CryptoWhaleTalk AMA with Maryam Mahjoub

Published in

Verasity

8 min readDec 10, 2021

Learn about the strategic focus of Verasity and our business plans for the future

Firstly, please could you introduce yourself and tell us more about your experience and background? Introduction of the ecosystem/ vision and mission, tell us about the journey so far and why you are doing this.

MARYAM: Hi, I’m Maryam Mahjoub, Chief Marketing Officer of Verasity. I’m dating myself a bit here, but I’ve been in marketing for nearly 20 years now, focusing heavily on SaaS and health-tech. I moved into blockchain in early 2019, and have since worked for ConsenSys and Cardano Foundation, along with some other major projects in the industry. I joined Verasity in May of this year — primarily because of Mark’s vision. While crypto is exciting and fun (especially compared to health data integration management), what really excites me personally is bringing mass blockchain adoption — and that’s what Mark really set out to do with Verasity. Verasity is a blockchain company that crosses ad-technology, esports and digital rights management (specifically NFTs) — and all with real world business solutions.

You know, when there’s a new technology that comes out, so many like to jump on the bandwagon — and you see so many projects today that really don’t need to be on the blockchain, and yet people are building them. That isn’t the case for Verasity — and that’s what got me here and is keeping me here.

What are your values?

MARYAM: When I initially joined ConsenSys, I worked on their Ethereum protocol solution — and immediately I saw the different ways blockchain could solve so many of health-techs biggest challenges. Decentralized data means you as a person own your own health data, vs having access to your information via your provider. It also means you control who sees that information — which could be a game changer for Americans who pay through the roof for their insurance based on their health history; and apart from that, you control your data for your entire health journey — not just just at point of entry with a single provider. That can fundamentally change how we not only view health, but how we manage and provide for it as a people. To me, that level of impact on our everyday lives is just incredible.

After spending time in the space I got to see all the different ways we can influence, impact and (I absolutely hate this term but can’t think of anything else) disrupt so many industries.

Ultimately, every project I work with, I look at “what does it mean for blockchain’s overall adoption?”. Is it resolving real issues? Is it making things better for people? Do I see the mass adoption of the technology over time? That’s where my values and focus lie.

What are the current use case scenarios of VRA?

MARYAM: Verasity has a few use cases across industries.

Primarily, we are focused on resolving the $100 billion ad fraud problem that exists today. As a marketer this is very near and dear to my heart. About 65% of all views of video ads (on channels like youtube etc) are by bots — so that means that 65% of my video ad spend goes directly to the trash. So when you have a limited budget, and show your value as a marketer by your results, 65% loss is a HUGE hit. And the challenge isn’t even just limited to the financial waste due to bots.

The entire ecosystem is a mess, and every stakeholder, from publishers, to advertisers, to content creators and intermediaries suffers due to it. Each one captures their own set of data, and then spends weeks, up to months trying to reconcile their disparate data sets. Well, blockchain solves for that — and Verasity takes it a step further. Verasity offers our patented Proof of View technology, that identifies human views vs fake views, and captures that data on the blockchain. So now, everyone can see accurate real-time data. This can shorten the life cycle of campaign management from 90 days to 1 or 2 days — and solves the 65% of waste to fake views. This means everyone gets paid faster, gets paid the right amount, and does not have to worry about audits, reconciliations or disagreements. We are expanding this to VeraViews, which is an end to end adstack solution — designed specifically to simplify and resolve the challenges advertisers face today.

Our secondary focus is on esports. We created VeraEsports initially as our proof of concept for Proof of View. Since then, it has evolved into its own stand alone product. We have our patented “Watch & Earn” technology embedded in our site — where esports fans can earn rewards for engaging with content they already love, whether it’s competing or watching their favorite tournaments. VeraEsports has partnered with some of the biggest names in gaming, including Riot, PUBG and Valorant. Most recently we also hosted the first Axie Infinity tournament, the FTX GalAxie Cup 2021 exclusively. We’re continuously working to bring big names, better rewards, better UX on the site to make sure are that we’re competing with the existing names that are out there today, within esports.We’re working to ensure that veraesports.com will be among the largest esports tournament sites in the world next year.

Our third focus is on digital rights management. NFTs have been a huge hit across industries — but a lot of big brands are scared of the risks involved with them. Many gaming companies have completely denounced crypto, NFTs, and anything blockchain related. We have expanded our Proof of View patent to include NFTs, so that not only can everyday NFT buyers verify the authenticity of their NFT, but that gaming companies can begin leveraging the technology, without the risks that are currently involved. In-game skins, tools and so on are a huge market (60% of gaming companies revenues) — but the games lose out on re-sales. NFTs are a great way of resolving that — but without the ability to ensure the authenticity of the NFT and consequent fraud — major labels won’t take the risk of adopting the technology. We will be bringing Proof of View for NFT authentication and verification to the global market, but we are also building out our own NFT marketplace focused on esports and variety gaming.

WCT Q4: How does Verasity look to generate revenue? What are your strategic plans?

MARYAM: Justin Wenczka came on board about the same time I did — his role is specifically focused on ensuring Verasity generates revenue. Since joining we’ve put together a clear go to market strategy for Proof of View and VeraViews — much of which we of course can’t share publicly… but our main focus has been reaching out to the industry with our custom solutions. With no real competitors in the space, and being a genuine solution — our products have been very well received.

Our primary focus is tackling the $100B ad fraud challenge — even a small dent in that number is extensive recurring revenue for us. Our secondary focus is on NFT verification and authentication. With NFTs expected to value up to $300B by 2030, even 10% of fraud equates to $30B of fraud. We are connecting with marketplaces to ensure the scams we’ve seen like the fake Banksy NFTs don’t continue to occur. This solution also helps resolve the (very valid) concerns of many of the larger esports and gaming companies that are risk averse. Our conversations are focused on how they can stop losing recurring revenue from re-sales to the gray market by leveraging NFTs, without having to worry about the current industry risks. We will also generate revenue from our NFT marketplace by taking a cut of the marketplace revenues.

Gaming is just becoming so huge. Crypto.com are partnering with Twitch as well. They’re on the gaming aspects. So it’s just a huge expanding market as crypto goes mainstream for the future. So it can only benefit Verasity and the platform’s you build. How does Verasity’s Proof of View protocol layer technology work to identify Human and non Human interactions?

MARYAM: We use over 200 touchpoints and AI to identify human vs non human views. We can’t delve too deep into the specifics as that’s “where the magic happens” so to speak — but here are some details…. First off your device has a lot of parameters which can be queried — what OS you use, where you are, and so on. Then you have data around how your device interacts with networks… what’s your ping, how fast you can download files and so forth. Finally, you have in-depth device information including file systems etc.. but it’s not only about the hundreds of touch points, it’s about erroneous data and profiles identified by a combination of various parameters.

Are there any community incentives for long term holds etc.

MARYAM: Ultimately we are playing the long game. We have a clear vision and business strategy and are working towards them. We’ve been audited by Xangle, the only crypto auditor accepted by Korean banks, with a grade of A. We have a 7 year runway… we are building relationships and announcing partnerships with some of the largest brands in the world. We’re going beyond “how do we build on the blockchain” or “can we do this on the blockchain” — we’re bringing real world solutions to everyday business challenges.

About Verasity

Verasity.io is a protocol and product layer blockchain platform for esports and digital content. Verasity is committed to delivering a better user experience for all stakeholders within the digital content space. By offering transparency, security and trust with our patented Proof of View technology, we are working to eliminate online ad fraud and NFT fraud — ultimately changing how digital advertising is done today. Within esports, Verasity promises to dominate the industry with VeraEsports, using superior blockchain technology and the best gamified viewership experience.

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