Blockchain Journal editor-in-chief David Berlind interviews David Wachsman, CEO and founder of Wachsman Public Relations, one of the largest (if not the largest) PR firms in the blockchain industry. The interview took place at the Consensus 2023 conference in Austin, Texas, where Wachsman PR has been a sponsoring exhibitor since 2015.

Wachsman revealed that his company currently represents 75 to 80 companies in the blockchain and Web3 space across three offices in the United States, three in Europe, and one in Asia. Given his years of experience and industry observation, Berlind was looking to Wachsman to see what blockchain trends and new companies were most interesting to him and to get some predictions for the year ahead. 

Based on what he has seen over the last year, Wachsman believes the blockchain industry is making a pretty hard pivot toward enterprises; a segment of the market that, until recently, was pretty underserved.  While there is still plenty of demand for cryptocurrencies from retail investors and consumers, Wachsman says the real killer use cases for blockchain involve scenarios that most people cannot naturally imagine until they take a moment to really understand the unique value proposition (UVP) of distributed ledger technology (DLT). For example, how blockchain can serve as the backbone for air traffic control systems that handle swarms of drones or for three-dimensional accounting systems that address the unique needs of a multi-party supply chain. However, Wachsman does admit that working with enterprise companies can be complicated. He notes that many blockchain companies are still struggling to successfully target enterprises with their offerings. 

When asked by Berlind about the barriers to blockchain adoption, Wachsman cited regulatory uncertainty, cryptocurrency volatility, and the lack of understanding of the technology as some of the main blockers. However, he believes that the benefits of blockchain technology are enough to convince enterprises to overcome those barriers and get started on their blockchain projects.

To watch the video version of this podcast or read its full-text transcript, go to:
https://blockchainjournal.com/interview/ceo-blockchain-public-relations-giant-wachsman-sees-major-industry-pivot-towards/

The video can also be watched on Blockchain Journal's YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VVroMvcLSog

CEO of Blockchain Public Relations Giant Wachsman Sees Major Industry Pivot Towards Enterprises

For many enterprises, the idea of venturing alone into the wilderness of blockchain is a frightening proposition. Not only is there a general lack of blockchain and cryptocurrency talent within their executive, management, and developer ranks, the talent pool from which to recruit enterprise-grade blockchain expertise is, in 2023, tiny. In other words, demand for talent is outstripping supply. Enterprises could simply do nothing when it comes to blockchain. But sitting still while competitors and startups are keen to discover how blockchain can be used to disrupt the status quo is not the best option. So, what's an enterprise to do? Who can they turn to?

Enter the so-called "Final Four"; the four major accounting and IT consultancies that survived the shakeout from what was once called the "Big Eight."  Keen to capitalize on the enterprise's need for professional assistance with everything from blockchain strategy to tax to regulatory compliance, Accenture, Deloitte, EY, and KPMG have all established global blockchain practices. And each is competing to win the hearts and minds of enterprises ready to enlist a consultancy for blockchain help.

While he was covering the action at the Consensus 2023 conference in Austin, Texas, Blockchain Journal editor-in-chief David Berlind met up with Paul Brody, the global leader of EY's Blockchain Practice to better understand what EY (formerly known as is Ernst and Young) is doing in hopes of differentiating itself from the other Final Four consultancies.

According to Brody, among other investments in privacy and supply chain, EY views its own software investments such as Nightfall — a Layer 2 technology it jointly developed with Polygon — and Starlight (a zero-knowledge compiler for building private smart contracts) as major differentiators that make it possible for EY to not just bring expertise to the negotiating table, but intellectual property as well.

Consultancy EY's Enterprise Differentiator is Privacy on Public Blockchains: Global Lead Paul Brody

In this episode of the Blockchain Journal podcast, Blockchain Journal editor-in-chief David Berlind interviews Daniela Barbosa, the executive director of the Hyperledger Foundation. They cover a wide array of Foundation-related topics, including the formation and growth of the foundation, its flagship project (Hyperledger Fabric, an open source offering that enterprises can use to launch their own public or private blockchains), some of the Foundation's other projects, and the difference between permissioned and permissionless distributed ledgers. 

From a governance point of view, David and Daniela also consider the parallels between the decentralized development and maintenance of open source software and the decentralized governance of public blockchains. With an eye toward improving the adoption of distributed ledger technologies, Daniela talks about the urgency around education and training in blockchain and the building of a commercial ecosystem. The conversation covers blockchain interoperability with existing enterprise platforms and the benefits of Java integration (particularly related to the Hyperledger Foundation's recent announcement of its Web3j project).

Key Takeaways
* The Hyperledger Foundation is the home for blockchain and blockchain-related projects at the Linux Foundation, focusing on open source and open development.
* Hyperledger Fabric is currently the most adopted permissioned distributed ledger platform globally.
* Enterprises are interested in blockchain technology for its potential to bring efficiencies to the market, such as 24/7 liquidity and decentralized identity.
* Open source and open governance are crucial for decentralized technologies, allowing for transparency, security, and collaboration.
* The Hyperledger Foundation aims to support developers, provide education and training, and foster a commercial ecosystem for enterprise blockchain adoption.

To watch the video version of this podcast or read its full-text transcript, go to:
https://blockchainjournal.com/interview/hyperledger-open-source-blockchain-project-looks-make-enterprise-inroads-new-java

The video can also be watched on Blockchain Journal's YouTube Channel at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9CWy9XdEO0

Hyperledger Open Source Blockchain Project Looks To Make Enterprise Inroads With New Java Offering

The world's leading source of information for enterprises and businesses looking to use blockchain as an application platform for digital transformation, business innovation, customer engagement, and industry disruption.

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