Draft of WeMeta Whitepaper

wemeta_litepaper.md

WeMeta: The Omni Environment Userbase

1 Abstract

The proliferation of sustainable blockchain ecosystems, both public and private, has brought forth a world of new and unexplored opportunities in user understanding, engagement and involvement. However, many systems rely on multiple chains and most visualization platforms and APIs are entirely focused on the financial openness of the onchain era. Ironically, this focus on financials almost always sticks entirely to onchain or market data and disregards the social intelligence which has and always will drive emerging and retail markets. Further, it underserves non-financial users and suffocates holistic growth despite waves on waves of inbound interest as basic user analytics are forgotten for short-lived token incentives.

This paper presents WeMeta, the first omnichain userbase and intelligence platform for applications and ecosystems, which provides a secure, powerful infrastructure suite and operating system upon which a diverse set of cross-chain applications can be integrated, built and understood. WeMeta provides a level of social intelligence previously held only by large, well established corporations (Facebook, Google, Microsoft) in a flexible format which supports a plethora of use cases and ensures security around user data, which is end user owned and controlled.

2 Background

Life is a constant flow of messaging. A customer receives a message from a bag of chips at the supermarket. With or without effort, that customer responds. Thousands of times.

They look, or they don't. They reach out and grab a bag, or they don't. They purchase the chips, or they don't. Each message is value. Each message is data. As Eric Thomas says, "Where your focus goes, your energy flows.¹" Value is transferred, even though it may not have been captured². This is true in physical and digital environments.

Technology to trace and attribute messages has continually advanced both in extracting information from old files (e.g. carbon dating, photo enhancement) and future files (e.g. simulation or predictive systems, generative AI)³. Sustainable blockchain ecosystems, public and private, have ushered in a new era of message understanding through an accessible, immutable ledger, which is decentralized.

The onchain era.

Given the open financialization of the additional data capture in the onchain era, and the innovative solutions being built on its decentralized primitives, a diverse, fast moving, cyclical yet complex emerging market (and submarkets) has been born. This market is frequently referred to as "the crypto economy" or "cryptocurrencies".

Offchain data has become more important each time that market has matured. Yet, each time the market has matured a new connectivity layer to that offchain data is required. Although it may seem retarted, the evolution of offchain connectivity is not something to be overlooked; the necessity of change is caused by increased capabilities or scaled applications of decentralized blockchain ecosystems.

This evolution has brought in a serious tease of scale

• Applications for Bitcoin ETFs have poured in from traditional financial firms including BlackRock and Fidelity
• NFT communities BAYC and Pudgy Penguin are distributing merchandise through Walmart
• Web3 games like League of Kingdoms are generating millions of dollars in MRR with offchain solutions

With all of these advancements, the demand for offchain data (computation) increases. The offchain data demanded can range, but usually relates to achieving an outcome for the end user. The market has reached a level of maturity where those outcomes depend on who the user is, and solving that problem today usually starts with moving past a prehistoric level of data capture. Namely, offchain user data - actions.

Much of this data has been disregarded in the past with concern for user privacy.

I believe this view -- that not collecting the data is what is best for user privacy -- is flawed for a number of reasons.

1. Collecting user data does not need to identify that user.
   • With zero-knowledge proofs, anything can be known about a user without having to know who that user is.
2. Like current regulation, this view misses the boat when it comes to what people care about.
   • People care that they know what their data is used for.
   • People do not necessarily care that it was collected.
3. User financial data is collected by default onchain.
   • So we have accepted a base level of data collection which requires no consent from the owner of that data (the user).
4. Blocking users from signing in with offchain methods is not a decision that should be made by the application which claims to not want to control those users which are connecting to the application.

As is common in the space at this time, WeMeta proposes a web2.5 approach when it comes to collecting user data. This means freeing users to connect as they wish, enabling them to benefit from the technological advances enabled by the collection and processing of their data, and giving those users complete control over their data.

WeMeta has beta tested this primitive with the original user owned onchain game, Decentraland, and others with success. A range of major corporations including Forever 21, ETH Denver, PNB Bank Pulaski, UPS and others unnamed spanning healthcare, music, real world events, UGC and more have built on top of WeMeta. WeMeta currently connects over 750 live applications in 3D virtual environments on desktop, mobile, and VR.

Using this new primitive, developers can implement seamless inter-ecosystem (inter-chain) applications such as a partially onchain physical store with a global JIT logistics system, an onchain game with a physical music festival, an off-market commercial real estate deal where the buyer's funds are completely onchain and their identity is anonymous, a multi-media file with a generative model applied to an unexpected audience, a newly onchain community with their existing social network, an onchain rewards schema with an offchain app, or a cross-chain asset transfer.

With WeMeta, we provide the network fabric underlying the fully-connected omni-ecosystem of the future. WeMeta is the user connection to applications, experiences and environments both virtually and in real life.

2.1 Related Work

This section builds an understanding of the important players in the cross-chain interaction space, why they fall short of the ideals of trustless valid delivery, and how LayerZero closes that gap.

1. Chainlink developed oracles to connect offchain data to smart contracts. That includes computational outputs not limited in size.

Chainlink [7, 4] is a framework for building and connecting to decentralized oracle networks (DONs). While smart contracts are tamperproof, their on-chain nature prevents the basic connectivity crucial to their wider adoption: a smart contract cannot fetch off-chain data that is necessary to the execution of the contract, such as stock prices, IoT device measurements, and outputs from secure off-chain computations. A DON extends a smart contract’s tamperproof property to the data sources and external resources that the contract depends on, without placing trust in any central entity. In a DON, a user’s smart contract makes an on-chain request to a Chainlink interface smart contract, which posts an event to many separate oracle nodes. Each oracle node queries multiple data sources for the requested information, aggregates it to filter erroneous or malicious sources, and optionally performs trust-minimized computations on the data. The oracle nodes respond to the Chainlink interface contract, which performs a second level of aggregation to filter erroneous or malicious oracles. This dual-layer filtering guarantees trust in the final data without requiring trust in any individual oracle or data source. As a result, Chainlink provides a robust information-retrieval network as well as a secure off-chain computation solution that has become widely used across the industry. By leveraging the Chainlink DON framework, the LayerZero protocol gains the ability to ensure trustless delivery of messages between disparate chains.

2. LayerZero/ Wormhole developed omnichain bridges to transfer value from one blockchain to another by locking the value in their vaults on the origin chain and minting wrapped value from their own contract on the new chain.

3. Cosmos developed an app chain thesis and SDK to connect the different blockchains from each application regardless their chain (the application layer).

Cosmos [5] is a blockchain network technology that allows arbitrary messages to be sent between supported chains. Cosmos includes an Inter-Blockchain Communication (IBC [14]) protocol build on Tendermint BFT [21] to facilitate messaging between chains built on Cosmos Hub. Cosmos differs from LayerZero in two key ways: (1) IBC runs a full on-chain light node, and (2) IBC only provides direct communication between fastfinality [24] chains. These limitations of IBC, combined with its use of an intermediate chain to facilitate consensus, make it similar to Anyswap, THORChain, or Polkadot, rather than a general communication layer like LayerZero. Cosmos also provides a DEX with similar properties to Anyswap or THORChain, called the Gravity Bridge [12]. In contrast to Cosmos and IBC, LayerZero provides trustless omnichain messaging, and can be extended to run on any chain, including those which provide probabilistic-finality, such as Ethereum and Bitcoin.

4. Polygon Polygon [17], formerly Matic Network, is a Layer 2 network that addresses the throughput and sovereignty challenges of Ethereum. Despite being the most popular platform for blockchain development, Ethereum is plagued by low throughput [10], making it unsuitable for certain applications. Polygon provides application specific, Ethereum-compatible sidechains that combine the scalability and independence of separate chains with the community and security of Ethereum. Specialized or throughput-intensive applications run on the sidechains and periodically consolidate back to the main Ethereum chain. In contrast, LayerZero is a lower-level platform that enables direct inter-chain communication and can be used to facilitate transfers back to the Ethereum chain without the complexities of the Polygon protocol.

5. Polkadot [26] is an early example of the potential of an open cross-chain ecosystem. In Polkadot, many domain-specific, parallel chains (“parachains”) connect via a common relay chain that enables tokens and data to flow between them. However, inter-chain communication always crosses this relay chain, thus incurring additional costs. LayerZero provides the same low-level communication platform of Polkadot, without involving the extra transactions necessitated by the on-chain middleman.

6. Decentraland developed an open world (environment) displaying wide-ranging applications deployed by the owners of the LAND which makes up the continuous environment, giving anyone the ability to purchase facetime in an ever evolving city that has its own currency. WeMeta first teetered into event data collection here.

7. Yield Guild Games (YGG) has developed a large community of gamer profiles and an API for creating rewarding onchain quests on multiple chains. WeMeta builds around this to ensure compatibility with YGG partners.

8. Arkham Intelligence Arkham is a crypto intelligence platform that systematically analyzes and deanonymizes blockchain transactions, showing users the people and companies behind blockchain activity, along with data and analytics about their behavior.

Arkham takes a peer-reported approach to identity verification, meaning their profiles are verified by everyone else saying that profile is a given person. WeMeta adjusts this through user-owned profiles and issuing rewards for your data

9. Axelar - Axelar stack provides a decentralized network, protocols, tools, and APIs that allow simple cross-chain communication. Axelar protocol suite consists of cross-border routing and transfer protocols. A decentralized open network of validators powers the network; anyone can join, use it, and participate. Byzantine consensus, cryptography, and incentive mechanisms are designed to achieve high safety and liveness requirements unique for cross-chain requests.

10. Lens Protocol The Lens Protocol is a Web3 social graph on the Polygon Proof-of-Stake blockchain. It is designed to empower creators to own the links between themselves and their community, forming a fully composable, user-owned social graph. The protocol is built from the ground up with modularity in mind, allowing new features and fixes to be added while ensuring immutable user-owned content and social relationships.

11. Push Protocol Push Protocol is a web3 communication network, enabling cross-chain notifications and messaging for dapps, wallets, and services.

12. Galxe Galxe is the leading platform for building Web3 community. With over 11 million unique users, Galxe has propelled the growth of Optimism, Polygon, Arbitrum, and more than 3000 partners with reward-based loyalty programs.

2.2 WeMeta in Action

WeMeta is the layer where consumers communicate with applications, it the most broad sense.

Let’s walk through an example…

Abby walks into Disney. She has a WeMeta account and has collected some Disney IP NFTs, mostly Boba Fett from Star Wars. When Abby walks past the Star Wars section in Epcot, there’s a sudden noise. A roar. It’s coming from below?!

Suddenly, with a boom and a cloud of smoke, Boba Fett bursts out of the ground, he’s being chased by droids! His expert maneuvers are no match for them, he shoots down the last one, twirls his guns into his holster, and floats back to the ground. Towards Abby. He looks directly at her and says “you get that?”

Abby is screaming with joy, she turns around and snaps a selfie for Instagram. Caption, a confident “Pow!”.

A few days later, Abby walks into Walmart. After grabbing her usual groceries, she walks by the gaming section. She gets a pop up coupon for $20 off the new Star Wars game if she buys a pack of Cokes.

She walks over to the game, picks it up, reads the display, puts it back then walks away. She doesn’t end up purchasing the game or the Cokes.

Alright, what happened? How?

In this example, Abby is in complete control of her data and knows that Disney and Walmart both used her data.

• Neither Disney nor Walmart knows Abby’s identity.
• Disney does know their AI generated personal hologram show in the Star Wars section has a positive impact on visitor experience and social amplification of park experiences. They do know what the hologram that was generated was.
• Walmart does know they failed to convert a franchise fan who does play games and has bought Coke before to buy the Star Wars game and that the fan did seriously consider buying the game. They also know the coupon that was offered.

3 Design

WeMeta has built an omnichain, environment agnostic solution for performant, automated user intelligence and analysis.

WeMeta Accounts

Part of WeMeta's SDK are WeMeta Accounts. These can be both abstracted and direct wallets depending on user preference.

When a user visits an application which has integrated WeMeta's SDK, they can sign in with their familiar login of choice, including the application's native login if applicable, and their profile is automatically populated to the app's management platform. The benefits of this are wide ranging across different niches

• Automatic KYC solution (for KYC enabled accounts)
  • Eliminating fear of geographical lockouts or litigation
• Abstracted user preferences and experience
  • Instant access to knowing what the user does and does not like
• Geographic audience analysis
  • Know where your users are from and where they are connecting from
• Social attribution
  • Understand where a user is coming from across Twitter, Discord, Reddit, Instagram, website, app, etc...
• Social intelligence
  • Understand what your users are saying across Twitter, Discord, Reddit, Instagram, website, app, etc...

WeMeta supports account creation via mobile phone, email, web2 socials, web3 identities, game accounts, and wallet. A game-changing benefit of this is the ability for users to subscribe to text message, email or DM notifications for upcoming releases, exclusive opportunities, sneak peaks and more.

Note: All WeMeta Accounts are user controlled and can be deleted at the user's discretion.

WeMeta SDK

The WeMeta SDK is an omnichain development kit made up primarily of WeMeta Accounts (sign in, management) and WeMeta Analytics.

WeMeta Analytics is a npm package which collects data from events and a proprietary "heartbeat" technology of WeMeta. The package installs into applications and games similar to Game Analytics and pastes into websites similar to Google Analytics.

WeMeta Heartbeat

WeMeta's Analytics package sends a pulse every 5 seconds to synchronize player position within the scene. Think of this like a snapshot of the state of the application every 5 seconds. Movements and actions between those 5 second splits are also recorded in traditional ways.

WeMeta Self Storage (Decentralized Database)

As one can imagine, WeMeta both uses a lot of data storage and pulls a lot of data from storage. To this end, we developed a rapid response decentralized database protocol which stores all data. Validators can participate on a range of devices from mobile phones to super computers. Each application built on WeMeta is strongly encouraged to validate. Protocols, ecosystems and users are as well.

For a user with a WeMeta Account, validating is as simple as checking a box in the WeMeta App. WeMeta devices are also equipped to validate. Stakers of > 1 WMT are eligible to participate in validation.

This storage processes transactions and serves as the zero-knowledge layer between applications and users. Naturally, the solution is omnichain.

4 Case Study

Forever 21

Forever 21 called on WeMeta to support their immersive build for Fashion Week. The application existed as a 3D virtual environment inside of Decentraland, boasting multiple rooms and a live concert performance.

WeMeta Analytics successfully tracked offchain events like the 1,200 outfit changes performed by the 3,500 players who visited the experience, 72% of which were male, and onchain transactions (NFT purchases) passing through the app. Players stayed for an average of 27 minutes each, which was mostly spent on the dance floor in the middle of the build, largely during the live performance.

WeMeta found a positive price impact between the event and both Forever 21 NFTs and Decentraland's MANA currency.

The case study can be found in full here. Application and user data was securely stored by WeMeta.

5 Applications and Tools on WeMeta

Advertising

Whether in an existing web2 platform, or a decentralized, web3 application, WeMeta enables zero-knowledge targeted advertisement and user outreach. Users in WeMeta enabled ecosystems can create accounts via text, email, web2 auth, wallet and more.

As mentioned earlier, WeMeta's zero-knowledge layer enables direct engagement with the user without (better word) direct knowledge of the user's identity.

Because of the limitless throughput of the system, advertisements can range from standard application or website ads to AI generated environments in Unreal Engine. Advancements in the capacity and capabilities of GPUs, entire movies or games, responsive to the user and their desires in real time. WeMeta's SDK and Heartbeat record, process, and enable the dynamic adaptation of those systems to the user.

Cross-chain Games

Enables the ability to attribute multi-chain outcomes to a single profile, maintain a single record log of achievements. Games can push content to any chain or environment without compatibility concern or loss of user analytics.

Cross-chain Decentralized Exchange or Lending

User acquisition, attribution, understanding. Credit scoring and risk. We provide decentralized and centralized lenders piece of mind through features like borrower history, which we are able to track across accounts across chains.

Omnichain KYC

Account abstraction API enables recognition of an existing WeMeta user and provides zero-knowledge KYC to decentralized finance, security offerings, storefront checkout, membership and proof-of-personhood.

Text-to-Vote for DAOs

Utilizing WeMeta Accounts, DAOs can enable voting on proposals via text message and still verify votes onchain. Users can also engage with various protocol functions via text message or web2 sign in.

In-store Conversions

With the ability to aggregate anonymous mobile phone data, crossed with consensus data, and WeMeta accounts, WeMeta is able to tell mass market retail stores about their in-store conversion rate and success metrics in a way that protects personal privacy with zero-knowledge proofs.

Consolidated Medical Records

Once WeMeta releases users' ability to contribute health data and records, their WeMeta account can easily be shared with their doctor globally by granting permission. This simplifies the often strenuous task of collecting historical medical records when a patient visits a new doctor or is traveling. Access must be explicitly granted by the user and is recorded onchain by default.

Cross-chain Asset Management

Proving ownership or details of the content of an NFT, say, a commercial real estate building.

Ability to track user / value flow across chains.

6 Future Development

1. Advertising network for centralized and decentralized environments.
2. User ability to contribute health, live location, and other information.
3. Development of decentralized data network where users, applications, and ecosystems are all validators.
4. DePIN rewards incentives for Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and other delivery drivers to earn rewards for their miles.

References

Footnotes

1. ENERGY - https://genius.com/19915493 ↩

2. It is important to note that in this example there are 3 levels of messaging: 1. The customer, 2. The supply chain, 3. The store. These can be renamed: 1. The user, 2. the network, 3. the application. Each of these levels is in constant communication with each other. We perceive the communication through human consciousness. ↩

3. It is important to note that technology which sends or receives messages is part of this advancement. ↩