If you want to make your blockchain smarter, connect it to the outside world.

The more intelligent inputs and outputs there are, the less isolated the network becomes, and the greater the value that can be transacted on-chain.

If you want to make your blockchain smarter, connect it to the outside world. The more intelligent inputs and outputs there are, the less isolated the network becomes, and the greater the value that can be transacted on-chain. That’s the premise behind decentralized oracle solution Chainlink, and a similar ethos powers LiquidApps’ DAPP Network.

The latter, which sits atop base-layer protocols such as EOS, is said to be the first universal middleware deployed across multiple blockchains, enabling dApps to run on the blockchain of their choice. And though some may consider Chainlink to be a fierce competitor, LiquidApps are of a different opinion, even going so far as to envisage the pair working in tandem: “Potentially, DSPs (dApp Service Providers) could integrate Chainlinks as part of their data feeds, and Chainlink could utilize the DAPP Network to gain some additional advantages.” This is despite a certain degree of squabbling between the two communities. This is crypto, after all, and there are some problems that even oracles can’t solve.

Frenemies or born to coexist?

Founded in 2014, the Chainlink network supplies dependable tamper-proof inputs and outputs for smart contracts on multiple blockchains. By facilitating connectivity between smart contracts and data feeds, APIs and payments, Chainlink has succeeded in grabbing a massive slice of the oracle market: tech behemoths Google and Oracle recently announced that they would use the network for data-sharing purposes, while Ethereum-based projects like Synthetix and Streamr have integrated Chainlink for reliable data feeds. What’s more, Chainlink’s native ERC20 token (LINK) has been a runaway success.

The DAPP Network, founded in 2019, is intended as a more holistic solution than Chainlink: its focus is not so much on inputs and outputs as wholesale technical solutions that make developing on blockchains faster, more cost-effective and secure, with greater flexibility. Powered by its native, multi-purpose utility token DAPP, the network’s ecosystem is designed to make building scalable dApps altogether easier.

While LINK has yet to implement staking, LiquidOracles’ staking and on-chain data verification make it a more decentralized option. LiquidOracles is the DAPP Network’s answer to Chainlink, its very own advanced oracle solution. But as mentioned, LiquidApps don’t necessarily see LiquidOracles as challenging Chainlink directly; instead, they contend that it represents a way for “first-generation solutions like those by Chainlink to upgrade their services,” lending valuable features and flexibility to dApps already using those solutions and allowing developers to access trustless data feeds in a customizable fashion from within their smart contracts. Those valuable features include on-chain procurement of services, custom trust levels for dApps, and integration with other services in the LiquidApps suite.

The same but different

From the perspective of token-holders, there is one clear difference between DAPP Network and Chainlink; LINK has mooned, and is now the 11th largest crypto asset by market cap, whereas DAPP is currently 383rd by capitalization. For believers in the project, however, that simply shows that the younger DAPP Network still has room to grow, and that price discovery will inevitably follow as the fledgling network gains greater traction.

DAPP Network and Chainlink are more closely aligned than the leaders of either project may outwardly acknowledge. Born out of a desire to ship working products that add genuine utility, each has left the speculation and marketing to their community, and focused on enhancing the blockchain networks they are aligned with. “Build it and they will come” has been the mantra that’s served Chainlink and its army of Link Marines well for the past 18 months. Now it’s time for the DAPP Network to show that it too can prosper – with or without the involvement of Chainlink.