Unite the Paraverse — A Call to Arms
Shape the future of Polkadot, Kusama, and the Parachains
With 10 parachains now live on Kusama, and Polkadot parachain auctions slated to begin on November 11, we stand at the bleeding edge of a web3 future. This is an incredibly exciting time, but, as this future approaches, there’s a gaping UX-shaped hole in the DotSama (Polkadot + Kusama) ecosystem that needs to be filled if we are to ever reach mass adoption.
As it currently stands, the Polkadot-JS app is the most used decentralized interface for interacting with the Polkadot ecosystem. Unfortunately, it is also difficult to use for regular users, as it was built with developers in mind. This presents a serious barrier to mass adoption, one that must be addressed. Thankfully, a few projects (such as Fearless Wallet and Polkawallet) have stepped up to fill this gap in the market. This is great to see, but it’s also not an ideal scenario. Why? Because most projects building a wallet have an allegiance to one parachain project or another.
In most cases, these wallets and interfaces are built by the parachain teams themselves, which presents a conflict of interest. Wallets may become adversarial, and teams might attempt to restrict their users from accessing applications that leverage competing parachains. This might sound like paranoid thinking, but it’s far better to consider the worst-case scenario early on and work to negate it. Even though most parachain teams are supportive of each other right now, this is bound to change as competition for users and liquidity heats up.
In consideration of this potential problem, we envision that the ideal wallet for “traversing the Paraverse” needs to be fully community-owned and driven. Enter Talisman.
Building a wallet for DotSama is no easy feat. For one thing, a Metamask-like approach is a nonstarter because there are potentially hundreds of different chains to contend with, each with its own unique activities. As such, any wallet or portfolio service has to take the ecosystem’s dynamism into consideration. Talisman knows this and is fully committed to building the wallet that will aid progress and catalyze composability in the DotSama ecosystem. We are talking about a wallet that is just as powerful as Polkadot-JS but far more approachable for non-technical web3 users. In its current iteration, the wallet:
- Allows you to view your tokens (and soon NFTs) across all DotSama chains.
- Allows you to explore and contribute to crowdloan projects.
- Allows you to swap tokens on Karura.
Central to Talisman’s vision is its community-owned approach to building. Talisman has received funding from various parachain teams and individuals in the DotSama ecosystem, ensuring that no one team or group has ownership over the project. They are also looking to build the wallet to the specification of the community. This is where me, you, and this article come in.
A call to arms
Talisman’s vision is to build a wallet that is incredibly powerful and easy to use. A wallet that is perfect for a variety of use cases across a variety of parachains. It is a noble vision, however, they can’t build this on their own. They need your input. You can shape the future of Talisman by making suggestions and giving feedback. This is how Talisman seeks to build the perfect wallet — by listening to the community and integrating feedback. So what are you waiting for?
What feature would make it easier for you to explore DotSama with ease? Which annoyances from Polkadot-JS would you like to eradicate? Which cool features from other wallets in other ecosystems would you like to have? You are in a uniquely powerful position — you can shape the future of Talisman. Why not make use of this position?
It’s pretty easy. All you need do is
- Join the Talisman Discord server.
- Review the current wallet/app.
- Make feature requests here.
- Stick around in the community and advocate for your favorite parachain team.
As you read this, realize that if you choose not to take action, other people will. So, what is it gonna be: lend your voice to build the future or stay silent and wait it out?
