A new wave of innovation is emerging, driven by LUKSO. At the forefront of this movement, LUKSO aims to build a social network that is decentralized and built for a creative, social future on-chain.
Genfinity recently interviewed the creator of the ERC-20 token and Co-Founder and Chief Architect of LUKSO, Fabian Vogelsteller. This article dives into LUKSO’s vision for the future, exploring the key features and goals discussed on our recent podcast that are paving the way for a more democratic and empowering social experience.
Fabian Vogelsteller – the creator of the ERC-20 token standard & Co-Founder, LUKSO
Fabian introduced himself on our podcast as coming from a background in web development. He transitioned from building websites to focusing on Web3 and blockchain technology around 2013, particularly interested in Bitcoin. In 2015, he joined the Ethereum Foundation as a dApp developer, a role he filled alongside another tech pioneer, a UX designer named Alex.
During his time there, Fabian played a pioneering role. He built the first applications on the Ethereum platform, including a Web3 browser called Mist, which also functioned as a wallet. In this early stage, they had to create nearly all the necessary components for building these applications. Today, tools like MetaMask and libraries exist to streamline the process, but back then, Fabian essentially helped invent these nascent technologies.
Interestingly, Fabian noted that many of the core functionalities he helped establish seven years ago are still in use today, highlighting the foundational nature of his work. He was the one that proposed the ERC-20 token standard and also created a demo coin called MistCoin on the mainnet, a coin which unknowingly predated the ERC-20 standard. This solidified Fabian as a pioneer in the blockchain space, not only creating the ERC-20 smart contract standard but also inventing the first ERC-20 token in practice.
The founding of LUKSO
Fabian went on to say that in 2018, he co-founded LUKSO. The core mission behind LUKSO was to advance blockchain technology by making it more user-friendly and accessible. Notably, he commented that the industry hasn’t progressed much — the core tools and user interaction methods with blockchain have remained largely unchanged since Bitcoin’s emergence in 2013 and Ethereum’s rise in 2015. Fabian emphasized that the industry was at a tipping point where significant improvements in user experience were essential.
Fabian explains the origin story of LUKSO. Initially, the idea was to create a blockchain focused on fashion and lifestyle. However, Fabian realized the need for a standard to manage user accounts on a social blockchain. This standard, coincidentally developed by Fabian earlier, became a core building block for LUKSO.
LUKSO needed smartphone accounts to attract creators and regular users. Existing solutions lacked features like user history and creator identity, so Fabian focused on developing a versatile and user-friendly smartphone account system. This required building various components like transaction relay services and browser extensions.
Discussing the network infrastructure, he considered a permissioned network with fashion brands as validators. However, concerns about decentralization and Ethereum’s launch of proof-of-stake led LUKSO to adopt a similar approach. Ultimately, LUKSO leveraged Ethereum’s existing solutions for security and scalability, launching their mainnet shortly after Ethereum’s merge.
LUKSO blockchain
LUKSO is a Layer-1 blockchain specifically designed for the evolving needs of digital life and creative endeavors. Built using the Ethereum Virtual Machine (EVM) stack, it seamlessly integrates with other EVM-compatible blockchains, including existing Ethereum-based platforms and future protocols.
LUKSO carves a distinct path in the blockchain landscape, pioneering the integration of blockchain technology with creative industries. Founded by Fabian Vogelsteller, a blockchain veteran known for his contributions to Ethereum and the ERC-20 standard, and Marjorie Hernandez, a leader in innovation and product strategy, LUKSO aims to push blockchain’s utility beyond finance. Their vision is a more inclusive digital economy where creators and consumers can interact seamlessly.
Bridging the Gap Between Blockchain and Creativity
The brainchild of Vogelsteller and Hernandez, LUKSO bridges the gap between blockchain and the creative sector. Vogelsteller’s expertise fuels LUKSO’s technical foundation, while Hernandez’s background in innovation and brand strategy guides its direction. Together, they envision a platform where artists, designers, and creators can leverage blockchain to manage, authenticate, and transact their work effortlessly.
LUKSO’s ambition extends beyond just another blockchain. It aspires to be the cornerstone of a new creative and social economic ecosystem. Envisioning a world where creators can utilize blockchain for seamless transactions, LUKSO is built with flexibility in mind. Its design allows for the integration of diverse standards and protocols tailored to the specific needs of creative industries.
“I definitely see LUKSO as the ‘country’ for decentralized social with culture, creators, DAOs, and communities with all kinds of thoughts.” -Fabian Vogelsteller, Founder and Chief Architect, LUKSO
User-Centric Design for Widespread Adoption
Accessibility is paramount for LUKSO. Fabian recognizes the challenges that often hinder blockchain adoption, such as complex wallet setups and technical jargon. Features like Universal Profiles and LUKSO Standard Proposals (LSPs) aim to simplify user interaction with blockchain technology, making it more approachable for both creative professionals and consumers.
LUKSO Standard Proposals (LSPs) function similarly to Ethereum’s Improvement Proposals (EIPs). These proposals establish a set of guidelines for the LUKSO blockchain, promoting compatibility, consistency, and efficiency across the network. LSPs define functionalities and features for various elements within the LUKSO ecosystem, including smart contracts, digital assets, and decentralized applications (dApps).
Benefitting institutions, brands, and individuals
We were curious about the future of Web3 adoption beyond individual consumers and developers. Specifically, we wanted Fabian’s perspective, given his experience with major brands, on how Universal Profiles on LUKSO can benefit institutions and brands in fostering deeper engagement with their communities and customers.
Vogelsteller acknowledged the difficulty of engaging large corporations in blockchain adoption due to their slow decision-making processes. Initially skeptical, these companies became interested in NFTs but were primarily focused on one-off marketing stunts. They lack a holistic strategy like creating custom apps and wallets with limited long-term usability.
Fabian proposed Universal Profiles and standards as a solution. This would allow brands to have a permanent on-chain account with the ability to manage different departments and permissions. Moreover, unlike current practices where agencies hold private keys and disconnect brands from their NFT deployments, Universal Profiles ensure transparency and provenance. With user profiles acting as wallets and primary citizens on the network, brands can engage in deeper and more meaningful interactions with their communities. However, Fabian recognizes the need for education and development tools to facilitate wider enterprise adoption.
Fabian acknowledged that brands and creators will use Universal Profiles strategically. Public-facing activities will be associated with the profile, while internal company matters will remain off-chain. He commented on the importance of getting the foundation right for the Universal Profile standard. Similar to ERC-20, widespread adoption makes changes difficult later. LUKSO spent considerable time ensuring the profile’s core functionalities can accommodate future needs.
While the current browser extension and apps might not showcase all the potential, Fabian assured us that these features are technically possible and under development. He pointed out the ability to integrate existing solutions like MetaMask with LUKSO profiles. Anyone can build these functionalities, though LUKSO focuses on creating a user-friendly, integrated experience.
Reimagining Web3: A Visionary’s Perspective
We dove into Fabian’s vision for a social Web3. He discussed the current roadblocks and how LUKSO is just the right puzzle piece within Web3.
The Web3 Usability Barrier: Complexity Stifles Adoption
During our podcast, Fabian pinpointed the core issue with Web3 adoption as its complexity and lack of user-friendliness. People struggle with managing private keys and wallets, which can be confusing and intimidating. This initial fear discourages many from even trying, and stories of lost access further solidify this apprehension.
Consequently, many users simply dabble in crypto as a speculative investment, keeping their assets on exchanges despite security risks. This reduces Web3 to essentially a giant “casino”, lacking any real utility beyond trading.
Fabian commented on the uniformity within the blockchain space. Despite all the experimentation with sidechains and alternative consensus mechanisms, most solutions still rely on the familiar EVM technology — like Javascript is to web development. Similarly, most tokens adhere to the ERC-20 standard, leading to repetitive innovation.
Even layer-2 solutions promote the same old functionalities, bridging tokens across similar networks. This homogeneity fails to address the fundamental problem: crypto remains overly complex and niche, lacking real-world use cases beyond finance.
Social interaction: the next major frontier
Fabian sees social interaction as the next major frontier in blockchain technology, specifically decentralized social networks. He believes LUKSO is uniquely positioned to be the “first blockchain built for social applications”. This stems from the fact that LUKSO’s core functionality revolves around user profiles. Every LUKSO account or wallet inherently functions as a profile, making the entire network inherently social by design.
These profiles are versatile and offer significant potential for future development. The initial focus was enabling basic interactions with dApps. However, Fabian envisions a future where developers build entirely new social features on LUKSO that wouldn’t be possible on other blockchains due to limitations in existing standards.
“Once it unfolds, there is a whole new level of possibilities. And a whole new level of applications that can now actually be social by design that will allow normal people to start using blockchain.”
He cites the ERC725 standard as a stepping stone in this direction. This standard lays the foundation for a more sophisticated social profile system on LUKSO. A social profile on LUKSO consists of multiple smart contracts, including a QR code contract representing the user’s address, and others enabling profile management and interaction.
This focus on rethinking fundamental building blocks, according to Fabian, is LUKSO’s key advantage. He highlighted the limitations of existing standards like ERC-20 and also the challenges associated with introducing entirely new account management systems within established ecosystems like Ethereum. LUKSO’s fresh start allows for a more holistic design where social interaction is embedded at the core level.
Moreover, this focus on social functionality has the potential to unlock entirely new applications and remove the barriers preventing mainstream adoption of blockchain technology. By offering user-friendly social features built on a secure foundation, LUKSO hopes to usher in a new wave of blockchain users who can participate without fear of losing access or dealing with complex technical aspects.
Beyond the “One Blockchain Fits All” Myth: LUKSO’s Vision for Specialized Networks
Fabian disagrees with the idea of a single, all-encompassing blockchain — an ethos of “Bitcoin maxis”. He points out technical limitations in scalability, exemplified, for example, by Solana’s reliance on powerful nodes with a limited number of validators.
In Fabian’s vision, different blockchains will cater to specific purposes and foster unique communities. Notably, he sees LUKSO as the ideal network for decentralized social interactions, culture, creators, DAOs, and various thought communities. Other blockchains, like Solana or perhaps Ethereum, might be more suitable for different applications such as DeFi or experimentation.
Drawing an analogy, Fabian compares Ethereum to Linux (open-source, customizable) and LUKSO to Apple (user-friendly, streamlined experience). He emphasizes LUKSO’s potential to rival or even surpass Ethereum, thanks to its superior foundational building blocks. These blocks allow developers to create entirely new social functionalities that were previously impossible.
As an example, Fabian suggests exploring transactions on LUKSO using the block explorer txs.app. Here, you’ll see that most transactions involve identifiable profiles, making the network inherently social by design. Notably, he highlighted the exciting possibilities of building innovative features on top of these user profiles and integrated wallets.
LUKSO’s current and future initiatives
Fabian emphasized the importance of ensuring users understand the technology. This will involve improved communication materials on the website and a dedicated, upcoming Twitter account, LSP Labs, for educational content. Currently, LUKSO has a web page resource dedicated to learning, the ERC725 account.
We unpacked LUKSO’s social ambitions and goals revealed on our podcast:
- Profile Links: Users will soon be able to link to their Universal Profiles using a combination of their name and a unique identifier.
- ENS LUKSO: A forked version of the Domain Name System (DNS) will allow users to claim unique names for their profiles. This will replace the current system of self-chosen names and hashtags.
- Unique Names: These unique names will become the primary way for protocols and people to interact with profiles.
- Wallet App: Development is ongoing, but the focus remains on improving existing features.
- Profile Features: More profile functionalities are planned, requiring app development to showcase their use cases.
- Social Recovery: LUKSO has developed a social recovery feature called LSP 11. It will allow users to add social recovery options to their profiles. Social recovery refers to the ability to regain access to a lost or compromised account by involving trusted contacts. LUKSO’s vision expands this concept beyond just social connections, potentially allowing other services to participate in the recovery process in the future.
- Decentralized Social Network (Long-Term Goal): LUKSO aims to build a full-fledged social network built on top of its established standards. This network will prioritize user profiles and leverage protocols and standards for functionalities like following people. While some hybrid Web2 elements might exist initially, the ultimate goal is a fully decentralized “real social internet.”
Looking ahead
Fabian emphasized the groundbreaking nature of LUKSO’s technology, which he believed addressed a long-standing need in the industry. He compared LUKSO’s potential disruption to the rise of Apple’s iPhone, a revolutionary product from a new player that rendered previous established players obsolete.
While acknowledging the time needed for widespread adoption, Fabian remained confident. He sees the need for ongoing education and user-friendly content creation to facilitate a shift towards LUKSO’s innovative solutions. While LUKSO will build core functionalities and tools, user participation in building apps and content is crucial for the network’s long-term success.
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