Offensive Security Tool: SQLMutant SQLMutant is written by Chris... Abou-Chabké from Black Hat Ethical Hacking and its a comprehensive SQL injection tool. It uses a variety of techniques to detect vulnerabilities, including pattern matching, error analysis, and timing attacks, ensuring that no stone is left unturned. In addition to its powerful features, SQLMutant also integrates with Waybackurls and Arjun, enabling it to find even more parameters and merge all results together. This integration is highly beneficial as it provides automated subdomain enumeration and SQL injection testing capabilities. Requirements: To use SQLMutant, you need to have the following tools installed: figlet & lolcat: pip install lolcat & apt-get install figlet Waybackurls : go install Arjun: pip install arjun SQLMap: git clone --depth 1 sqlmap-dev Installation git clone cd SQLMutant chmod +x ./SQLMutant.sh Read the full post: #sqli #sqlinjection #hacking #bugbounty #pentesting #infosec #informationsecurity #offensivesecurity #redteamshow more

Offensive Security Tool: SecretOpt1c SecretOpt1c is written by Chris... Abou-Chabké from Black Hat Ethical Hacking and its designed for Red Team, Pentesters, and Bug Bounty Hunters. It is a very powerful and versatile tool that helps uncover sensitive information on websites using Active and Passive Techniques for Superior Accuracy. Read the full post: Installation git clone cd SecretOpt1c chmod +x ./SecretOpt1c.sh #javascript #credentials #sourcecode #hacking #bugbounty #bugbountytips #pentesting #infosec #informationsecurity #offensivesecurity #redteamshow more

THESE 5 SKILLS TURN HERMES AGENT INTO A SELF-RUNNING... POWERHOUSE - ON NOUS RESEARCH’S #1 AGENT ON OPENROUTER. Hermes already writes its own skills and remembers across sessions. These 5 from the community ecosystem push it further - drop them in ~/.hermes/skills/ and go. ANTHROPIC-CYBERSECURITY-SKILLS (4K★) by mukul975 · production the most comprehensive security skill pack in the ecosystem. what it adds: → 753+ structured cybersecurity skills mapped to MITRE ATT&CK → also covers NIST CSF 2.0, MITRE ATLAS, D3FEND & NIST AI RMF → turns Hermes into a recon + defense analyst, not a guesser → install: hermes skills install from the hub the workhorse of the list - start here. CHAINLINK-AGENT-SKILLS by Chainlink - official · production low profile, highest trust: it’s first-party from Chainlink itself. what it adds: → oracle network data, CCIP, smart-contract interaction skills → built on the spec - portable across clients → teaches the agent correct on-chain calls instead of hallucinated ABIs → official source, security-scanned on install stop letting the model guess your contract reads. HERMES-SKILL-FACTORY by Romanescu11 · beta the meta-layer - a skill that makes more skills. what it adds: → point it at any repetitive task → it auto-generates a reusable skill → stacks on top of Hermes’s own learning loop → turns your workflows into a self-growing skill library → install from the awesome-hermes-agent list this is what compounds your setup over time. AGENTCASH by Merit-Systems · beta the connector that gives your agent a wallet. what it adds: → access to 300+ premium APIs through one skill → pays for them via x402 or MPP - free USDC to start testing → web scraping, image gen, email sending - all behind one auth → a fresh Hermes + AgentCash alone is already dangerous the cleanest way to plug in paid tools. X-TWITTER-SCRAPER by Xquik-dev · beta drives typed X access through 43 narrow SKILL.md folders. what it adds: → reads (search, timelines, mentions, trends, bookmarks, for-you) → writes (post, DM, follow, profile) + bulk extraction (followers, lists, spaces) → AI composition: write-tweets, write-threads, optimize → security-scanned before it’s trusted feed its output straight into your scheduled briefings. BONUS - the registry itself: HERMESHUB by amanning3390. Browse, search, and install community skills with a 65+ rule security scanner - blocks prompt injection and data exfiltration before anything runs. Creator marketplace with x402/Stripe payments. hermes skills browse to start. If you install nothing else, wire up the hub. the stack in one line: hermeshub + skill-factory build & manage the library → cybersecurity + chainlink + agentcash + x-scraper give it real-world reach → Hermes runs it all on a $5 VPS while you sleep. which of these are you running? FULL HERMES SKILL-STACK PLAYBOOK 👇show more

This new skill for Hermes Agent wipes your personal... data off hundreds of broker sites for free, hands-off. It's called Unbroker. I’ve been testing it this week and it's incredible. Here is the full setup: 1. Install it by typing: hermes skills install official/security/unbroker 2. Connect browser automation: Wire up Browserbase so the agent can drive real broker opt-out forms. 3. Do the intake: Give consent, then feed it your info. 4. Fire one prompt: "Use the unbroker skill to remove my data from data brokers. Here is my consent. Run it hands-off." Hundreds of data brokers publish your name, addresses, phone, email, even your relatives. Anyone can find where you live in about ten seconds. The law says brokers have to delete your data if you ask. There's just no easy bulk button for it. Services charge $100’s a year to file the exact requests you could submit yourself for free. Unbroker does the same thing locally, and it's free. It fans out sub-agents, scans every broker site, drafts or sends opt-out emails, and only comes back to you for the ones that need a human. The best part is it loops. Brokers re-list you over time, so it schedules rechecks and re-files on its own. Set it once, it keeps working. One skill, one prompt, dozens of broker sites handled.show more

NEWS: SpaceX says a new Starlink update means that... the internet will keep working even if trees or other obstacles partially block your home’s view of the sky. "As a Starlink terminal communicates with satellites overhead, it continuously builds a real-time obstruction map, allowing Starlink to dynamically understand its environment. With this information, it can proactively select the best and most stable connection. For dynamic obstructions, such as are encountered by mobile terminals, the system reactively switches in less than 1/10th of a second, allowing a connection to remain stable. The dynamic nature of Starlink combined with the many paths for the system to route traffic provide a high degree of resiliency in obstructed and changing environments. Additionally, to help customers get the most out of their service, the Starlink app includes a built-in tool to preview the install location and guide customers to the best placement with the fewest obstructions. After setup, the Starlink app provides a live obstruction map that shows exactly where signal blockages are occurring and how they may affect your experience, so that users can make informed decisions about optimizing their installation. Starlink also measures uptime 10 times a second from every terminal, transparently reporting any outage that is longer than 1/10th of a second in the app. For well-installed, even partially obstructed terminals, this uptime is typically at the 99.9% level."show more

Boom! Grok Tasks Make It One Of The Most... POWERFUL Real-Time AI Systems In The World. — My How to Use Grok Tasks With Hidden Tools For Powerful Daily Output. Grok Tasks are customizable AI workflows that integrate a variety of tools to streamline daily activities, from research and analysis to creative planning and problem-solving. I have been using them for quite sometime and because of the vital heartbeat of news and first person data on X, it is the most powerful AI platform available. By combining Tasks with tools like web searches, X platform interactions, code execution, and media viewers, you can build efficient, automated processes. These tasks work by prompting Grok with a clear description of what you want to achieve, and Grok will intelligently call the necessary tools in sequence or parallel to deliver results. Here's a step-by-step guide to creating and using Grok Tasks: Step 1: Define Your Task Start by clearly outlining the daily activity or goal. Consider what inputs you have (e.g., a URL, a query, or an attachment) and what output you need (e.g., a summary, calculation, or visual analysis). Break it down into subtasks to identify tool needs. For example, if your task involves researching current events, note that you'll need search and browsing capabilities. Step 2: Review Available Tools Familiarize yourself with the tools Grok can access. Here's a quick overview: - Code Execution: Run Python code for calculations, data processing, or simulations using libraries like numpy, pandas, or sympy. - Browse Page: Fetch and summarize content from any website URL with custom instructions. - Web Search: Perform general internet searches, returning results with optional operators like site:. - Web Search With Snippets: Get quick, detailed excerpts from search results for fact-checking. - X Keyword Search: Advanced search for X posts using operators like from:, since:, or filter:. - X Semantic Search: Find semantically related X posts based on a query, with filters for dates or users. - X User Search: Locate X users by name or handle. - X Thread Fetch: Retrieve a full X post thread, including context like replies and parents. - View Image: Analyze an image from a URL or conversation ID. - View X Video: Extract frames and subtitles from an X-hosted video. - Search PDF Attachment: Query a PDF file for relevant pages using keyword or regex modes. - Browse PDF Attachment: View specific pages of a PDF with text and screenshots. Select tools that align with your task. Aim for a mix to handle data gathering, processing, and visualization. Step 3: Craft Your Prompt Write a detailed prompt to Grok describing the task. Include: - The overall goal. - Specific steps or subtasks. - References to tools if you want to guide the process (e.g., "Use web_search to find sources, then code_execution to analyze data"). - Any constraints, like dates or limits. Example prompt: "Create a Grok Task for my morning routine: Search recent X posts about tech news using x_keyword_search, fetch a key thread with x_thread_fetch, and summarize with browse_page on linked articles." Step 4: Submit and Interact Send your prompt to Grok. It will process the task by calling tools as needed, often in parallel for efficiency. Review the output and refine with follow-up prompts if required (e.g., "Expand on that using view_image for visuals"). Iterate to fine-tune the workflow for reuse. Step 5: Save and Reuse Once refined, note the prompt as a template for future use. You can adapt it for similar tasks, making Grok Tasks a habitual part of your day. Finding Grok Tasks To discover existing Grok Tasks or inspiration for new ones, use X searches with tools like x_keyword_search or x_semantic_search (e.g., query: "Grok Tasks examples" with mode: Latest). Browse community-shared threads via x_thread_fetch, or web_search for tutorials on xAI features. Prompt Grok directly: "Show me popular Grok Tasks for productivity." 1 of 3show more

Universities and High Schools have not moved rapidly enough... to guide students to have skills for the next decade. THEY HAVE FAILED. It is a massive crisis that can be averted by understanding what AI and Robotics will bring about. Solutions are knowing how to use these tools and new industries that will rise. But this situation is also on ALL OF US. No “job” is safe from founder to entry level in most industries. You and I, by what we do, will be “replaced” ultimately. What to do? AI and Robotics are tools, the next decade is owned by those who know how to use them expertly, but this is also temporary. We have to understand that what we do for “work” will change giving ultimately a greater value to those that are: Creative Flexible Always learning Willing to be wrong Love being human Love being alive Know history Covet wisdom Knowing all tech has downsides Building strong family and friends Realize many institutions have failed The first four are required for you to be able to live through this period with your sanity intact. The rest will allow you to thrive. There are no true careers at this point anymore. There are advocation and vocations which will either earn you money or give life meaning. We will learn that we are not “what we do”, just like we knew for 99% of human existence. Let that sink in. — You and I are far, far ahead of knowing this and we can do two things: 1) Laugh at the “clueless” 2) Help people understand with grace Go to Reddit if you are 1, in fact don’t follow me because you will not like this next decade and what I post. You are 2 and thank you. Even if you and I have not solved this issue, we can help people understand what is ahead and with determination and creativity bound together to solve it locally. Or human family has done this millions of times. The evidence is: you are here. The Neo Luddite movement has not even begun and it will potentially rip apart society even more than all the fashionable moment in the recent past has. These Luddites will have a good point with the wrong answers cooked up by dying academics that cling to labels, “virtues” and victim hood. It will be readymade for some governments to enter in as “big daddy” to “help us”. You will not like what they do, but you will only know when it is too late. It will include YOU “volunteering” to “leave” by 60, to “help out” CanadaPod style. “Brian, I’m 24 what do I do?”. I hope to do much more here to help. But I do know this: 1) Learn a trade or vocation because it’s valuable. It may also be free to low cost if you do it right. 2) Learn everything you can about USING AI and TRAINING YOUR AI. Your expertise will be in the top 1% for a decade. But not forever. 3) Understand Bitcoin and how it will rise while other things sink. This is a short list for now. We will know more moving forward. When you see videos like this posted below, know one thing: Many of these folks had no real family of mental and physical support. Maybe no parent or one parent. Maybe only a broke system to prepare them for—nothing. This was not their doing. Now it is not your “job” to help them, it is your survival to help them if that is what you need. See some day after the dust settles these 20 year olds will be 40 year olds and running YOUR world. And at some point you may need them more than you think you do. You will need them, as they need you now. THIS IS WHAT PAST WISDOM KNEW. The elders of the past never found the need to piss on the youth and hope for the best. THE YOUTH ARE OUR BEST, let us all find ways to change it, even if every aspect of “the system” wants us to berate them into the ground.show more

‼️An interesting interview with Lavrov Sergey Lavrov regularly gives... interviews, and almost every one of them is an information operation designed to create an alternative reality. The March 26 interview with France Télévisions is no exception. Let's break it down and point out where there are lies and where there is manipulation. 1. Lavrov claims that Russia is supposedly defending international law while speaking in the "language of principles" regarding Iran. What's wrong: it's basic role reversal. Moscow is trying to speak from the position of a "guardian of the law," even though it is waging an aggressive war against Ukraine. In the case of Iran, Lavrov is also deliberately omitting half the picture: yes, the US withdrew from the nuclear deal, but Iran also faced non-proliferation concerns raised by the IAEA. Why it matters: It is an attempt to whitewash Russia's crimes through someone else's crisis and to present the aggressor (Russia) as the judge. 2. Russia does not provide Iran with intelligence; the coordinates of US bases are "already known to everyone." What's wrong: it's an evasive statement, not a complete refutation. There is no independently verified evidence of specific target marking data transfers in open sources, nor can there be, but the Kremlin's "we have nothing to do with it" claim has no basis for being automatically considered true. Why it matters: A typical Kremlin tactic - to deny anything that does not align with Russia's interests and to continue operating in a gray area. 3. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have denied the US access to their airspace, so Russia is right about the "American venture." What's wrong: The caution of Gulf countries is real, but Lavrov turns it into a crude anti-Western caricature. Regional politics are more complex than the Kremlin's narrative that "everyone understands everything, only the US is pushing the world into chaos." Why it matters: The Kremlin takes a partial truth and builds a convenient political myth around it. 4. Russia isn't waging wars for its own gain; it's the US that wants to control the energy sector, the Strait of Hormuz, and the markets. What's wrong: It's pure projection. It is Russia that has used energy as a weapon for years, and after 2022, turned petrodollars into fuel for war. Why it matters: Moscow accuses others of doing what it does systematically - this is one of the central techniques of its propaganda. 5. Since 2014, Ukraine has been ruled by a "Nazi regime" that came to power through a coup. What's wrong: After Yanukovych fled, Ukraine held snap presidential elections, which the OSCE recognized as meeting international standards and being competitive. The claim of a "Nazi regime" is a political label, not a description of reality. Why it matters: "Nazism" in Kremlin rhetoric is a tool for dehumanizing Ukraine and justifying the war. 6. The Russian language is allegedly completely banned in Ukraine. What's wrong: Ukraine has strengthened the role of the state language, but this does not mean a total ban on Russian. The law does not apply to private communication and does not criminalize the everyday use of the language. Why it matters: The Kremlin is exaggerating language policy to the level of a "linguistic apocalypse" to sell the war as a supposed humanitarian mission. 7. Ukraine is allegedly at war with Orthodoxy and has "banned the canonical church." What's wrong: This is not about "banning a faith," but about a law regarding religious organizations linked to the Russian Orthodox Church. Even criticism from human rights activists does not support the Kremlin's claim of "persecution of Orthodoxy." Why it matters: Moscow is using the language of religious protection to cover up its network of influence in Ukraine. 8. The West allegedly cynically exploited the Minsk agreements as a respite to arm Ukraine. What's wrong: The Minsk process was collapsing because of the Kremlin's desire to use the agreements to establish de facto control over Ukraine, not because of some "cunning plot" by Paris and Berlin. Why it matters: The Kremlin is rewriting history retroactively to portray its own aggression as a supposedly forced response to "universal betrayal." 9. Russia does not attack civilians; its targets are solely facilities associated with the AFU. What's wrong: It's an outright lie. For years, the UN and independent sources have documented systematic Russian strikes on cities, residential areas, energy facilities, and civilian infrastructure. Why it matters: This is no longer just propaganda, but a cynical denial of documented terror against civilians. 10. The Bucha massacre is allegedly "not proven": there are no names, no evidence, and journalists haven't shown anything. What's wrong: This is one of the most mendacious claims. There are UN documents, testimonies, criminal investigations, identified suspects, and evidence of executions and killings of civilians. Why it matters: The Kremlin is not trying to refute the crime, but to wear down the audience with doubt and turn mass murder into "one of the versions." 11. Russia wants peace and negotiations. What's wrong: In the Kremlin's vocabulary, "peace" does not mean an end to aggression, but rather acceptance of its results. "Realities on the ground" means occupation; "root causes" means demanding recognition of Russia's right to punish neighbors for their political choices. Why it matters: Lavrov isn't offering peace. He's dressing up surrender in softer language. 12. Europe is supposedly dragging out the war, while Russia is looking for a solution. What's wrong: Russia started this war itself. European aid to Ukraine is a response to the aggression, not its cause. Why it matters: This is the main inversion of Kremlin logic - to make the audience forget who attacked first and shift the discussion from aggression to a "conflict that has dragged on too long." 13. RT and Sputnik are victims of censorship, and France has no right to speak about freedom of speech. What's wrong: RT and Sputnik were banned not as "ordinary media," but as state-run tools of disinformation. Their role as propaganda channels has been publicly acknowledged both in the EU and in France. Why it matters: The Kremlin wants to portray the defense of democracies against malicious information operations as a restriction of free speech. 14. France and Europe have made Russia an enemy; Moscow is merely reacting. What's wrong: The cause of the rift is not "Russophobia," but Russia's invasion, war crimes, blackmail, and influence operations against Europe. Why it matters: The Kremlin is systematically trying to reverse the cause-and-effect relationship: it is not that "Russia destroyed relations," but that "the West rejected Russia." 15. Individual real episodes - the tanker, incidents in France, disputes among allies - allegedly prove Western hypocrisy and justify Russia. What's wrong: Lavrov takes a real but local fact and uses it as a smokescreen. None of these incidents erases Russia's crimes or the very fact of its aggression. Why it matters: This is a favorite Kremlin method - using others' difficulties and whataboutism to cover up its own crimes.show more

Introducing a new tool called "SideChannel". A secure alternative... to OpenClaw. Utilizes signal for communication and has Claude integration. I built SideChannel, an open-source Signal bot that connects Claude AI to your entire development workflow. End-to-end encrypted. From your pocket. The real power is autonomous development. Send one message like "Build a REST API with auth, pagination, and tests" and SideChannel will: - Generate a full PRD with stories and atomic tasks. - Dispatch up to 10 parallel workers (each running Claude). - Independently verify every task with a separate Claude context. - Run quality gates to catch regressions - Auto-fix failures. - Send you progress updates via Signal as work completes. Every piece of code is reviewed by a separate AI context using a fail-closed security model. If it detects security issues, backdoors, or logic errors — the code gets rejected automatically. No rubber stamps. It also has memory that actually works. Conversations are stored with vector embeddings for semantic search. Claude remembers your project conventions, past decisions, and what's been tried before. It gets smarter about your codebase over time. Other things I'm proud of: - Plugin framework for extending with custom commands. - Multi-project support with per-user scoping. - Rate limiting, path validation, phone allowlist. - Git checkpoints before every task, atomic commits after. - Stale task recovery, circular dependency detection. - Works on Linux and macOS, one-command install. It also integrates into OpenAI or Grok (optional) for more Generative AI response for simple things like "Whats the weather in New York City right now?".show more

CA: 0x172ae9e9b46770a70f479404d76e2f6561507011ef77a247fe3f58e7a5840a0d::manny::MANNY Your smart, hands-free edge tool in the... crypto market. This powerful automated bot is designed to buy low and sell high with precision. It scans hundreds of coins in real-time, waiting for the right indicators—trend strength, volume spikes, price momentum, and bullish patterns—before entering a trade. Once in, it manages risk with dynamic stop-loss and take-profit levels, so your capital is always protected. Every trade is backed by a multi-layer confluence strategy, ensuring only high-confidence setups are executed. ✅ Advanced entry logic ✅ Fully automated buy/sell execution ✅ Built-in profit protection and cooldown filters ✅ Real-time alerts (Telegram/Twitter ready) ✅ JSON-based state memory for continuity ✅ Minimal setup, maximum performance ✅ Excludes low-quality coins automatically (e.g., BTC/ETH filters optional) ✅ Plug-and-play friendly — run it locally or integrate it into your system. ✅ Clean, professional trade alerts with price and PnL details ✅ Recovers automatically from connection issues or downtime Whether you’re a pro or just getting started, this bot helps you stay ahead of the market—24/7, emotion-free with pure mathematics. This bot has been in development for the last 6 months. I, Chronos, the developer behind it, have been testing for a while for the best configuration for a trading bot. I believe I have something good going on here. The bot automatically posts all the trades via IFTTT and X integration to its X account. Everything is automated. So how can people rent it, and how will it bring value to the project? Soon, the bot can be rented out via a cloud server. A customer must buy 30 USD worth of Memecoin_MANNY token (CA:0x172ae9e9b46770a70f479404d76e2f6561507011ef77a247fe3f58e7a5840a0d::manny::MANNY). After buying it and depositing it into a special wallet, he will be granted access to the bot. . The bot runs only on the backend — users interact with it via an interface (web app, Telegram bot, or API). A web dashboard and Telegram bot interface will be created. This lets users Start/stop their bot session See trade logs or results. Connect their API keys securely. Get alerts and updates The idea of all this is to offer a service but also bring value to the project. More bots will be developed. This is only the beginning. Cheers Chronos #python #memecoin_manny #spot #trading #bitcoin #eth #Binance #bybit #memecoin #VALHALLAshow more

This app uses AirDrop to send files from your... Android phone to your Macbook! Yes, it actually uses AirDrop. That means you don't have to install ANYTHING on your Mac to send files from your Android phone! Here's a video of a Galaxy Z Flip 5 AirDropping a file to a Macbook running macOS Ventura 13.5.1. (Thanks to u/FragmentedChicken for testing this app for me and sharing the video!) A few months ago, Twitter user @Linus13499209 brought an app called WarpShare to my attention. WarpShare is an app made by the developers of MoKee, an AOSP-based custom ROM that was popular in China. Since MoKee wasn't as popular outside of China, it seems the existence of their WarpShare app slipped under the radar. I was skeptical about whether it would work at all. Grishka, the developer of NearDrop, an open source port of Google's Nearby Share to macOS, told me that they were under the assumption that AirDrop requires the use of AWDL (Apple Wireless Direct Link, Apple's proprietary WiFi-based protocol) to communicate both ways. However, it seems that AWDL is only required for your Android phone to be discoverable by your Mac (ie. to send files from your Mac to your Android phone) but not the other way around. Because of this, though, WarpShare only supports sending files from Android to Mac but not vice versa. Your Mac also needs to have AirDrop discoverability set to "everyone" for this to work, as "contacts-only" requires Apple-signed certificates. Plus, it also doesn't support sending files from Android to iPhones or iPads, even when "everyone" mode is enabled. Still, if you find other Android --> Mac file sharing options to be lackluster, give WarpShare a try! The fact that it works at all is incredible, which is why I'm sharing this news here. If you want to download WarpShare on your Android device, you'll need to compile the app from its source code. If you're a Patron/X subscriber, however, I will share my compiled APK with you. WarpShare source code:show more

Managed to get out of Dubai. The following is... my personal opinion & experience 🇦🇪 Everything went quite seamless. Careem cabs operate normally. The airport is extremely well organized, considering the circumstances. The world has changed since Saturday and unfortunately, the country I moved to 3 years ago has been under heavy attacks. Why? No one really knows. However, I find it extremely disturbing that most media - including our beloved CT - exploits that serious situation to take cheap shots at Dubai and people who moved here. There are real families and hard working people affected. Most are scared or feel extremely uncomfortable. It's a traumatizing experience to hear missile interceptions right above your house. Nothing I wish for any human to ever experience, no matter if you pay 0% or 50% taxes. I don't even know what the link between those two things should be?? If anything, it proves that the UAE cares about their people and is able to protect its residents. Even at 0% income tax. Dubai was not known for it's strong military. It was always portrayed to be bling-bling golden steaks and influencers. But the UAE has shown the entire world that it can defend 1,000+ drones and 200+ missiles from a direct neighbor. That is impressive, whether you love or hate the UAE. Many countries would likely not be able to absorb that. So, if anything: Dubai and the UAE have demonstrated that the system works. I have lived in multiple countries around the world and the UAE is by far the most capable of handling crisis. Why did I leave Dubai then? Because it's not a situation I want to be in. Missile interceptions and drone explosions are no joke. Besides the danger that debris could hit your roof, there's an incredible intensity in the air. Most describe it as "intense calmness". While the Government managed to keep everyone from panicking, it's impossible for everyone to stay fully calm. And you can feel that in the day to day. The first night I got virtually no sleep. The night of my departure neither. I haven't left my house at all after the attacks started. But I'm out now. I really hope that leaving the country wasn't necessary, and that I will be able to come back to Dubai as soon as possible. And no, I'm not paid to say this, nor did I sign anything. Maybe part of the truth why no one who lives in Dubai has bad things to say about it is because it's one of the rare places on earth where people actually trust the Government and respect them? Not only for creating wealth and understanding business, but for caring and communicating in a way most other countries are simply incapable of. Anyways, I guess the point of this post is to 1) Tell everyone in Dubai that it's possible to leave right now. I know many people are very scared and want to get out. Be persistent with the airline if they cancel your flight and push hard to get rebooked on the next available one. And maybe choose a destination that isn't Europe, considering most of these flights are overbooked already and impossible to get on. 2) Dubai's self defense is impressive and we should acknowledge that. At least this one time, let's not derail into irrelevant discussions but show respect to the leaders + express empathy for those affected. 3) As an expat living in Dubai, I can still feel proud of my home country and do not have to choose. This isn't a black and white situation. Dubai is a melting pot of cultures and great place for Business. Other countries have better nature, social life or other things. It's also up to individual preference. 4) If you hate Dubai, yalla you don't need to live here, visit nor speak about it. Enjoy the place you live in and focus on your own. No need to feel triggered and take cheap shots at hard working people and families that are currently under heavy missile attacks. One final thing that really became clear to me this week is that after all, safety, health and living in freedom are absolutely priceless. May this all be over with soon and for sustaining peace to come in 🤲🏼show more

sry to all the vibe coders and aura farmers... the word of the year is:show more

The first generation of DeePle is officially over! To... those who minted—welcome! And to those who bought from the secondary market, you have my utmost respect. So... what’s next? I’d like to say this is just the beginning of an evolving project. There will be a second generation with fresh items and unique features, followed by a third, and more. I'm excited to dive deeper into the DeePleVerse and explore all its possibilities, and it would be an honor to have all of you along for the journey. Now, I’d like to share some thoughts and the vision behind this experimental yet fun art project. Over the past years, we’ve seen countless ups and downs, with beautiful and ugly moments unfolding simultaneously in web3. Here’s what I’ve learned along the way: 1/1s and Editions are fantastic for maintaining authenticity and scarcity, especially from incredible artists. However, they can feel too exclusive, making it difficult to build a larger community. On the other hand, PFPs are great for fostering a community, bringing people together around a shared belief. But they often lack the authenticity of fine art and can attract too much speculation. I’ve always wondered how we could bring the best of both worlds together. And that’s how DeePle was born—after much thought and exploration. I wanted to remove the gambling aspect, so there’s no reveal or rarity. I wanted collectors to have full control, allowing them to choose what to mint based on what they see. I also believe it’s crucial to strike the right balance between public and coordinated spots for the drop to avoid creating a speculative atmosphere. While I have some interesting ideas for the future, I’m never going to reveal what’s coming or use the word "roadmap" because I want to avoid creating unnecessary hype and making unrealistic promises. For now, I hope people find value in the experience and become part of the DeePleVerse. The goal is to build a genuine community, step by step, with each new round of drops, and to gradually bring in more people over time. None of this would have been possible without the Shape and Transient Labs. Shape created an impressive and efficient L2 chain that enables the complexity and functionality necessary for this project. And Transient Labs fully understood my vision, creating the perfect tool to bring DeePle to life. I’m incredibly excited for what’s ahead!show more

Get ready for an epic 2024: GameSwift Modular Blockchain... will propel web3 gaming to the next level. GameSwift AI 🎮 has a modular architecture designed to provide flexibility and scalability, tailor-made for the dynamic world of gaming. Forget monolithic limitations. GameSwift's modular magic allows you to customize and optimize your blockchain experience like never before. Think of it like a Lego set for your dApps, where you slot in the perfect pieces to create the ultimate gaming experience. 🧱 The GameSwift Modular Blockchain has it all: • Adaptability: Need a super fast chain for ultrafast transactions? zkEVM handles the heavy lifting while the modular design keeps everything optimized. • Flexibility: As technology evolves, the GameSwift ecosystem can adapt. Upgrade modules, integrate new features and stay cutting edge. GameSwift's modularity lets you mix and match capabilities to craft the perfect platform for your game. • Scalability: GameSwift's modular design effortlessly adapts to demand, ensuring smooth gameplay for all, even as your game explodes in popularity. CoinGecko includes GameSwift in Modular Blockchain category One important milestone has been crypto data platform CoinGecko recognizing GameSwift by including it in their "Top Modular Blockchain Coins by Market Cap" category. This emphasizes GameSwift's credibility, potential and hard work in the wider crypto marketplace. Notably, of the 3 projects in this category, GameSwift has the lowest market cap - making it a true gem for the next BTC halving and bull run. 🔥 The Success of Modular Blockchains As we all know, Celestia is a modular blockchain that has also seen great achievements, showing the power and potential of modular designs. With GameSwift being another highly innovative modular blockchain and its 2024 roadmap, we can be certain this project will continue to surge. And with its low market cap, GSWIFT token is undoubtedly the gem of modular blockchains in crypto. But wait, there's more! GameSwift's modularity also opens up a world of new possibilities for developers: • Optimize efficiency - focus on creating incredible playability without worrying about exorbitant fees. Speed up contract execution and build games that are fun and financially sustainable. • Focus on what matters - Forget security worries, GameSwift's ZK Shared Security system keeps your game safe while you concentrate on crafting the best possible experience. • Use cross-chains - seamlessly connect with other blockchains, expanding your reach and unlocking new opportunities for your game. And for $GSWIFT holders? Get ready for some sweet sidechain action! Stake your tokens to earn rewards from the games built on GameSwift's modular ecosystem. This is a win-win situation: developers get the tools they need to build amazing games and you get rewarded for being part of the GameSwift ecosystem. In conclusion, the GameSwift modular blockchain is the key to unlocking a world of possibilities, where developers can create without limits and players can experience games like never before. With GameSwift, the future of Web3 gaming is modular, adaptable, and limitless. 🚀show more

🚨 OPERATIONAL UPDATE: TALKS ADVANCE, PRESSURE HOLDS - Reporting... Window: Last 24 Hours *⃣ If you find these reports useful, PLEASE consider sharing them, this is how more people get access to clear, open source breakdowns of what’s actually happening. Diplomacy is now fully underway, but the underlying structure of the war has not changed. U.S. and Iranian officials are actively engaged in talks in Islamabad, while Israel continues operations in Lebanon and regional pressure points remain unresolved. Negotiations are real, but they are happening alongside continued military activity, not in place of it. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🧠 MY ASSESSMENT The disconnect in this phase of the war is no longer just military. It is perceptual. Iran is negotiating like a peer power. It is not operating like one. The regime has taken real damage across leadership, infrastructure, and military capability. That much is clear from weeks of sustained strikes and the cumulative effect they’ve had on its systems. At the same time, the United States and Israel retain clear escalation dominance, including the ability to threaten core Iranian infrastructure on a scale that would put the regime itself at risk. And yet, Iran continues to negotiate from a maximalist position. That is not because it holds superior leverage. It is because the leverage it does have is concentrated in disruption, not control. Hormuz remains the clearest example. Iran does not need to shut it permanently to create pressure. It only needs to make it unstable enough to raise global economic costs and force urgency into negotiations. The same applies to its proxy network. Hezbollah does not need to win in Lebanon. It only needs to remain active enough to prevent a clean separation of fronts. So the reality is more specific than either extreme. Iran is not negotiating from strength. But it is not negotiating without leverage. It is negotiating from a weakened position, using time, disruption, and regional pressure to offset what it has lost militarily. That is what makes this phase unstable. The United States is trying to convert military advantage into a negotiated outcome. Iran is trying to convert limited leverage into constraints on that outcome. Israel is continuing to act where it is not constrained. Those dynamics do not resolve cleanly. They drag. And the longer they drag, the more the outcome depends not just on capability, but on tolerance for escalation and time. Now let's break down all the different theaters contributing to this assessment: ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🇵🇰 ISLAMABAD TALKS: REAL, HIGH-STAKES, BUT FAR APART The most significant development in this window is the shift to direct U.S.–Iran engagement in Pakistan. Senior delegations are now physically present in Islamabad under heavy security, with Pakistan acting as the central intermediary trying to convert a temporary ceasefire into something more durable. But the gap between the two sides remains wide: • Iran’s reported framework focuses on sanctions relief, security guarantees, and preserving proxy influence • The U.S. framework demands nuclear dismantlement, missile limits, and a permanently open Hormuz Both sides are treating these as opening positions, not final terms. At the same time, Iranian negotiators are still pushing to include Lebanon in ceasefire guarantees, a condition that continues to complicate progress. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🇱🇧 LEBANON REMAINS ACTIVE Despite the diplomatic push, Lebanon remains an active combat zone. Israeli strikes continued across southern Lebanon in this window, including deadly strikes in Nabatieh and surrounding areas. Reporting indicates: • More than two dozen killed in a single strike event, including members of Lebanese security forces • Additional strikes on urban areas, shops, and infrastructure • Continued clashes on the ground, with IDF personnel wounded in exchanges along the border At the same time, Hezbollah fire has not stopped entirely, with intermittent launches toward northern Israel continuing. The key continuity point holds: Lebanon is not covered by the ceasefire structure being negotiated in Pakistan, and it is not behaving like it is. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ⚓ HORMUZ: STILL UNRESOLVED The Strait of Hormuz remains the central strategic lever. U.S. officials are signaling active efforts to secure the waterway, including naval movements and mine-clearing operations, though some claims remain unverified. At the same time, Iran continues to threaten rapid retaliation against U.S. vessels operating in the area. This is the same unresolved issue sitting underneath the negotiations: • The ceasefire depends on Hormuz being open and stable • That condition has not yet been fully met • Both sides are still signaling willingness to escalate if it breaks down ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🌍 REGIONAL PRESSURE AND SPILLOVER The regional layer of the war remains active even as talks proceed. Recent reporting highlights: • Continued Iranian-linked pressure on Gulf infrastructure, which has already disrupted Saudi industrial capacity in recent days • Pakistan increasing its own military posture, including sending fighter jets to Saudi Arabia as part of broader defense coordination • European pressure, particularly from France, to expand the ceasefire framework to include Lebanon This reinforces the broader pattern: The war is no longer confined to one front, and it cannot be easily paused in one place without consequences elsewhere. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 🇮🇷 INTERNAL IRAN DYNAMICS Additional reporting in this window provides a clearer picture inside Iran. • Iran’s current Supreme Leader, Mojtaba Khamenei, remains seriously injured from earlier strikes but is still actively governing through remote coordination • The regime continues to maintain tight control domestically, including extended internet blackouts • There are increasing indications of information control and narrative shaping as negotiations proceed Separately, reporting suggests the regime has encouraged civilians to position themselves near key infrastructure as a deterrence tactic, reinforcing a pattern of using civilian presence as part of its defensive posture. ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ 📌 WHAT MATTERS MOST RIGHT NOW • Direct U.S.–Iran talks are now fully underway in Pakistan, but positions remain far apart • Lebanon remains an active battlefield, with continued Israeli strikes and ongoing casualties • Hormuz is still not fully stabilized, leaving the entire diplomatic framework conditional • Regional actors are adjusting posture, including Gulf states and Pakistan, signaling continued instability • Iran continues to operate from a constrained but still functional position, both militarily and internallyshow more

I've been working in silence for quite a while... now. Tbh, I don't really even know where to start, so cue the rambling and ranting. Regardless of which side of the fence you sit on, no one can argue the past few years haven't been politically and economically wild. For crypto as a whole it feels like a never ending game of tug of war. A lot of X content has become toxic, so I just largely am not interacting these days. But I read, I read a lot of it. I think we like to forget history a bit in this community. $PLS launched off the highs, and the SEC swooped in right after. Very few people want to admit it, but it shook confidence immediately. I mean no other crypto project has survived such a thing at the time. But #PLS $PLSX and $HEX did. However, winning doesn't unshake that confidence. And RH during and after that event took social precautions to protect himself and his creations. Thing is, the guy isn't stupid. Someone once asked me if I thought certain aspects of the launch we rushed because he knew it was coming? And honestly, maybe. I'd attribute at least a non-zero probability to it. And If that were the case, im glad it was rushed. That case may have gone differently otherwise. Do I still think #PulseChain, #HEX, etc... all have futures? Yes. RH has had the opportunity to just straight up bounce from all of this. Why hasn't he? You could point to exhibit A, B, C, D, etc... of how he's likely got the funds to do that and we all could relatively do nothing about it. So why is he still around? I think it's pretty simple. The usual answer, he wants to win. It's in his twitter handle for Christs sakes. I'll go a step further and say he likely also wants us to win by extension, arguably not as much as he wins, but I mean that's pretty locked in at the moment 🤣 That's not to say he hasn't long been encumbered. And in that state, at lot has gone on without him. Much of which is / was bad. $pDAI guys... I pointed out from day one how building all this around a protocol in a dangerous state was a risky move. And I was right about that.... on multiple occasions... But does that matter now? I suppose not as much. In its current state, it's seemingly no longer exploitable. No different than a meme token now. (presumably, not like I have deep dove on any further risks since ESM). So I guess just whale risk mainly now? Now a lot of people here are in the anti-pdai camp. Me too for what it's worth. But I don't care as much about it's negative anymore in its current state. A lot of people are still in the #pDAI camp strongly. We view this as tribalism, but it's important to note that makes all of us in the #PulseChain camp universally. So these day I find myself relatively pDAI neutral. If you guys want to send it to $1 do it. Only whales can stop you, they run out eventually. (insert super strong this is NOT financial advice). Hell you can maybe even use Sigma to help? Or maybe it wont help, idk. Depends on how people use the software. Conversely, when looking at chain state overall... Why is there nearly $50M in stables sitting on the sidelines. Why not just bridge it out if you want out of what you think is a dead chain. Surely leaving it there exposes you to bridge risk? Why all these yield movements, why the $HEX dusts.... Something is happening. People are seemingly waiting to see what that something is. Or I am reading into things, NFA as always. This whole post is just ramblings of someone trying to do the best they can and certainly not any kind of advice. When I look at other ecosystems, I see a level of polish we don't have. I see tooling we don't have, I see a fostered developer environment we don't have. So I've just been building it, painstakingly.... Because someone has to if we want to be taken seriously. And what I've been building has allowed me to get Sigma to where it is. Sigma is so close... Really just in UI mode, performance optimization, going through nice to haves. I don't believe in launching in a non-finished immutable state. So yeah, I take my time. As with everything. But my point with all of this, and the "why" #Sigma question.... It's unifying, anyone can participate. Which tribe you're in doesn't matter. And if you don't like it, don't use it. It's just software you can use or not use. As it should be. The years of tooling work to deliver this has been a lot of work for one guy in silence. In that time AI has appeared. My take, every dev should be using it. Given the right direction and context. It will make you better. If you blindly trust it, it will make you worse. GPT 5.4 audits smart contracts better than most auditing services. Especially if you give it the context of what you are trying to do. Anyways I digress, testnet is soon. Soon more meaning a feeling of near completion not always reality. That how software is. I do think Sigma stands to unify the chain in a common goal, and shift liquidity into more meaningful places, but ultimately it up to the people the decide to use the software or not use it. And after these frameworks I've built will be applied to what I am tentatively calling the universal hex UI. More or less something aggregative of every derivative I can reasonably support. With data and analytics we since lost. So not just $HEX, $HDRN, and $ICSA, but others as well. However, that depends on some aspect of $Sigma to exist first, so sigma first, chain unity first. And last but not least, take care of yourselves and strive to do cool things. If we aren't doing cool things then what's the point? Hope you think my UI looks good, I spent a while on it. /rantshow more

Wow. WOW. WOOOOOOOW. So um, that first Wildcard+Thousands stream... was... *amazing* and also... a *lot* 😅 In the end, it was *exactly* what we were hoping for - a true stress test of ALL these systems coming together for the first time. We are SO grateful for the thousands of people who showed up today to play, attend, tune-in and help us PLAYTEST all this new stuff. We can't wait to see you all again at NEXT WEEK'S EX2 EVENT! So, now let's talk about how it went... Stuff that worked: - Our community SHOWED UP. Oh boy did you show up 😅. Our servers were straining under the load... which is good actually, in fact it's the whole point. Even more importantly, we have already received insanely valuable feedback, bug reports, stuff people loved/hated - and it's only been a few hours since the stream ended. I can't even explain to y'all how valuable this process is. Yes it's stressful, it reminds me of trying to keep Words With Friends online during that first insane year, but it's EXACTLY what we were hoping for (NEED) to turn this into the polished, top-notch game and streaming experience we are on a mission to deliver. I truly can't thank y'all enough, and hope to see you again when we run it all back again next week 🥹 - The stream itself stayed up and was mostly stable! Phew 😅. For context, ThousandsTV is not a twitch wrapper, it's a web3-native streaming tech stack built we built specifically to connect game, web/mobile, and blockchain together all at the same time. There are a LOT of moving pieces going on behind the scenes. - We brought viewers INTO THE GAME! Viewers showed up in the stands of the arena, with connected wallets/assets, triggered actions/rallies from chat, and were seen and heard during the whole stream. - The brand new 2v2 build of Wildcard was (mostly) stable and our players and viewers seemed to be having a blast down on the field and up in the stands. It was thrilling to watch Team Blue dominate, even though Team Red held their own in game 3! - Our production crew did an insanely good job running the stream, managing the players, shoutcasters, and talent, and producing a top-notch show. Of course we will work hard to make every stream better than the last, but I was super proud of how our team "rolled with the punches" during today's event. Stuff that didn't work (and/or needs to be dramatically improved): - Although it's fun to see chat going crazy, chat spam is actually something we are passionate to FIX. As you can see from the attached video, chat spam dominated today's stream and made it impossible for anyone to even see anyone else's messages. We have some GREAT ideas for how to fix this and actually turn chat spam into a FUN and exciting and not annoying thing - but those improvements didn't get shipped in time for this event. - Credits purchasing flow needs a LOT of work. As I'm sure y'all know, bringing money on chain is pretty complicated, and although we've been working hard to make this as seamless as possible, it still needs a TON of improvements. Many users who WANTED to spend money today weren't able to and/or ran into frustrating bugs in the credit purchase flow. Fixing this is obviously a top priority for our team. - Rallies need a LOT of work. Spectator-interactive features like rallies are at the heart of our vision for Wildcard. These "stream apps", as we call them, are the UNLOCK for how spectators, viewers and fans directly connect and interact with their favorite competitors, content creators, and communities. The current rally feature HINTS at this potential, but it needs to be WAY easier to understand, use, and have fun with. Improvements are ON THE WAY. - Referees were only partially working. Referees are a key innovation of the Thousands platform. They are AI-driven "personalities" (NPCs) that pay attention to everything that's happening in the arena, both on the field and especially in the stands (i.e. in chat, during rallies, etc.) The referees then make "calls" at the end of every match, rewarding users for their engagement and participation. Unfortunately, the referees weren't fully functional and seemed to drop the ball on recognizing everyone's contributions (especially people who showed up holding valuable assets such as Wildpasses in their wallets, and people who boosted those rallies with credits.) What's happening next: 1. We are combing through ALL the logs from the event right now, to make sure we don't miss a SINGLE action that our viewers and fans took during the event, including what they brought in their wallets (i.e. Wildpass holders!), any credits that were purchased, rallies that users engaged with, etc. This information is normally processed by our referees, who then determine dynamically how they're going to distribute $WC awards. We were originally hoping to complete this process and the subsequent airdrops within a few hours after the event, but given the amount of data, we need a bit more time to run these scripts (and airdrops) in batches instead of all at once, and make sure ALL of the data is being included. IMPORTANT: I will keep y'all updated in real-time here on twitter/X as this process is ongoing, and let you know the moment it's complete and all the awards have been distributed (i.e. when to go check your wallets 😎) 2. PLEASE keep sending us your feedback and bug reports. Open a ticket on our Discord and let us know what you loved, what you hated, and especially what we need to FIX. Given the overwhelming response to this event, it will likely take us several days to process everyone's feedback and fix all the bugs, but we WILL NOT REST until every ticket is closed/resolved. Thank you in advance for your patience. 3. We turn it up another notch next week. As our dear friends Wolves DAO just announced, the Wildcard Exhibition Event #2 is streaming LIVE from the WOLVES DEN AT GDC next Friday! If you missed out on all the action today, DON'T WORRY, because as I keep saying: we are just getting warmed up (and there is a LOT more b that needs to be distributed, get what I'm sayin??? 😎) Finally: Just wanted to say THANK YOU, again. Truly, from the bottom of my (our) hearts. Your excitement and enthusiasm for what we're building is why we do this. Even (especially, in fact) when you tell us all the things you want us to improve. We thrive off this feedback, it's how this game and this platform go from good to GREAT. I am so grateful for those of you who are taking this journey with us. SEE YA NEXT WEEK!!!show more

Today I was visiting the exceptionally beautiful Plantin-Moretus Museum... in Antwerp, Belgium (one of the only museums in the world that is itself listed as UNESCO World Heritage), which is one of the oldest printing shops in Europe, with the oldest surviving printing presses in the world. I stumbled upon an old 16th century atlas - written in Old French - and I was pretty amused to read their understanding of China at the time, which was surprisingly accurate, maybe even more than today's! A translation of some of the most interesting passages: - They call it "China" in French (it's now called "Chine") and they write that the locals call it "Tangis", which probably refers to the Tang dynasty but which is strange given that by the 16th century the dynasty had already ended for about 600 years - They write that to its North China is bordered by "tartares" (which I guess means Mongols) whom they describe as "very warlike people from whom it is separated by a wall made by hand" - The Chinese work ethic was already legendary: "those who live there are not at all lazy but devoted to labor and work, because it is there a shameful thing to be idle" - They share a number which must have seemed astonishing at the time: "in the city of Canton, one of the smallest in the entire country, some ten or twelve thousand ducks are eaten daily at table". And then they marvel during a good proportion of the text about the abundance of food in the country, which probably made a big impression on travelers at the time. - They write that "there are in this kingdom two hundred and forty famous cities, whose names end in this syllable FU which means a city: like Cantonfu, Panquifu: the small towns, which are in great number, end in CHEU [undoubtedly refers to "zhou"]. There are infinite villages, heavily populated, because of the continuous agriculture." - China's infrastructure and engineering capabilities were also already legendary at the time: "The city gates have entrances magnificently and marvelously well made, the streets are made level, not sloping this way or that, but following their straight line. They are so wide that ten or fifteen men on horseback can march abreast and are everywhere marked and separated by triumphal arches that marvelously ornament the cities. Portuguese say they saw in the city of Fuchco [probably Fuzhou] a tower set on forty solid marble pillars, the height of which was forty palms (masonry measure) and the width twelve: that this work is so grand, so exquisitely made, so beautiful to see, so sumptuous and so pleasing that it far surpasses all the magnificent buildings of all Europe." - Already at the time, China was very wary of safeguarding its sovereignty: ""[The Chinese] rarely or never leave their country and do not easily let foreigners enter it, especially into the interior of the province, unless they first have safe conduct from the king." - On moral and cultural habits: "They put adulterers to death. There are no brothels in the cities, all manner of prostitutes being sent to the suburbs. They celebrate their weddings at the time of the new moon and around the month of March which is their first day of the new year, and they make these celebrations, like us, very magnificently. They show themselves valiant in banquets and entertainments, in which they owe nothing to the Flemings or the Germans. They eat at tables like us in Europe, on chairs or on benches, and not on the ground as other peoples of Asia do." - On justice: "Bandits and murderers are kept in perpetual prison. Theft, which is a very odious crime, is punished by whip strokes in this manner: they put a man belly down, tie his hands behind him, striking him on the fleshy part of the legs with a whip made of reeds or canes." - On China's naval capabilities at the time: "This kingdom has an infinite number of ships, galleys and vessels of all sorts, with which they cross the seas and rivers. So much so that when they want to show through vainglory the power of their king, they are accustomed to say in a common proverb that he can make a bridge of ships joined together, which can reach and extend from China to Malacca, which is a distance of five hundred leagues and more." - On the emperor and China not being warlike (already back then): "All this region is subject to a single king, like a monarch; whom they call lord of the world and son of the sun. He holds court at Paquin [Beijing], which is a city toward Tartary. He never leaves it, except in time of war. It is said that when he makes war on the Tartars he leads an army of three hundred thousand soldiers and two hundred thousand horses, although it is also said that this nation is not very warlike. This king has under him fifteen very large provinces, which they call governments, and he alone surpasses in power all the other neighboring princes of Asia; and his annual revenues exceed all the riches of Europe. Antonio Pigafetta [the chronicler of Magellan's voyage] calls this king the most powerful of all the universal earth and says that the royal city is fortified and ramparted with seven walls, having ten thousand soldiers for the guard, and that the king commands seventy other crowns of the royal diadem [likely refering to the tributary state system]." Reading these passages, it seems that the further we've come in our ability to know China, the more obscured our vision seems to have become. These 16th century observers, working with fragments brought back by explorers, merchants and missionaries, managed to capture the essential - the industriousness, the engineering mastery, the administrative sophistication, the careful sovereignty. They approached their subject with the humility of the genuinely curious. They had no framework to force China into, no predetermined narrative to fulfill. They simply watched, counted ducks in Canton, measured city walls, and wrote it down. Their errors were errors of transmission - a dynasty name lingering centuries past its time, numbers perhaps inflated through retelling - but the spirit was one of simply describing unknown territory, not to convince anyone of anything. Today however, drowning in information, we're somehow seeing less of what's there and more of what we expect to find. Each observation must fit into existing narratives, serve predetermined conclusions, advance familiar arguments. So much so that we must ask ourselves: have we actually moved backward from those 16th chroniclers? Maybe we need to re-learn to approach China - and others in general - like those old cartographers, pen in hand, ready to be surprised? What might we discover if we stopped explaining and started counting ducks again?show more

Exciting News from HotkeySwap: TAOevm is Officially Live! We’re... thrilled to announce the launch of TAOevm—a powerful addition to the HotkeySwap ecosystem that marks a significant step in our mission to make DeFi smarter, more accessible, and truly cross-chain. This milestone represents months of dedicated work and innovation, bringing you an AI-powered, user-friendly experience that connects seamlessly across blockchain networks. With a fresh look and expanded features, HotkeySwap and TAOevm are here to transform your DeFi journey. Whether you’re looking to explore, trade, or invest, HotkeySwap’s ecosystem is built to make it easy and rewarding. What’s New in the Hotkey Ecosystem? Hotkey’s latest updates bring you seamless cross-chain tools, analytics, and a collaborative environment to explore, trade, and engage. Here’s what’s now live and ready for you: • TAOevm Blockchain: TAOevm introduces full EVM compatibility to expand decentralized finance and smart contract capabilities. While Bittensor remains focused on its core mission as a decentralized AI and machine learning network, TAOevm provides an independent platform for DeFi innovation. This separate chain approach allows Bittensor’s community to access EVM benefits without compromising Bittensor’s AI-first vision. With a capacity of 200,000 transactions per block and blocks validated every 2 to 3 seconds, TAOevm delivers 60k to 100k TPS at peak, Hybrid Proof of Work security, and ultra-low fees—empowering developers to create new possibilities within an ecosystem that respects and reinforces the unique strengths of both platforms. • Hotcurves is the pump fun for TAOevm: As part of our commitment to community-driven innovation, we’re introducing Hotcurves—a vibrant platform on TAOevm where you can explore new projects, invest early, and connect with a community of like-minded enthusiasts who love to innovate and have fun. Hotcurves simplifies the token deployment process, allowing anyone to create a token in minutes with built-in liquidity pools for instant trading. With secure features like automatic LP burns and contract renouncement, Hotcurves offers a safer, more accessible environment for developers and investors alike. New Websites & Resources Our new branding and websites bring a unified, intuitive experience to the entire Hotkey ecosystem. Discover everything you need to navigate, learn, and grow with Hotkey: • Official Site: Your central hub for all Hotkey news, resources, and network updates. • TAOevm Mainnet Explorer: Track live transactions within the TAOevm mainnet, a powerful blockchain addition to Hotkey’s infrastructure. • TAOevm Testnet Explorer: Experiment with the TAOevm testnet and test your strategies with access to the Testnet Faucet. • TAOevm Bridge: Seamlessly transfer assets across chains within the Hotkey ecosystem. • TAOevm DEX: Engage in secure and efficient decentralized trading on TAOevm. • TAOevm Charts: Get real-time insights with charts tailored to TAOevm, offering analytics similar to DeScreener or DEXTools, integrated seamlessly with Hotkey. • Hotcurves: Discover and invest in early-stage projects on TAOevm’s very own community launchpad. • Documentation: Access comprehensive guides for HotkeySwap, TAOevm, and Hotcurves, providing everything you need to maximize your experience across the ecosystem. A New Brand, A Bold Vision With our new branding, Hotkey’s mission to make DeFi inclusive, intelligent, and community-centered is stronger than ever. The new look symbolizes our dedication to building an ecosystem where every user, investor, and trader can confidently explore and create within DeFi. This rebrand isn’t just about appearances—it’s a pledge to continuously evolve and support our growing community. We are forever thankfully for the continued support up to this point and we hope by showcasing our EVM you will be able to gain a glimpse into the capabilities of the team as we now gear up for the launch of the v2 dex in the coming weeks.show more