PlatON CTO James Qu attended a great AMA tonight in CryptoRoyals Community. Sharing the highlights with you!

Part 1 Intro：

Q1: Can you please introduce yourself as well as PlatON?

James: Well, PlatON is open-sourced, community-based, blockchain ecosystem, which aims at serving as the infrastructure for privacy-preserving AI network and distributed economies.

In another word, PlatON plans to redefine the business model by protecting data privacy, it provides an infrastructure to solve data-related critical business problems. Also beyond that if we view it as data sovereignty protection

After years of researches and development, we’ve already been a top player in the global privacy-preserving computation field. We will provide an infrastructure supporting massive data asset transaction leveraging our years of experience in Finance, High-tech, AI, etc

More specifically, regarding privacy-preserving computation, we focus on providing the solutions for the industries that have strong demands on data sharing and collaboration computing

Meanwhile, PlatON as blockchain, born to be a financial infrastructure dealing with transactions, aims at facilitating the circulation of data assets. It is a super clearing house for cross-ID, cross-account, cross-institute and cross-industry, and a revolutionary governance model to wrap up

PlatON keeps devoting itself to the core technologies and economic model of blockchain, and diving into the core applications for the super infrastructure based on privacy AI.

Q2: What are the advantages of your project ?

James: PlatON focuses on the privacy field since the very beginning, we have built up a privacy-preserving stack including zkSNARKs, MPC, HE, TEE and different combinations of them.

We focus on data sovereignty which is the real key point of the digital era, didn’t change. After years of hard work, there are many great features and will be more.

First of all, blockchain technology point of view, you may find out our Giskard consensus algorithm passed scrutiny formal verification done by Runtime Verification

Second, and the most important privacy and AI point of view, we have launched the world’s first privacy AI framework, Rosetta, that helps developers get involved in TensorFlow and privacy-preserving computation. This helps build the next-generation data bank service

We are working on collaborations with commercial banks and insurance institutes.

Also from a blockchain technology point of view, you may find out our Giskard consensus algorithm passed scrutiny formal verification done by Runtime Verification. And overall performance, according to the test reports, is satisfying. There is no need to construct layer-2 solutions for performance enhancements

All above rely on our core team, which has solid financial background and resources

1. Strong software engineering system and implementation capabilities
2. Investment in the development and business practice of privacy AI for over 4 years
3. Rich experience in business operation and marketing collaboration

Q3: Please, tell us about the goal that you are planning to achieve in this year.

James: Sure, PlatON has its great vision combined with multiple milestones or heavy duties :)

It is already the end of Apr, two days back PlatON mainnet was successfully launched, with genesis block quoted below from Republic in three languages, let me share with you here

“τῆς ἄνω ὁδοῦ ἀεὶ ἑξόμεθα καὶ δικαιοσύνην μετὰ φρονήσεως παντὶ τρόπῳ ἐπιτηδεύσομεν.”

“We shall always keep to the upper road and practice justice with prudence in every way.”

“让我们永远坚持走向上的路，全力以审慎践行正义。”

it is a long run for us as well as for the community. This year you will observe the publishing of multiple privacy-preserving protocols and the very first release of a privacy computation network. We believe with PlatON’s privacy-preserving technology, and distributed privacy AI, a new wave of creative solutions with privacy-protected data will emerge! Including privacy DeFi, privacy AI network, and eventually data market. Many of them will be with in this year, let’s enjoy!

To understand our goal better, let me pick up a few achievements so far.

The launch of the world’s first privacy AI framework Rosetta that helps developers easily deeply get involved in Tensorflow and privacy-preserving computation and helps build the next generation data bank service, as I said above.

Sensitive data collaborations under regulatory framework between commercial banks and insurance institutes.

Cryptography contribution to Ethereum. For example, PlatON got FY19–0157 grants from Ethereum in 2019 will be used for Secret Sharing Validators. This year FY21–0379, an additional contribution will be done. Quite exciting in the past, will be more exciting moving forward

Part2: Questions from Twtter：

Q1: PlatON_Network leverages the power of MPC to facilitate data flow by converting application algorithms into secret contracts. what are the uses and functions for using the method? what benefits do you get?

James: very good question! we call it privacy contract ;)

here are many different ways of leverage cryptography algorithms

We are working on a technology to bring TRUST to our daily life. The good infrastructure of TRUST, could bring down the cost and increase the efficiency of our business, a better world we are looking for.

Blockchain technology did very well so far, with the decentralized open ledger. But there are more out there. A good example is zkSNARKs successful use cases

PlatON provides smart contracts, privacy contracts, verifiable contracts for different scenarios, focusing on data rights protecting, aiming to be the infrastructure as privacy AI network.

Only with source data rights be protected, computation algorithms like AI are protected, and computing power be recognized, the new paradigm-shifting is sustainable

But data have so many faces, from raw data to formalized data, till valuable protected data… a long list of protocols required as well as good technical solutions, will be tough, but we will be there.

The scenario will more than I could imagine, PlatON will provide value to the emerging data market, and benefit as a return.

I have no worry about use cases, and benefits, there will be tons

Q2: I read on the official website that platON_Network’s technical focus is on privacy-preserving computation technologies, what is the prospect of privacy-preserving computation in the blockchain industry? What advantages does PlatON have in this area?

James: Yes, we do focus on privacy-preserving computation technologies, for years, even before white paper been published.

Back to the data again, since we surrounded by smart IoT devices, our daily life and business are monitored and digitalized from thousands of angles. Different forms of data such as audio, video, text, and logs are evaluated by state of art AI modelling running on state of art cloud of hardwires. Massive big data-based learning, decision making, procedure optimizations had brought huge value to our daily life as well as business

We could clearly recognize data is the new-generation factor of production or resource, and privacy-preserving computation will definitely be the core of infrastructure of the whole digital era in the very near future

PlatON focuses on privacy field since the very beginning, we have built up a privacy-preserving stack including zkSNARKs, MPC, HE, TEE and different combinations of them. We focus on data sovereignty which is the real key point of the digital era, didn’t change. After years of hard work, PlatON is not only the pioneer but also a leader now.

Q3: DeFi is the new frontier and already buzzing in 2021, what roles do you play in the innovativeness of DeFi and what’s your approach to DeFi and ultimate DeFi solutions?

James: PlatON as a public chain, it supports typical or traditional DeFi(s) for sure, it has something new with privacy-preserving, there will new kind of DeFi which empowered by privacy-preserving, I do believe those DeFi with privacy will succeed, for example, traditional finance field has huge business opportunities, and requires client profile protecting, client trading details protection etc by regulation. privacy-preserving technology could play a critical role. PlatON is good at this part.

There are huge opportunities to reshape it using DeFi tech. on top of that, not only protect tx details using typical zkSNARKs but also there will real data asset protected by MPC for example, then traded, which means a new type of market — data market will emerge. We may call it DeDataExchange, a much bigger scope than only finance

I am looking for super DeFi including data that is privacy protected

Q4: Currently Staking is a very popular topic. Can you please explain the details about the token staking plan and the benefits of adding staking?

James: this is regarding the economic model

We do have Blue Paper describing how the economic model works, including inflation design, staking income, validator selection etc

there are special designs of incentive model avoids the headache of centralized mining power, which may lead to the network be controlled by a specific mining pool, but the staking benefit will be distributed fairly, it is based on code and algorithms. so code is law.

I might not be the right person to answer incentive details, please visit our forum and communication groups, there are detailed documents prepared for validators.

Since incentive schema may got community governance later on, I am sure in the very beginning, it is quite straight forward, and fair

Q5: What exactly is the relationship between PlatON and ChainX, and how do you plan on integrating the PlatON ecosystem with the Polkadot Ecosystem?

right, good question!

Well, I would like to phrase it as PlatON and ChainX will bridge privacy protected TRUST cross ecosystems

PlatON is unique among blockchain ecosystems. It has plenty of new features, especially on privacy-preserving, and privacy AI, which could help new type of business based on data privacy.

While ChainX has expertise on cross ecosystems.

There will be privacy computation network to be released this year, and eventually a data market next year, all based on data privacy-protecting the infrastructure of PlatON.

All of the above could be exported via ChainX bridges. We started co-operating now, as step one, focussing on a traditional cross-chain bridge. Things like native token, digital asset, etc.

After we smoothly worked step one out, there will be huge potentials on privacy-preserving bridges, which could empower existing business flow, as well as introduce new business flow

During our project, there will be a lot of discussion between teams I believe and I’m expecting more great ideas to come out.

It will be a win-win

Part3：Live questions

Q1: What plans do you have to educate: raise awareness and apply in the community to make more people understand about Twinci and its technology? How does Twinci get more attention from people?

James: In the past few years, we were focusing on core tech work, the community was weak. My goal here is to let the community know what we have done, and where we are heading to. there will be Hankerson sessions, grants plans for community education and contribution. Of cause, the core team needs to come up with good documentation. The community can also help. Actually, we are looking for English document experts

Q2:Mainnet NFT voting was conducted for whose has an LAT/aLAT balance of more than 2000. How the result, and how important this event for PlatON

James: after genesis block got produced, the ecosystem should experience how to communicate with the community, how to conduct governance. I will be very happy to monitor the procedure, observe the community grow together. there might be things not perfect or even mistakes, those will be the step stones for grow ups. Please raise your suggestions and concerns, to teach the core team how to handle and what should do! always welcome to leave msg on the forum etc.

Q3:As an investor, I want to know how strong is your project security system? and what benefits will I have in the years to come when I decide to join the project you are working on right now?

James: saw a few questions regarding security. it is of cause our top priority. on blockchain core tech, we had Giskard concurrent BFT be formally verified by runtime verification already (Audit). I have invited CEO professor Rosu as PlatON technical advisor as well. We still need to do smart contract formal verification (Audit). we are working with slowmist, every milestone version got a security audit report, including tools etc. we even have build blockchain testing framework, monitoring system etc.

Q4：Too many projects promise magic but never release any working product or prove any revenue, Within a short/long time of release. Is it like this? If not can u tell us, What makes it different from other projects?

James: please check out github, it is like blockchain, all the efforts recorded there, and platon articles (not many), but the time tells.

Q5: A big problem today is the cost of developing on the blockchain. This is mainly due to the shortage of programmers who understand blockchain technologies, how could PlatON provide solutions to these types of problems?

James: we invested a lot, and will keep investing. not only on blockchain, but also on AI, and more on privacy-preserving. we are open to global developer community is the key for further grow, I do wish global talent to join us, global data experts to join us, let us build this ecosystem together and enjoy the success together.