A lot Ado About ‘Nothing’? Why Polygon Is Making a Web3 Push Into Cellular

Don’t name it a comeback: Tech corporations’ so-called blockchain telephones by no means appeared to click on with customers, regardless of a number of makes an attempt, however now crypto networks themselves are making recent strikes to attempt to carry Web3 to a probably huge cellular viewers.

Solana lately introduced its Solana Cellular Stack (SMS) software program initiative and Saga telephone, and Polygon right now revealed its personal cellular play. Polygon, an Ethereum scaling platform, introduced a collaboration with tech startup Nothing that can see Polygon’s tech built-in into the corporate’s first smartphone, the Nothing Cellphone (1).

Initially, the partnership will likely be an NFT membership membership, with Polygon NFTs supplied to individuals who helped crowdfund Nothing’s launch, in addition to those that pre-ordered the Nothing Cellphone (1). Nothing’s Black Dot NFTs, as they’re referred to as, present potential advantages to holders, similar to early entry to merchandise or entries to occasions.

However that’s simply step one, Polygon Vice President of Progress Arjun Kalsy advised Decrypt.

Finally, the plan is to infuse the Android-based Nothing Cellphone (1) with easy accessibility to apps and video games on Polygon’s platform, in addition to funds and future options like Polygon ID, the corporate’s zero-knowledge, proof-based identification answer.

“How will we get even nearer to the consumer? The biggest distribution platform on the planet is the cell phone,” mentioned Kalsy. “Principally, the timing was proper that now we will take this know-how to the plenty.”

Nothing was based by Carl Pei, who co-founded the smartphone and tech model OnePlus. The agency has attracted veteran tech creators like iPod co-creator Tony Fadell, Twitch co-founder Kevin Lin, and Reddit CEO and co-founder Steve Huffman, and can maintain a launch occasion for the Nothing Cellphone (1) on July 12.

Kalsy mentioned Polygon was launched to Nothing by one in every of its VC backers after its $450 million fund increase introduced final February. He shared that the Nothing staff stunned him with its depth of data about Web3 and sturdy plans for the house.

“Proper from the primary dialog, I used to be like: ‘Properly, these guys get it,’” he mentioned. “They perceive how Web3 works, and that for me was a magic second. Like, I wish to work with these guys.”

In accordance with Kalsy, Polygon and Nothing have spent the final 4 to 5 months creating the collaboration, crystalizing ideas like how they need customers to have the ability to faucet into Polygon decentralized apps (dapps) and video games on cellular, and the way the undertaking may evolve over time.

“If you happen to have a look at any Android or Apple telephone, you log in with both a Google ID or an Apple ID, and to an extent, Apple or Google owns the client, proper? That’s the place the worth comes from,” mentioned Kalsy. “In a decentralized world, we have to assist the consumer take again management.”

Kalsy didn’t share many finer particulars of how Polygon’s Web3 integration will work on the Nothing Cellphone (1) forward of the machine’s launch occasion. Nonetheless, the agency seems to have comparable goals as Solana’s SMS initiative—to make Web3 entry less complicated and simpler on smartphones, and thus assist carry crypto and NFTs to a a lot bigger viewers.

There’s a key distinction, nonetheless: Solana is making its personal smartphone in partnership with OSOM Merchandise, a startup from former Important Cellphone R&D head, Jason Keats. Nothing’s telephone will function Polygon know-how, nevertheless it’s not a “Polygon Cellphone” in the best way that the Solana Saga is a Solana-branded machine.

In accordance with Kalsy, Polygon most well-liked to companion with a agency that makes a speciality of constructing telephones, and let every agency within the alliance focus by itself specialty. He mentioned it was additionally a matter of not “attempting to boil the ocean”—in different phrases, to keep away from letting the scope of the undertaking develop uncontrolled and maybe past their very own sources to execute.

“Can we construct a cell phone? I’m positive we will,” he defined. “However would we construct the world’s greatest cell phone? No. That’s one thing which Carl [Pei] and HTC, and the Samsungs, LGs, or Apples of the world are one of the best at.”

As a result of Polygon is a decentralized blockchain platform, this isn’t an unique alliance. Different corporations can combine Polygon assist into their units, as HTC will with its lately introduced Want 22 Professional “metaverse telephone,” which additionally helps Ethereum. Kalsy mentioned that the Nothing partnership advantages from the Polygon staff’s data and expertise, nonetheless.

As with Solana and its personal cellular push, Polygon sees the cellular market as key to onboarding probably huge numbers of future customers into the crypto world. Polygon’s know-how permits quicker and cheaper transactions than on Ethereum’s mainnet, plus the community lately attained carbon neutrality by buying offsets. Now the main target is on mass adoption.

“I imagine it’s one of many single most essential issues which networks can do,” mentioned Kalsy. “You’ve solved for scalability and such, and now you may take this know-how to the cell phone and begin onboarding the following a whole bunch of tens of millions of customers into Web3.”