The Essence of Encryption Native

The concept of encryption native has gradually become popular in the blockchain industry since 2021. Although newcomers often hear veterans mention it, defining its exact meaning is difficult. Does it mean paying daily attention to encryption news, investing most of one's assets into BTC or ETH, frequently analyzing market data, or often discussing concepts like decentralization? The answer may vary from person to person.

The data shows that the attention to encryption native across the network has grown exponentially. In 2018, the number of mentions increased by 5.57 times compared to the previous year, by 7.52 times in 2021, and by 2.85 times in the first 11 months of 2022. This growth trend is still ongoing.

Evolution of Native Encryption

The concept of encryption originated from Satoshi Nakamoto and the decentralized ideology of Bitcoin. After Bitcoin was born in 2008, the first group of encryption natives emerged. They believe in cryptographic algorithms and blockchain technology, adhering to the principle of "code is law." At that time, encryption natives referred to those who believed in cryptography and used Bitcoin.

As time goes by, Bitcoin has been given the title of "digital gold," highlighting its commodity attributes. The industry infrastructure has gradually improved, including mining machines, payment scenarios, trading platforms, and financial derivatives.

In 2014, the Ethereum white paper was released, and the concept of smart contracts emerged, marking the industry's entry into a new era. The holding objects of the encryption native community expanded to other cryptocurrencies like Ethereum, but they still firmly believe in cryptography and blockchain technology.

The development of the Ethereum ecosystem has inspired people's imagination about public chain ecosystems. The rise of ICOs has seen numerous decentralized applications showcase the application value of blockchain. The development of on-chain financial derivatives has also promoted the prosperity of centralized exchanges.

After 2017, the term "encryption native" began to gain popularity on social media. Some compare it to "internet native" or "mobile native," believing that such groups have a stronger adaptability to specific lifestyles and ways of thinking.

In 2018, there were viewpoints suggesting that encryption natively represents a new way of operating companies, built through code rather than legal systems, similar to the concept of decentralized organizations (DAOs).

In 2020, some divided encryption natives into two levels: personal and commercial. An encryption native individual refers to a person who purchases cryptocurrency before owning other assets, while an encryption native business refers to decentralized protocols that support traditional financial or centralized financial functions.

From 2020 to 2022, DeFi, NFT, and GameFi flourished, injecting vitality into the industry. However, as the hype subsides, the encryption native community needs to reassess the fundamentals and intrinsic value of the industry.

The Core Concept of Encryption Native

1. Decentralization: There is no central authority conducting macro-control; the system is managed by a decentralized network, independent and not controlled by individuals, companies, or nations.

2. Trustless mechanism: Based on objective proof (mathematics or encryption), rather than subjective commitment, eliminating reliance on trust in specific entities.

3. No permission required: Anyone can freely participate in the market, whether providing resources or consuming resources, with no barriers to entry.

4. Personal Sovereignty: Emphasizes that the ownership of data and assets belongs to the user, has censorship resistance, and is difficult to lose or be deleted.

The encryption native community is practicing the concept of decentralization, creating trustless products, and building permissionless markets to create a society that protects personal sovereignty. This is the vision seen by encryption native practitioners.