Will Polkadot_s Parachain Slot Be the Ticket to the Future?

2021-05-18, 10:35

source：https://gimg2.gateimg.com/polkadotcover.png

As the representative for interoperability, Polkadot has made phased achievements. Bifrost announced that the Kusama slots would begin auction reservations on May 14. Despite the repeated delay, when KSM completed the first parallel chain Shell deployment on May 18, Polkadot's twitter followers grew from 401,000 to 411,000 in just four hours, which shows how much attention the DOT project has received. Kusama will now hold five auctions, every seven days apart.

What is the relationship between KSM and DOT? What exactly is a parachain slot? And why is the market so excited about the DOT parachain slot auction? ？Here, we will answer these questions one by one.

(For more details, please refer to Cryptopedia: Polkadot Parachain Slot Auction https://www.gate.io/en/bitwiki/detail/658)

DOT and KSM

Before introducing KSM, we must understand Polkadot (Gate.io code DOT) first. Polkadot is a public chain that doesn't load smart contracts or run blockchain programs. Unlike Gate Chain and Ethereum, it does not allow users to issue their own crypto coin or build smart applications. Gavin Wood (a co-founder of Ethereum) designed Polkadot not to create another Ethereum, but to create an intermediate chain, or relay chain, that interoperates with other public chains. According to Gavin Wood's vision, after Polkadot is officially launched, it will realize the interconnection between different public chains and become the Internet of blockchains. KSM is a beta version of Polkadot, where all operations to be run on Polkadot will be rehearsed.

What is a slot? How to sell it?

A Slot is an interface on a relay chain, such as a DOT or KSM, that connects to other chains. For example, if BSC and Gate Chain want to link to KSM, they must obtain a slot on KSM. However, compared to projects that want to get a slot to access Polkadot, the number of slots available in KSM and DOT is limited, to approximately 100. Therefore, slots have become scarce, and project members must compete for access rights.

In fact, the developers of DOT only auction the user rights of slots. In one auction, bidders can bid for up to four lease periods, each lasting up to six months. The bidder must use DOT as the currency in the auction. All project parties must perform the same auction in advance at KSM before bidding for slots on the DOT.

Why are DOT and KSM so attractive?

Grand Vision
The appeal of DOT comes from its cross-generation, cross-chain integration technology. Ethereum represents developers' ambitions for blockchain technology, which is not limited to bookkeeping and trading, but will become a world class computer with smart applications. There are two main obstacles for the blockchain in becoming the world’s decentralized computer. Ethereum, as the ancestor of public chains, has increasingly obvious limitations on its technology, especially after the DeFi boom in 2020. Ethereum has become congested, so developers and users need to spend a lot of time and money to work on Ethereum. Second, although efficient public chains such as Solana and GateChain have been, or will be put into use, they are unable to share applications and information, which forms a "Tower of Babel" problem.

As one of the developers of Ethereum, Gavin Wood has foreseen these problems. And his cross-chain integration technology is generally considered as the answer for the future of the blockchain world. With DOT, people can almost see a future of wide connectivity between public chains, which is so exciting and appealing.

According to ParaMarketCap, the total market value of 84 projects on Polkadot increased by $768 million from May 1 to May 18. Although the bidding for the slot has not started yet, projects like SherpaX, Karura, Shiden Network, Bifrost, Stafi and Litentry have announced their participation. To many of the program's founders, DOT looks just like the Mayflower on its way to America, and the slot is the ticket.

Wide investment space
Investors still showed enthusiasm for the KSM slot auction despite its repeated delay. After Bifrost released the statement on May 13 saying KSM had started preparing for auction bookings, KSM's price achieved reverse growth despite the overall downward trend.

KSM and BitCoin price chart
Data source: CoinGecko

Investors' enthusiasm stems not only from a shared vision of the future but also from the investment space created by KSM and Dot. A formal auction of the DOT slots would give investors a threefold investment opportunity. First, projects that win a slot will get a lot of attention, which can be seen as an investment signal in the digital currency world. Investors like to invest in these projects. Second, because of the rarity of the card slot, investors can directly participate in the bidding and get the slot for a second sublease. Third, the slot auction and Shell operation means that Polkadot developers have overcome some core problems of cross-chain technology. For DOT, this is great news.

Conclusion

DOT price chart
Source: gate.io

Although the DOT slot auction has been delayed many times, the market was still tolerant. And the price of DOT has been growing steadily since 2021. This is a consensus formed by investors in the development of blockchain technology. Outside the Crazy Zoo, this consensus on blockchain technology and its future is a return to rationality.

Author: Gate.io Researcher: Charles.F Translator: Edward.H
* This article represents only the views of the researcher and does not constitute any investment suggestions.
*Gate.io reserves all rights to this article. Reposting of the article will be permitted provided Gate.io is referenced. In all other cases, legal action will be taken due to copyright infringement.
*Gate.io reserves all rights to this article. Reposting of the article will be permitted provided Gate.io is referenced. In all other cases, legal action will be taken due to copyright infringement.

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