MegaLabs, the leading developer behind the innovative Ethereum scaling protocol known as “MegaETH,” announced a successful $20 million seed funding round led by Dragonfly Capital. This new investment aims to advance MegaETH, a blockchain designed for real-time transaction processing, capable of streaming 100,000 transactions per second with millisecond-level responsiveness.

MegaLabs Secures Funding to Revolutionize Blockchain Speed

The funding round saw participation from Figment Capital, Folius Ventures, Robot Ventures, Big Brain Holding, Tangent, and Credibly Neutral. Notable angel investors included Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, Joseph Lubin, CEO of Consensys, Sreeram Kannan, creator of EigenLayer, and Hasu of Flashbots.

Yilong Li, co-founder of MegaLabs, explained the company’s vision: “We define a real-time blockchain as one that processes transactions immediately upon arrival and produces outputs at a very high frequency.”

Real-Time Blockchain Innovation

MegaETH’s ability to scale is attributed to two primary factors: its “heterogeneous blockchain architecture,” which enhances performance by allowing network nodes with various hardware configurations to specialize in specific tasks, and a “hyper-optimized EVM execution environment” that maximizes throughput, latency, and resource efficiency. This execution environment operates as a blockchain operating system compatible with Ethereum’s programming standards.

The concept of MegaETH was partly inspired by Vitalik Buterin’s 2021 blog post “Endgame,” where he discussed scaling Ethereum. Buterin expressed his enthusiasm for MegaETH’s potential: “Creating hyper-scalable EVM implementations is a key prerequisite for truly scaling Ethereum. I am excited to see brilliant developers taking on this challenge.”

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MegaLabs, the leading developer behind the innovative Ethereum scaling protocol known as “MegaETH,” announced a successful $20 million seed funding round led by Dragonfly Capital. This new investment aims to advance MegaETH, a real-time blockchain designed for instantaneous transaction processing, capable of streaming 100,000 transactions per second with millisecond-level responsiveness.

MegaLabs Secures Funding to Revolutionize Real-Time Blockchain Speed

The funding round saw participation from Figment Capital, Folius Ventures, Robot Ventures, Big Brain Holding, Tangent, and Credibly Neutral. Notable angel investors included Vitalik Buterin, co-founder of Ethereum, Joseph Lubin, CEO of Consensys, Sreeram Kannan, creator of EigenLayer, and Hasu of Flashbots.

Yilong Li, co-founder of MegaLabs, explained the company’s vision: “We define a real-time blockchain as one that processes transactions immediately upon arrival and produces outputs at a very high frequency.”

Real-Time Blockchain Innovation

MegaETH’s ability to scale is attributed to two primary factors: its “heterogeneous blockchain architecture,” which enhances performance by allowing network nodes with various hardware configurations to specialize in specific tasks, and a “hyper-optimized EVM execution environment” that maximizes throughput, latency, and resource efficiency. This execution environment operates as a blockchain operating system compatible with Ethereum’s programming standards.

The concept of MegaETH was partly inspired by Vitalik Buterin’s 2021 blog post “Endgame,” where he discussed scaling Ethereum. Buterin expressed his enthusiasm for MegaETH’s potential: “Creating hyper-scalable EVM implementations is a key prerequisite for truly scaling Ethereum. I am excited to see brilliant developers taking on this challenge.”

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Pranksy’s Optimism in the Future of NFTs

Well-regarded non-fungible token (NFT) collector Pranksy has voiced optimism approximately the destiny of NFTs, countering a developing narrative in their decline. Pranksy, an early NFT investor who has built a large following and collection, recently asked his X followers about the last time they purchased an NFT. The post received nearly 118k views and more than 500 replies, prompting Pranksy to state that the NFT space is still living and breathing. “500 genuine replies, there is life in the old girl yet,” he wrote, implying that the future of NFTs is still active.

NFT Trading Data Paints a Different Picture

Pranksy’s optimism stands in contrast to data from CryptoSlam, which paints a more complex picture of the future of NFTs. In May, international NFT income totaled four million, marking the bottom month-to-month overall performance in view that October of the preceding year. It turned into additionally the primary month in 2024 to witness income beneath the It turned into additionally the primary month in 2024 to witness income beneath the $1 billion mark. billion mark.

Ethereum (NASDAQ:ETH), the leading blockchain for NFT sales with a historic volume of over $43 billion, experienced a decline in sales, recording $164 million in sales, the lowest since September. Notably, Ethereum’s number of unique buyers also dropped significantly, with only 56,914 unique buyers in May, the lowest count since June 2021.

The slump in NFT sales was not exclusive to Ethereum; even the Bitcoin (NASDAQ:BTC) network saw a decline. Bitcoin recorded zero million in month-to-month sales, the bottom discern considering the fact that October. Both the consumer and vendor anticipate the Bitcoin community hit their lowest factors this year. However, amidst the sales slump on major blockchains, Solana (NASDAQ:SOL) appeared to defy the trend in terms of activity.

Solana recorded $93 million in monthly sales, marking the first time it fell below the $100 million mark since November of the previous year. Solana additionally performed new information for month-to-month precise consumers and sellers, with 346,229 and 594,555 addresses respectively. Despite Solana’s active user base, the average NFT price on the network is experiencing a decline, with the average monthly sales value standing at $37.8, the lowest figure recorded this year.

Falling NFT Floor Prices Despite Bullish Crypto Trends

While the wider cryptocurrency marketplace has proven bullish tendencies in 2024, with numerous main tokens experiencing fee surges, NFT ground charges have now no longer accompanied suit. The top 5 major NFT collections have seen significant declines in their floor prices:

• Bored Ape Yacht Club (BAYC): Once the crown jewel of the NFT space, BAYC’s ground charge has plummeted from an all-time excessive of 153 ETH to round 8.ninety nine ETH.
• CryptoPunks: The iconic series has visible its ground charge drop from a hundred twenty five ETH at its top to twenty-five ETH.
• Pudgy Penguins: This collection of 8,888 penguin avatar NFTs on the Ethereum blockchain has also seen its floor price drop from 22.9 ETH to 8.99 ETH.
• Azuki: This anime-themed collection, once highly sought after, has seen its floor price dip from 31.8 ETH to 3.09 ETH.
• CloneX: Launched with the aid of using RTFKT, CloneX’s ground rate has reduced from 19.five ETH to 0.36 ETH.

These declines propose a full-size retracement from the heights of the NFT boom, at the same time as the wider crypto marketplace enjoys renewed investor confidence.

Companies Drop NFT Features

There has been a fashion of businesses discontinuing their involvement withinside the NFT space. In March, Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX), the renowned multinational coffee chain, terminated its NFT rewards program. In January, gaming retailer GameStop (NYSE) announced the closure of its NFT marketplace after scaling back its crypto services over the past two years. More recently, X, beneathneath the possession of Elon Musk, discontinued a function that allowed top class customers to apply NFT pictures as their profile pictures.

Despite the declining interest in the NFT space, there has been some positive news. Last month, renowned Portuguese footballer Cristiano Ronaldo revealed his collaboration with Binance for the launch of his fourth NFT collection. The collection, unveiled on May 29 on the Binance NFT Marketplace, pays homage to Ronaldo’s illustrious career, showcasing highlights from his football journey.

However, it’s worth noting that Ronaldo has been embroiled in legal issues related to his involvement in NFT collection sales with Binance. In November 2023, Ronaldo confronted a class-movement lawsuit in a United States district courtroom docket in Florida. The plaintiffs alleged that Ronaldo had actively participated in the offer and sale of unregistered securities in collaboration with Binance, arguing that he should have been aware of Binance’s involvement in such activities.

Conclusion

In summary, while Pranksy’s optimism about the future of NFTs is notable given his status and experience, the data from CryptoSlam tells a more nuanced story. The average decline in buying and selling volumes and falling ground costs of pinnacle collections spotlight the demanding situations going through the marketplace in 2024. Despite some positive developments, the future of NFTs continues to navigate a complex and volatile landscape.

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Risks of Celebrity Crypto Endorsements

Pop icon Jason Derulo finds himself at the center of controversy after promoting a meme coin named JASON, which plummeted in value shortly after its release. Known for his musical performances, Derulo’s involvement in the volatile meme coin market has initiated a broader debate about the ethical concerns and potential risks of celebrity crypto endorsements. This incident has led to significant monetary losses for investors and reputational damage for the celebrities involved.

The Fallout: Derulo and Sahil Arora

Recently, Jason Derulo took to X to announce the launch of the meme coin JASON to his 3.5 million followers. Unfortunately, the coin’s value dipped by more than 72% minutes after its release, causing widespread dismay among investors and fans. In reaction to the fallout, Derulo pointed palms at Sahil Arora, a parent formerly connected to cryptocurrency scandals. Attempting to rectify the situation, Derulo tweeted:

“Damn Sahil got me! That’s ok, that’s motivation to take this all the way! I just bought $20,000 worth. In this for my enthusiasts for the lengthy haul, going to do the whole thing in my energy to ship this sh*t to the moon.”

Derulo then addressed the issue in an apology video, expressing his commitment to making the coin’s recovery his “life’s goal.” Despite his proactive stance, skepticism surrounds Jason Derulo’s involvement with the JASON meme coin. Influential crypto figures, along with SlumDOGE Millionaire and on-chain detective ZachXBT, have solid doubt on Derulo’s claims.

Criticism from the Crypto Community

SlumDOGE Millionaire criticized Derulo, stating, “Bro made SlumDOGE Millionaire criticized Derulo, stating, “Bro made $1 million off his rug and put $20,000 again withinside the chart lol. million off his rug and put ,000 again withinside the chart lol. You’re not stupid or new to crypto, Jason; you know exactly what was happening. Don’t play dumb now.” The liquidity of the JASON meme coin is alarmingly low, at approximately 1,000, with around 3,190 holders. This situation mirrors other high-profile crypto scams where initial excitement leads to significant financial losses for ordinary investors.

The crypto community’s reaction has been overwhelmingly critical. ZachXBT, known for exposing crypto scams, responded to Derulo’s apology video, saying, “You are not sorry at all. You have promoted so many crypto scams over the years I have lost track.” He further added, “Projects will throw them high 5 fig – low 6 fig for Ongoing Celebrity Meme Coin Promotions.”

Repeated Offenses by Sahil Arora

This incident related to Derulo isn’t the primary of its kind. The accused developer, Sahil Arora, has launched several other celebrity-associated meme coins. Notably, Arora has been connected to latest meme coin scams regarding celebrities Caitlyn Jenner and Rich The Kid. Arora’s handle, “@Habibi_Comm,” turned into suspended following information of his involvement in pump-and-unload and rug-pull schemes thru movie star crypto tokens.

Both Jenner and Rich The Kid have publicly condemned Arora, with Jenner pronouncing plans to pursue prison movement towards him each criminally and civilly. The pattern of these scams highlights the need for greater awareness and caution among both celebrities and their followers when engaging with cryptocurrency investments.

Broader Implications and Future Outlook

The Jason Derulo meme coin controversy underscores the broader implications of celebrity crypto endorsements in the cryptocurrency market. As celebrities leverage their influence to promote financial products, the potential for both positive and negative impacts becomes evident. While endorsements can bring attention and legitimacy to certain projects, they also carry the risk of misleading fans and investors, especially in a highly volatile and unregulated market like cryptocurrency.

Moving forward, there is a growing call for more stringent regulations and guidelines governing celebrity crypto endorsements of financial products. These regulations would aim to protect investors from potential scams and ensure that endorsements are transparent and based on thorough due diligence. In conclusion, the ongoing debate around celebrity crypto endorsements highlights the need for a balanced approach that safeguards investor interests while allowing for the legitimate promotion of innovative financial products.

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The insatiable demand for power by artificial intelligence firms is benefiting Bitcoin miners. Hut 8 (NASDAQ:HUT) shares outperformed most peers on Monday after the Miami-based company received a $150 million investment from Coatue Management to develop AI infrastructure.

This investment will be provided through convertible notes with an 8% annual interest rate and a conversion rate of $16.395 per share, as stated by the company. Following the announcement, Hut 8 shares rose nearly 4% during Monday morning trading, even as most of its peers followed Bitcoin (BTC) lower.

The investment also positively impacted other Bitcoin mining-related data centers involved in AI and high-performance computing. Soluna Holdings (NASDAQ:SLNH) surged almost 17%, and Applied Digital (NASDAQ:APLD) gained about 10%.

AI and HPC firms are increasingly turning to the Bitcoin mining industry to fulfill their computing power needs. These miners often already possess the required computing capacity and established deals with power suppliers. JPMorgan highlighted that the demand for power by large-scale data centers and AI firms might spark a new era of mergers and acquisitions for Bitcoin miners with favorable power contracts.

Recently, cloud computing provider CoreWeave signed a 200-megawatt deal with miner Core Scientific (NASDAQ:CORZ) for AI-related services and offered to purchase the entire company for over $1 billion. Core Scientific rejected the offer, citing that it undervalued the company.

Coatue Management, an investor in CoreWeave, underscores the high level of interest in utilizing Bitcoin miners’ existing infrastructure for AI services.

Hut 8 emphasized this need for power in their press release, stating, “Many traditional data center operators are failing to meet the surging demand for AI compute capacity due to power shortages, long lead times to bring new capacity online, and the extensive upgrades required for existing data centers to support the latest generation of high-density compute.” Hut 8 aims to help bridge this gap.

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