What is a smart contract? What is smart property? What are decentralized autonomous organizations? How can companies and organizations use cryptocurrencies and cryptoledgers to reduce costs and increase transparency? What hurdles should entrepreneurs keep in mind when developing decentralized applications?



These questions and many more are discussed in detail as Tim Swanson interviews nearly four dozen entrepreneurs, developers, investors and legal experts regarding the potential opportunities and challenges of the new trustless asset management space. Building from the hope and promises of cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, these experienced veterans provide insights and anecdotes of personal experiences to give readers a better sense of what the future of the industry holds. In addition, Swanson meticulously provides over 400 references and resources to aid readers and researchers in the continuously changing ecosystem.



Great Chain of Numbers is written for a casual business-centric audience, looking to become better informed and prepared for the innovations spawned by the upcoming next-generation, “2.0” platforms including:



Colored Coins, Mastercoin, NXT, Ethereum, BitShares, Counterparty.co, Ripple, and Open-Transaction



He also taps into the community to find out what kind of projects and startups venture capitalist, angel investors and incubators are looking to fund. Their observations can help route entrepreneurs around certain areas that may be oversaturated and mature towards others that are underdeveloped and ripe for disruptive innovation. This guide acts an accessible primer for anyone looking for a compendium without having to wade through a thicket of hype and hyperbole.