Starting March we will move to a different Medium for blogs – Medium: https://medium.com/healid or the link on the bottom of the page will get you there. Our goal is to reach a larger audience. On this place we still intend to give a summary, but then point at Medium. 

From the Philippines to East Africa

The past couple of weeks required significant attention to us preparing for kicking off the coin issue, DAF, and genome collection. Above all this meant coding, and coding logic. The DAF now is very scalable, and the related coin issue also. We also brought several new developers on board, Max, Frank, and Alain (all in Rwanda) to help particularly with biometrics, data storage, and iOS and Android UI developments.

Toward the end of the week we were busy working with Smart Africa in Kigali to arrange for the May event involving leaders and key influencers from most African countries. It looks like we will get an ability to talk in the Auditorium, with significant exposure across and beyond the African continent. 

Back to America: Crypto-Economiccing

Above all, the key to us moving forward is the solidification of our economic model. This sounds abstract, but it has very specific implications on our project: It determines the size of the Genesis Block, the rewards every actor gets (Champions, Ambassadors, Collaborators/Developers, Advisors, Founders), and future reward mechanisms. With that the economic model has to be finalized to be able to create the Genesis Block and start raising coins – and collect genomes.

We now have defined 10 milestones whose execution bring the platform to an Inflection Point after which the model becomes self-sustaining and self-perpetuating. It can then be turned into a clear business plan – and from that point on it is all about execution. Our current focus is to outline how we are going to execute a series of 10 milestones to collect genome data. 

Fiona and I are finalizing a paper that puts this challenge in the context of traditional startups. Similar to these, we need to pay for reaching an inflection point (or tipping point) after which network effects kick in so that working with Healid (contributing data and using data) becomes self-reinforcing without any external funding. After all, ‘simply’ raising and paying $1 trillion for gene sequencing is not a feasible approach. Additionally, we want to bootstrap network effects by using the coin from the beginning as a payment mechanism for ‘in kind’ services. 

It looks like the model is sound and can and therefore will work. As sequencing prices keep falling, revenue models keep emerging for selling correlations and probabilities based on genome data. Based on this a value for the database can be calculated that clearly drives the coin value to the inflection point.

Beyond Theory

Still too theoretical? Maybe, but the gist is that we need to correlate the distribution of coin above all to the building of the database – and not to the raising of money for business activities. We will create a specific number of Genesis coins (based on our calculations), then issue them to specific beneficiaries who will award people or organizations that directly or indirectly pay for the sequencing of genomes. THAT will have to be our coin distribution and coin offering process. The ultimate utility coin, from the beginning. It’s not an easy sales job, but a straightforward one. 

Examples and the paper will follow shortly. This coming week will be focused on translating it into specific execution tasks and activities. Why shouldn’t we be able to start collecting genomes in March?!