Nooor Talks: Toufi Saliba
“I insist on what I do, not only as an author of a network protocol but as an executive and human being to focus my work and effort to benefit every single homo sapien that would like to benefit from it. No exceptions.”
Toufi Saliba was one of our speakers during the ChainPoint 19 Conference. As a human being willing to make a change not only by inspiring others and dreaming about the future full of prosperity, he is actually making tons of effort every single day, pursuing and struggling to find the ideal path of development. Toufi is heavily involved with dozens of projects, not forget to mention that he is currently doing advisory for several governments, some are the largest and most powerful ones, others the smallest and the most agile and nimble.
Toufi is also the CEO of TODA network — a platform and incubator lab built on top of TODA/IP a packet-level protocol, which is effectively enabling network packets to manage and transmit value without dependence on a ledger or any third party.
Nooor talks, 5 Questions, and Toufi Saliba. Here we go!
1. What are the major challenges in the Blockchain industry today?
Everyone would tell you Scalability and Usability. We did talk about scalability 4 years ago and nobody listened, hence the entire industry is on the verge of collapse with less than 0.2% global market penetration… not the number you’d expect from a revolutionary technology.
To answer your question: They are not SECSI
- S for Security (Autonomous Decentralized Governance is a Security model) not a single Blockchain out there is living up to its promises with decentralization, let alone its potential
- E for Efficiencies. If the net/net cost to run any operation at scale is larger or even comparable with the current method of accomplishing similar results, then we will not be describing a revolutionary tech. Maybe evolutionary and in some aspect regressive or at most mediocre.
- C for confidentiality. If your Blockchain provides confidentiality with extra layers and methods to be deployed, go home. It must be by design and not a single Blockchain provides it by design, there are some added on deployment layer which of course could work but at a cost that eats up from the previous (E) point
- S for Scalability. Of course everyone is talking about this one, but solving it most had to compromise other elements and started a trend called trilemma. Anyone with a trilemma, should go home. They are not needed. Trilemma is an excuse, not a solution.
- I for Interoperability. Here’s what’s so ironic, in this p2p revolutionary technology, those with yet another layer to accomplish interoperability should go home and never come back… it’s an oxymoron at most.
2. What is your company’s mission and how far have you come in completing it?
My companies have missions but they are independent of the Protocols mission. In fact on the protocol layer we never raised any money, it’s been bootstrapped all the way through.
I’m currently involved in about a dozen companies building on TODA many raised funds from private investors, old school equity models. Mainly a company called Toda. Network Corp which the first year in business 2018 generated about $5.3M in revenue, the second year in 2019 about to close the year with $21M USD. For a startup, it’s not a bad start at all.
3. The trends in cryptocurrencies have deemed them unfavorable in most governments. Since the blockchain is the underlying technology, do you think various states, starting with Armenia, would be open to adopting the tech?
Rightfully so. I don’t blame any governments from rejecting a tech that is crippled by design. Most projects are scams and most of the remainings are failures built on failures. However, a smart nation like China, already realized by its own president and announced the marching towards the Blockchain. The question is, would they get in the real Blockchain or the faky ones out there? We don’t know.
4. Everyone is talking about the leading innovating technologies of the 21st century and the possible synergy of Blockchain, IoT and AI. What is your personal stance regarding the synergy in between of these three technologies? Should we as a world, focus more on blockchain technology rather than AI or IoT?
Not sure those 3 are of the same magnitude in the attention they are getting. I’m a lot more interested in filling the gaps that all 3 and others will suffer from if solutions haven’t commenced. It goes back to security by design. The absence of which may very well be detrimental.
5. As you were a part of CP19, what can be the feedback about Armenia and its potential to become one of the leaders in the blockchain space?
I’d like to see that, but highly doubt it would unless we see significant actions to take a lead role. Note: for example, recently Toufi Saliba became founding Global Chair Ai Standards for all humankind at IEEE TEMS. See more details here: https://www.ieee-tems.org/ai-standards-toufi-saliba/
I am getting other nations putting $100M+ to get their names on it. Armenia could participate but it will unlikely do that with money. Will it do with other aspects? I don’t know.
What I do realize is that everything in the world will be cryptofied within the next decade, we will reach global prosperity. I am no longer worried about those 2. There will be no hunger and no extreme poverty. I used to worry about those, not anymore.
Where I sit right now I’m capable of seeing this reality coming together the same way you see the sunrise every day. What keeps me up at night is AI with very little security to prevent an attack from within… I insist on what I do, not only as an author of a network protocol but as an executive and human being to focus my work and effort to benefit every single homo sapien that would like to benefit from it. No exceptions. I will continue the awareness and building organizations to provide an alternative to humanity to use.
