HCPP22 | Max Hampshire - Nym: application and network level privacy for developers and cypherpunks

Nym offers two core technologies for network and application-level metadata privacy. This talk will cover the current state of using the network with different applications such as chat apps and wallets, the architecture of these technologies, and how developers can build on Nym.
The chances of a state adversary turning against you is higher than ever for a growing percentage of the global population. Nym aims to solve this problem for everyone.
The talk will give an overview of the architecture of Nym and the parts of the stack that it protects: metadata obfuscation and sender anonymity at the network level, and privacy-preserving access credentials called Coconut at the app level.
This talk will show how users can use Nym to privacy-enhance standard desktop applications such as Telegram and Signal, as well as Monero, Bitcoin, and Ethereum wallets via either the Beta application NymConnect, or manually with our socks5 proxy client.
Finally, we invite developers to start building apps utilizing the powerful privacy protections offered by Nym, such as anonymous email and crypto transaction broadcasting. And invite developers to apply for grants via our Shipyard grants program!
The crypto wars continue. Join us.
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Max Hampshire is a Developer Relations Officer for Nym and has previously worked as a DAO smart contract engineer, writer, and artist. He has a background in philosophy.
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Paralelní Polis is a one-­of-­a-­kind nonprofit organization that brings together art, social sciences, and modern technologies. The ideas of liberty, independence, innovative thinking, and the development of society are the main underlying foundations the whole project is built upon.
The project intends to remain state-free as it operates entirely without government support. Most of the funds come from voluntary contributions of our donors and partly from commercial activities such as running a unique co­working space and the world’s first bitcoin-­only cafe.
It was founded by members of a contemporary-­art group Ztohoven, and Slovak and Czech hacker­spaces. Its main goal is to promote economic, social, and digital freedom. We try to be a vocal voice of freedom in order to shape the public discourse, and ultimately work towards a freer future.

[@user-xq7us9xl5r]

loved the A16Z/VC question!! This is a massive attack vector that I dont like much. There is no way the project can fall out with those VCs. The reply to the question wasn't good - angry, frustrated, defensive

[@agr99999]

Thanks for this. Mixnets are interesting tech. The token/incentivization and control mechanism explanations however, raise many questions. Only so much you can include in this talk, nonetheless the reasons for certain architectural decisions (tokens) are to these eyes clear as mud. ELI5 please :) One other thing of note: as with all technology - can be used for good or evil. Vaccine passports are evil.

[@markkuykendall5475]

49:05 That questioner sounds a LOT like Raoul Pal, like woah!