Blockchain
Center For Humane Technology’s Tristan Harris And Aza Raskin Launch Humane: A New Agenda For Tech
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SFJAZZ Center –– Over 300 people, representing a broad and influential spectrum of leaders, decision makers and scholars from in and around the technology industry, gathered today at San Francisco’s SFJAZZ Center to hear Tristan Harris and Aza Raskin, Co-Founders of the Center for Humane Technology (CHT), launch Humane: A New Agenda for Tech – a powerful, more hopeful path for technology. Human downgrading is a systems-level explanation for how we ended up in the middle of a technology-driven existential crisis due to increasing the extraction of human attention. CHT’s new agenda calls on all technology creators to approach innovation to protect a deeper understanding of our basic human nature and focus on benefitting rather than “downgrading” humanity.
To help catalyze this Agenda with urgency that matches the globally accelerating scale of the issue, CHT announced a number of steps to engage the technology community in a positive direction forward:
- A new and shared “systems-level” language and diagnosis that accurately describes the entire surface area of the global crisis connecting issues such as information overload, addiction, social isolation, outrage, polarization and election hacking, which downgrade our attention spans, relationships, children’s development, mental health, civility and democracy.
- Public events leading up to a Humane Technology conference in the next year.
- Design guides to facilitate assessment across human sensitivities and social spaces to help guide designers in redesigning their products.
- Launching “Your Undivided Attention” –– a new podcast hosted by Tristan Harris and Aza Raskin with interviews from some of the most sophisticated experts in human nature, giving us all new insight into how to diagnose and accurately address human downgrading.
Human Downgrading
While our technology has been feverishly and profitably upgraded, humanity has been downgraded
While most conversation around technology and AI was concerned with when it would surpass human intelligence, we forgot to think about what would happen when it surpassed human weakness. We are in that moment today. CHT’s New Agenda for Tech posits that all human beings are born with the same root vulnerabilities and that when they are exploited across billions of people over decades, the result is widespread systemic failure: addiction leading to depression and suicide, polarization leading to isolation and radicalization, election hacking leading to untrusted results, loss of attention, loss of ability to think critically, sleep disorders, etc. This is human downgrading.
A system-level understanding of the problem brings unified language to set a new course across every discipline informing tech and human interaction:
- Policymakers — create policies that incentivize humane technologies, recognizing the limits of human nature and protecting citizens from human downgrading.
- Designers — instead of extracting attention by exploiting human sensitivities, design to protect our minds from manipulation and repair our shared social fabric.
- Technologists — hold their employers accountable for human downgrading.
- Media — create surround-sound public pressure to discuss and reverse human downgrading.
- Researchers — accelerate a unified study of how attention extraction and human downgrading harm society.
“As a lone Product Manager and Design Ethicist at Google in 2013 trying to get a few people to pay attention, I had very little hope,” said Tristan Harris, Co-Founder of CHT. “Thanks to people like CHT Advisors Roger McNamee, Sandy Parakilas, Renee DiResta, our Co-Founder Aza, brilliant storytellers like Max Stossel, scientists like Guillaume Chaslot, and far too many others to name who’ve come forward with similar knowledge and experience, the conversation has dramatically shifted to holding tech’s feet to the fire of its deep accountability. The Center for Humane Technology is very excited to move beyond the cacophony of minor product grievances and to build a broad movement of concerned technologists setting a positive, hopeful path forward.”
Humane: A New Agenda for Tech was live-streamed on CHT’s newly-updated website humanetech.com, and was attended by icons, founders, VCs, CEOs, designers and innovators from across the industry. A replay of the event will be available on CHT’s website soon at humanetech.com. For more information about how you can get involved in our Humane Agenda, go to humanetech.com.
SOURCE Center for Humane Technology
Blockchain
Blocks & Headlines: Today in Blockchain – May 5, 2025 – Arkham, Blockchair, Worldcoin, Maldives
In an ecosystem defined by perpetual innovation and high-stakes regulatory scrutiny, the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry never pauses. Today’s briefing—“Blocks & Headlines: Today in Blockchain – May 5, 2025 – Arkham, Blockchair, Worldcoin, Maldives”—dives into five compelling stories shaping the narrative: a transformative $9 billion blockchain hub in the Maldives; Sam Altman’s Worldcoin orbs arriving stateside; AI‑enhanced onchain visibility via Arkham and Blockchair; the Blockchain Association’s plea for flexible SEC oversight; and Telegram’s blockchain‑inspired encryption for massive group calls.
Together, these developments spotlight five interlocking themes: diversification of traditionally tourism‑dependent economies, identity and trust models in Web3, the fusion of AI with onchain data, the evolving policy landscape, and privacy‑centric encryption. Across these stories, recurring SEO keywords—blockchain, cryptocurrency, Web3, DeFi, NFTs, tokenization, decentralized identity, onchain analytics, regulation, and privacy—underscore the connective tissue binding today’s headlines.
1. $9 Billion Blockchain Hub on Track to Transform Maldives
Source: U.Today
The Maldives, an archipelagic nation whose economy is heavily tethered to tourism (approximately 30 % of GDP) and fishing (around 10 %), is confronting mounting fiscal challenges: public debt has breached national GDP levels (circa $7 billion), and deficits threaten sovereign stability. In a strategic pivot, Maldivian authorities signed a joint venture with MBS Global Investments—a $14 billion UAE family office—earmarking an $8.8 billion investment in a cutting‑edge blockchain hub. This initiative aims to catalyze a 200 % GDP surge within four years, spawning thousands of jobs and potentially averting sovereign default.
On the surface, relocating blockchain infrastructure to paradise may seem incongruous. Yet by repurposing the country’s geographically dispersed islands into a decentralized Web3 nexus, the Maldives could host data centers powered by renewable oceanic energy, attract DeFi startups, and incubate NFT marketplaces catering to affluent tourists. This diversification blueprint underscores a broader trend: small economies leveraging blockchain to transcend traditional growth constraints. However, critical questions loom—regulatory clarity, environmental footprint, and cybersecurity resilience will determine whether this hub becomes a scalable model or a stranded asset.
Implication: If executed judiciously, the Maldives’ blockchain hub could set a precedent for emerging economies seeking to harness decentralized infrastructure. But success hinges on transparent governance, sustainable energy sourcing, and robust legal frameworks.
2. Altman’s Eyeball‑Scanning Worldcoin Orbs Land in the U.S.
Source: The Register
On May 1, six Worldcoin “Orb” retail locations opened across the United States—Austin, Atlanta, Los Angeles, Miami, Nashville, and San Francisco—offering biometric iris scans in exchange for WLD crypto tokens. Co‑founded by Sam Altman (OpenAI CEO), Alex Blania, and Max Novendstern, Tools for Humanity champions World ID, a blockchain‑based proof‑of‑personhood system designed to authenticate humans versus bots or AI‑generated avatars. Users who scan their irises receive roughly $16 in WLD, enabling them to later verify identity on participating platforms.
While touted as a breakthrough in decentralized identity, the initiative has incited privacy regulators worldwide: South Korea fined the project over $800,000, Hong Kong prohibited operations, and legal probes are active in Germany, Kenya, and Spain. Yet Worldcoin maintains that biometric data is encrypted on-device and purged post‑scan, and with 26 million users globally (12 million scanned), the network seeks to deploy 7,500 Orbs in the U.S. by year’s end.
Opinion: Worldcoin’s retail push exemplifies the friction between innovative identity solutions and privacy norms. The on‑chain distribution of WLD tokens may democratize crypto access, but it also risks normalizing biometric collection without exhaustive regulatory guardrails. The debate between security and civil liberties intensifies as Web3 projects blur lines between voluntary onboarding and pervasive surveillance.
3. AI and Blockchain Explorers ‘Arkham’ & ‘Blockchair’ Reshape Onchain Visibility
Source: Bitcoin News
Blockchain explorers have evolved from static transaction trackers to dynamic investigative platforms, especially with generative AI integration. Two frontrunners—Arkham Intelligence and Blockchair—are pioneering tools to render cryptographic ledgers comprehensible. Arkham’s AI correlates onchain flows with off‑chain entities, enabling analysts to dissect a Binance transaction involving 0.3065 BNB routed through WBNB and Pancakeswap in seconds. Blockchair’s AI assistant, Cuborg, fields natural‑language queries (e.g., “Which Bitcoin address dormant since 2017 just moved funds at block 895,197?”), surfacing actionable intelligence with remarkable speed.
The convergence of machine learning and onchain analytics promises unprecedented transparency for DeFi protocols, NFT markets, and compliance teams. Yet this visibility shift also rekindles the age‑old privacy dilemma: as attribution sharpens, users may flee to privacy coins (e.g., Monero, Zcash) or sophisticated mixers, fracturing onchain provenance. Thus, the community must strike a balance—leveraging AI for due diligence without undermining pseudonymity, a bedrock of decentralization.
Takeaway: Enhanced onchain visibility emboldens regulators and institutional custodians to adopt crypto, but it simultaneously pressures privacy advocates to innovate. The trajectory of DeFi scalability and AML compliance will pivot on how explorers calibrate the transparency‑privacy spectrum.
4. Blockchain Association Urges SEC to Adopt Flexible Crypto Regulation
Source: The Block Binance
On May 2, the Blockchain Association—representing heavyweights such as Coinbase, Ripple, and Uniswap Labs—submitted formal comments urging the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to embrace an “incremental, flexible approach” under new Chair Paul S. Atkins. The association argued that equity‑style rule frameworks ill‑fit blockchain’s decentralized architecture, and that overly restrictive policies risk ceding global leadership in Web3 innovation. Key recommendations included:
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Modernizing “best execution” by prioritizing diligence over prescriptive equity norms.
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Leveraging public exchange APIs for oversight, eschewing bulk personal data collection.
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Convening public‑private roundtables to iteratively refine tokenization guidelines.
As the SEC grapples with litigation against major crypto firms, the association’s plea underscores a broader policy shift—from adversarial enforcement to collaborative rulemaking. If embraced, this could catalyze a regulatory renaissance, aligning U.S. competitiveness with nascent markets such as the EU’s MiCA and Singapore’s digital asset frameworks.
Analysis: A flexible U.S. regime could anchor global capital flows in American markets. However, in the near term, ambiguity may persist, prompting projects to seek out friendlier jurisdictions. The evolution of DeFi, tokenized securities, and NFT financialization hinges on whether the SEC transitions from litigation‑driven oversight to principles‑based governance.
5. Telegram’s Blockchain‑Inspired Encryption Empowers Massive Group Calls
Source: CCN.com
Messaging titan Telegram has rolled out a major security upgrade: blockchain‑inspired encryption for voice and video group calls, scaling to tens of thousands of participants. Published May 5, 2025, the update employs a distributed architecture reminiscent of blockchain’s consensus model, paired with end‑to‑end encryption and a novel four‑emoji verification system. Users can join calls via links, QR codes, or invites, accommodating up to 200 guests in peer‑to‑peer calls and vastly more in server‑mediated group sessions.
This enhancement cements Telegram’s Web3 orientation—from in‑app NFT galleries to integrated crypto wallets and June’s Grok AI chatbot. By emphasizing decentralized encryption, Telegram seeks to differentiate itself from legacy platforms and curry favor with privacy‑minded Web3 users. The $100,000 unclaimed bounty for encryption breaches further testifies to the platform’s confidence.
Perspective: As social channels become conduits for DAO assemblies, token launches, and remote governance, Telegram’s upgrade anticipates Web3 ’s communal demands. Secure, large‑scale calls could host multichain hackathons, decentralized grant panels, and NFT minting drop parties—ushering in an era where encrypted communications seamlessly integrate with onchain action.
Conclusion: Charting Tomorrow’s Web3 Horizon
Today’s headlines—from island‑wide blockchain sanctuaries to AI‑powered explorers, from biometric orbs to regulatory overtures and encrypted megacalls—illustrate the multifaceted momentum driving blockchain and crypto into mainstream orbit. Key takeaways include:
-
Economic Diversification via Blockchain: Smaller nations can pivot from tourism to tech‑led growth, provided they embed sustainability and legal clarity.
-
Identity & Privacy Trade‑Offs: Worldcoin’s iris scans provoke essential dialogue on biometric ethics versus Sybil‑resistance in decentralized networks.
-
AI‑Driven Transparency: Arkham and Blockchair spotlight the accelerating fusion of AI and onchain analytics, demanding new privacy paradigms.
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Adaptive Regulation: The Blockchain Association’s SEC proposal signals burgeoning alignment between policymakers and innovators—critical for U.S. leadership.
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Web3‑First Infrastructure: Telegram’s encryption upgrade underscores the imperative for platforms to bake decentralized security into every layer.
As the industry hurtles forward, stakeholders must navigate these cross‑currents with pragmatic vision—embracing decentralization, protecting user sovereignty, and fostering constructive policy engagement. Tomorrow’s decentralized economy may hinge as much on robust encryption and AI transparency tools as on visionary regulation and sustainable infrastructure projects.
The post Blocks & Headlines: Today in Blockchain – May 5, 2025 – Arkham, Blockchair, Worldcoin, Maldives appeared first on News, Events, Advertising Options.
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