Share some solid insights: I often discuss foundational logic for primary investments and project development in the group. Today, a group member asked about products that display fee rates, which led to a discussion about products like Coinglass and KINGFISHER. This further evolved into a question: Entrepreneurship in technical products within the crypto space Since 2017, I’ve beta-tested at least 50 technical projects, though I stopped counting after 30. Most of these were initiated by technical personnel. Often, it’s a case of a tech person thinking, “xxx is a pain point, so I decided to tackle it.” Most products are decent, and some have genuinely amazed me. For example, there’s a fully on-chain exchange on Arbitrum for placing orders called Jojo. This project left a deep impression on me, partly because I love Jojo’s Bizarre Adventure. Since I provided a lot of feedback, the founder even insisted on giving me a few hundred dollars as a token of appreciation. Their product was truly outstanding and left me in awe. But I asked them a question I always ask: “Buddy, how are you handling marketing? Who’s your operations director? This is a platform, and marketing is crucial.” Then I followed up with a killer question: “Why did you choose the Arbitrum chain?” The founder, being a tech enthusiast, replied, “ARB’s technology is very smooth and enables our product’s functionality.” I genuinely liked the project. But anyone who takes a look at ETH and ARB can guess the rest of the story. I don’t know what the founder ended up doing later, but it’s a real pity. What I want to express here is: 1. If you’re a tech expert, you’re in luck—crypto is one of the most tech-friendly industries. However, most tech personnel are far removed from the market. If you have a genius idea, please carefully observe user demands in advance, consult VCs to understand investment-level decision-making, and discuss execution issues with people like me who focus on practical implementation. Different levels of involvement offer different perspectives. A good idea must pass through multiple levels of validation. But take note! A truly revolutionary idea that can change the market is often one that most people, apart from you, don’t understand. Developing projects and investing—it’s fun, isn’t it? 2. Please appoint an operations director early in the project. Avoid hiring someone from a traditional big company with no track record in crypto. The better the operations director, the earlier they join the project, the more likely you are to secure funding, and the better your project will grow. For a long time, I’ve been responsible for discussing projects with operations directors. Narratives determine project tiers, technology determines project potential, and operations determine project survival. A good operations director acts as a lubricant across multiple aspects of the project, ensuring smooth execution while efficiently mobilizing resources from VCs. For VCs, a good operations director ensures the project won’t fail catastrophically, which means there’s a clear exit strategy. This is both investment experience and project development experience. 3. As the crypto space has evolved, many technical projects now rely on mature teams. Many high-quality projects have teams that have been working together for a long time. Successful examples include the teams behind Pionex and Aave. Their founders are pillars of strength, with unique insights into crypto products. They can quickly identify opportunities and execute effectively, enabling mature teams to deliver results. We could use Aave’s excellent team as an example to discuss overlooked project details, but that would make this too lengthy. We’ll cover it another time. 4. Many new technical projects, even if they don’t stray from market demands, face challenges like unstable revenue models or even “abstract” dilemmas, which make investors’ exit paths unclear. 5. For technical projects, I personally prefer and am willing to invest in: A. Projects with particularly niche and unconventional approaches. These projects either fail early or become market sensations, offering high risk-reward ratios. B. Founders who are tech-oriented but also understand operations—at least enough to hire a reliable operations lead. Note: If the founder is both tech-oriented and partnered with an operations director, this doesn’t fall into this category. C. Founders who are young and promising, possessing what I’ve previously described as “structural external growth potential.” Such individuals are concentrated among overseas returnees and grassroots innovators in the crypto space. However, grassroots innovators often lack top-tier resources and follow incorrect paths, while overseas returnees tend to be overly ambitious, indulgent, and engage in unproductive networking. Investing in people is never an empty statement. Tech-oriented individuals with structural external growth potential almost always achieve significant results in the future. I always respect those who work in technology. Sometimes, when working on projects, I’d rather earn less myself than shortchange the tech team. I focus on operations and market capitalization, so I’m unlikely to change the world. The spark for world-changing innovation ultimately comes from the brilliance of tech geniuses. Finally, after searching for half an hour, I found this video. Let’s turn back the clock to 1960. Please enjoy this legendary system driven entirely by technology, which remains influential in gaming, education, and computing: PLATO! “I think the PLATO system was given this name perhaps as an expression of the creators’ yearning for the ideals of Plato’s Academy in ancient Greece. In Plato’s Academy, apprentices freely roamed the open grounds, learning, exchanging ideas, and debating, while the philosopher Plato often stood by, observing the eager young minds, encouraging their exploration, and offering evaluations and guidance. In a certain sense, the PLATO system achieved this goal. The free ecosystem it fostered gave rise to internet product forms, video game mechanics, and geek culture, which became the driving force behind the rise of Silicon Valley software companies in the 1980s and ultimately changed the world.” I wish all technical personnel in the crypto space to stay on the right path, become the next Vitalik, and create the next PLATO.