悄悄预热的DeSci赛道，有哪些潜力Alpha项目？

In a bull market full of opportunities, participating in early-stage emerging projects seems to always double capital in a short period of time. Reports of coins multiplying by hundreds or thousands abound, and the crypto community greedily searches for the next gem.

Amid the emergence of meme coins and AI concepts, price surges seem to be just a number, and doubling is no longer enough to stir up waves in the crypto community. However, among the rising tokens, ResearchCoin (RSC) has caught the market's attention, with its price breaking previous highs multiple times in the past month.

Aside from the price surge, another noteworthy aspect is the field to which RSC belongs—DeSci (Decentralized Science), which aims to use Web3 (including NFTs, smart contracts, DAOs) to achieve fair and just funding, creation, review, storage, and dissemination of scientific knowledge by establishing public infrastructure. DeSci encourages scientists to openly share research results and gain recognition, while allowing anyone easy access to and contribution of research results.

In last year's New Year outlook, many VCs openly expressed optimism about the DeSci field. For example, Messari stated in an investment forecast article that they are shifting their focus to several key non-financial sectors in the crypto space, with DeSci offering key solutions far beyond the financial sector, thus not driven by rampant speculation.

Zee Prime Capital's co-founder Matti mentioned in an interview with BlockBeats that DeSci is addressing real-world problems, possessing practicality that most cryptocurrencies lack, making it more like a cryptocurrency of cryptocurrencies.

However, for current cryptocurrencies, DeSci's adoption rate is not high, still being a very new concept.

Compared to the Chinese community, DeSci receives more discussion in the English community. At the end of last year, Berlin hosted a DeSci conference, where industry OGs like Zee Prime Capital's co-founder Matti, Molecule CEO Tyler Golato, and co-founder Paul Kohlhaas participated, sharing their research and insights on DeSci.

Meanwhile, in the Chinese community, perhaps former Binance CEO CZ's remarks on social media have sparked a small wave of interest in DeSci. CZ mentioned that he has been reading content on biotechnology, contemplating how to use crypto technology to accelerate research funding there. It is well known that the crypto community has long been involved in "longevity" research, and DeSci perfectly fits the research needs in this field.

According to WIKI data, there are currently hundreds of projects in the DeSci field. However, according to Messari's report, 50% of DeSci projects were established in the past year. From the chart, it can be seen that in the current DeSci ecosystem, DAOs are the most prosperous, while others like NFT-related concepts are still in a relatively early stage of development.

DAO Solving DeSci Funding Challenges

DAOs can be said to be the fundamental form of the DeSci concept, with DAOs being the most prosperous in the current DeSci ecosystem. Currently, the biggest and most pressing issue for DeSci is funding challenges. Apart from DAOs, it can be seen that the sector focusing on decentralized financing also occupies a significant portion of the entire field, with the primary purpose of DAOs being to address funding difficulties.

Traditional scientific research seeks research funding and resources through centralized means like national natural funds, leading to numerous problems in the funding application process, as well as lengthy and inefficient procedures. Moreover, due to deteriorating conditions such as economic downturns and environmental issues, overall research funding has been decreasing, exacerbating the severity of research funding issues.

Interconnected DeSci Ecosystem

In the DeSci ecosystem, close project connections may be a good starting point. Raising funds in the form of DAOs seems to be a good choice, with different DAOs also investing in each other.

For example, after receiving investment from Seed Club Ventures, Molecule invested in the open-source drug development organization LabDAO. Subsequently, Molecule also received a $1 million investment from Sora Ventures. To promote innovation in the field of biomedical research, Molecule will specifically provide funding to Asian researchers, planning to offer $50,000 to deserving scientific teams or individuals.

As a biotechnology research fundraising platform built on Ethereum, Molecule has two main systems: Molecule Discovery and Molecule Finance. Molecule utilizes a combination of smart contracts and legal contracts to create Intellectual Property NFTs (IP-NFTs), allowing anyone to share ownership of research projects and their future outcomes, such as intellectual property, royalties, data, etc.

Molecule's CEO and co-founder Tyler Golato, along with co-founder Paul Kohlhaas, also created Bio.xyz and VitaDAO.

Bio.xyz, as a biotechnology DAO accelerator and DeSci meta-governance layer, aims to enable DeSci DAOs to fund, manage, and develop intellectual property from universities, companies, and researchers worldwide. Additionally, Bio.xyz provides DeSci DAOs with a launchpad, resources, guidance, shared networks, and a set of legal and smart contracts.

The funding recipients of Molecule and bio.xyz are similar to decentralized science organizations like VitaDAO. Combining multiple projects makes it easier to apply for scientific research grants and link intellectual property with cryptocurrencies.

DAO Focusing on Real-World Issues

According to OP Research, current DeSci projects tend to focus more on the biological field, possibly due to the larger number of research projects in the biological direction itself and the increased public attention to biological science due to the pandemic.

VitaDAO is at the forefront of research and development in the longevity field. As the world's first biotechnology DAO, VitaDAO's main goal is to advance longevity research, extending human lifespan and healthspan. Its native token VITA saw a 48% increase in 30 days, with a market value of $83.29 million. VITA holders participate in VitaDAO's decision-making process, including project funding selection, fund management, and governance activities.

AxonDAO Governance Token (AXGT) also focuses on biotechnology. It redefines the interaction between individuals and their health data using blockchain technology and artificial intelligence. Built on the use of pre-cognitive algorithms, leveraging rich biometric technology, genomic data, and other key health indicators, it can not only monitor but also predict health outcomes.

DeSci can utilize AxonDAO to simplify the collection, storage, and verification of clinical data through blockchain technology, providing a solution. This approach ensures secure and transparent data processing, while also establishing universal standards for decentralized personal health and healthcare information, facilitating easier access and better control of personal data.

In the field of biotechnology, there is a popular topic: hair loss. HairDAO is a decentralized organization dedicated to treating hair loss, employing an open-source investment and operational model. Through HairDAO, patients and researchers collaborate to develop revolutionary new hair loss treatments. Users' treatment experiences are recorded in the HairDAO application and earn HAIR tokens as rewards.