of the cryptocurrency landscape is driven by hype, speculation, and narratives rather than solid fundamentals and cash flow. This environment is further complicated by the presence of fraudsters, scammers, Ponzi schemes, rug pullers, opportunists, grifters, and hackers, adding layers of risk and uncertainty to the crypto ecosystem.

Forging a New Economy with Crypto and AI

In today's rapidly evolving digital landscape, I perceive cryptocurrency's primary utility as the foundational financial infrastructure for a burgeoning new economy. Cryptocurrency's immediate and pivotal use cases include facilitating international fundraising and trading through tokenization, and enabling governance via Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO) smart contracts. Cryptocurrency offers a reliable platform for global investors to support initiatives led by founders worldwide. This emerging class of global crypto enterprises can maintain open financial records and a transparent treasury—a stark contrast to traditional entities, which may obscure their financial dealings.

The advent of crypto organizations, particularly DAOs, has democratized the process of attracting contributors and investors from across the globe, allowing early users to invest and essentially become customer-owners. This transparency fosters an environment where companies are incentivized to develop their projects publicly. However, for cryptocurrency to achieve mainstream adoption, it's crucial to ensure that tokenomics are grounded in a sustainable cash-flow model and that the technology's usability rivals that of conventional web applications. Moreover, not all applications need to operate fully on the blockchain; its primary utility lies in payments, fundraising, and organizational functions.

As we delve into the realm of applications, it's evident that AI companies are poised to introduce groundbreaking applications. ChatGPT's rapid ascent to 100 million weekly active users in under a year signifies AI's potential to revolutionize the internet. In this context, crypto organizations synergize perfectly with open-source AI initiatives, which are swiftly gaining ground, even on technologies as advanced as GPT-4. Crypto enterprises, with their propensity for transparent development, are adept at navigating the highly competitive and open-source landscape, setting them apart.

Our company, Bitcash, is committed to leveraging this synergy by establishing an AI launchpad that will breathe life into open-source AI projects, utilizing cryptocurrency for payments, fundraising, and organizational purposes.   This Ai launchpad will be our primary priority in 2024.

Bitcash, while a for-profit entity, also aims to launch a non-profit blockchain network that focuses on maximizing fairness, offering a universal gift dividend to every verified individual globally (https://ugdp.org). This network will primarily support AI and charity projects requiring a robust proof-of-humanity identity and authentication system to counteract the emerging challenge of deepfakes in the post-AI era.

Looking ahead, I envision an economy rooted in the pillars of cryptocurrency and AI, paving the way for a new internet economy, governance structures, and society at large—a sovereign digital society, if we choose to embrace it. This transformation will transcend traditional political campaigning, propelled by the digital revolution. I am resolute in my mission to propel cryptocurrency into the mainstream, one digital interaction at a time, through Bitcash and AI innovations.

If you want to follow me on my journey through this crypto & Ai revolution, subscribe to this blog, follow me and the org on Twitter and join us on Discord.

-Jun Dam, Founder of bitcash