Shortly after Binance Labs announced its investment in the DeSci protocol BIO Protocol, CZ also made a surprise appearance at the offline event of BIO Protocol in Bangkok, Thailand, standing alongside Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin to endorse DeSci. Several tokens in the BIO Protocol ecosystem also surged, with the VitaDao token VITA reaching close to 5U from a price below 1U, demonstrating that DeSci, which is currently in the spotlight, is attracting market attention. This article will provide a brief introduction to the BIO ecosystem.
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ToggleWhat does BIO Protocol do? DeSci crowdfunding platform
BIO Protocol can be understood as a crowdfunding platform for scientific projects, raising funds through token sales and using the funds to support and develop biotechnology projects. Intellectual property rights exist in the form of IPT (Intellectual Property Token) under the Molecule protocol, and are shared by members. The revenue generated by BioDAO from intellectual property rights and product sales can be channeled back into the governance organization's treasury to fund the next generation of R&D.
The data platform RootData defines BIO Protocol as the financial layer of DeSci, which is the platform for raising funds for DeSci. It is worth mentioning that the founder of BIO Protocol, Paul Kohlhaas, had one and a half years of work experience at MetaMask and ConsenSys, the parent company of Linea. He is also the founder of Molecule, whose investor list includes venture capital firms that have mentioned DeSci several times, such as Sora Ventures.
(What is decentralized science (DeSci)? Sora Ventures: Why DeSci will be the next big wave of Web3)
Community sharing of intellectual property rights, whether commercialization is still uncertain
Regarding the IP-NFT aspect, each DAO under BIO has its own IPT token, such as VitaDAO developing and owning IPT VitaRNA and VITA-FAST, representing the intellectual property rights of BioDAO with specific scientific research projects.
Obtaining IPT means obtaining a share of the intellectual property rights generated by the research, such as patents for new compounds, patented drugs, and even treatment methods. It is worth noting that IPT does not grant the holder the right to financial returns from the commercialization of intellectual property rights. The main advantages of holding IPT are in the governance of intellectual property rights, priority access to the latest information on products, and all potential benefits in future negotiations with partners.
As for the sharing of commercial benefits, BIO has not ruled out the possibility of rewarding holders, but this is related to regulatory issues.
Many tokens in the BIO ecosystem still have a market value lower than meme coins
Currently, the BIO ecosystem has 10 DAOs and 8 tokens, including the BioDAO itself. The other nine DAOs are:
- The $GROW token issued by ValleyDAO will serve as an ecosystem development fund, primarily used to fund synthetic biology research with commercial potential. Over $2 million in funding has been raised, and there is a collaboration with Imperial College London. The current token market capitalization is around $37 million.
- PsyDAO, on the other hand, focuses on the development of psychedelic drugs. The protocol's website describes its aim to promote the tokenization of psychedelic science and art. Collaborations include the launch of the PSYC NFT representing membership, in partnership with Dr. Balázs Szigeti, a scientist at the University of California, San Francisco Translational Psychedelic Research Program and the Imperial College London Centre for Psychedelic Research. They have also launched a new platform called OPSY, which utilizes psychedelic drug trials and data.
- CerebrumDAO is an organization focused on brain science development, with a collaboration with Fission Pharma, aiming to address mitochondrial dysfunction in neurodegenerative diseases. They have currently raised over $1.5 million. The current token market capitalization is around $50 million.
- AthenaDAO's main business is to promote women's health research and development, funding $500,000 for translational research, with 14 intellectual property transactions currently pending confirmation. The token market capitalization is around $28 million.
- CryoDAO, on the other hand, focuses on the cryopreservation field, having raised over $3 million. Their focus includes low-temperature preservation of brains, organs, and experimental materials. They have established a partnership with Oxford Cryotechnology & Advanced Neural Biosciences.
- HairDAO has already developed a patented consumer product called Follicool for hair loss research. The current token market capitalization is $140 million.
Finally, the most well-known is VitaDAO, which has funded over $5 million in longevity science, and importantly, has Pfizer's venture capital arm as an investor, as well as a collaboration with the University of Newcastle. ABMedia previously summarized the different views of Vitalik Buterin and Elon Musk on longevity science. The current token market capitalization is close to $170 million.
Holding BIO Becomes an Early Investor in Scientific Projects
After understanding the BIO ecosystem, let's talk about the BIO token itself. BIO is the native governance token of the BIO Protocol. The use cases of BIO include voting on which bioDAOs to support and on future BIO issuance or distribution. It also grants the qualification to finance early-stage bioDAO projects.
The initial supply of BIO tokens is 3.32 billion, but there is currently no set supply cap, which is left for the community to decide. Specifically, the community holds 56% of the allocation, including 6% for airdrops and ecosystem incentives. Investors hold 13.6%, core contributors 21.2%, advisors 4.2%, and Molecule 5%.
A Launchpad for Scientific Projects? The Trend Blows Towards Pump Science
In addition to the existing project tokens in DeSci, there have also emerged meme coins. For example, the SciHub token, where the platform of the same name actually provides free access to papers for scientists or students. However, due to the infringement of the rights of the authors of the papers, SciHub has never been able to be openly brought to the table.
Additionally, BIO Protocol has mentioned $RIF and $URO. RIF is an antibiotic found to extend the lifespan of research subjects. Urolithin A has anti-aging and longevity properties, and is also used to enhance athletic performance, recovery, and the prevention and management of chronic diseases. Both are developed by Pump Science, a subsidiary of BIO Protocol, so perhaps from this perspective, Pump Science is the new hotspot.
Conceptually, BIO is about moving the traditional system of governments and institutions providing funding for scientists to develop projects onto the blockchain. However, traditional institutions have sufficient professional knowledge, while the Web 3 model that allows retail investors to participate greatly lowers the entry barrier to this field. Whether the democratization of investing in science is a good thing or simply degenerates into speculative trading remains to be seen in the future.
In addition to the Binance Labs-backed BIO Protocol, Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong's ResearchHub is also worth watching, although most DeSci projects are still in the stage of issuing shitcoins as rewards.
