Hello, world. Or gm, as they say.

At Automata we work on protecting privacy and fairness. And in this newsletter, we find more reason to talk about it. Explore headlines and catch up on the biggest crypto news and ideas at the dizzying intersection of Web3 and privacy.

It’s the debut edition, but we deliver weekly.

• Oasis Privacy Layer goes live, powered by their confidential EVM, Sapphire

• Sam Altman’s Worldcoin reaches 2M sign-ups. World ID uses zero-knowledge proofs to protect users’ privacy while offering a global digital passport

• Coinbase Wallet launches end-to-end encrypted private messaging feature built with XMTP

• Arkham Intelligence faces backlash after the launch of Intel Exchange, a crypto data bounty marketplace

• It’s easy to protect your privacy when it’s a simple matter of updating settings. Turn off the toggle for Batch account balance requests on MetaMask to avoid linking your wallet addresses; Follow this pull request on Github to learn how the team listens to - and takes notes of - user feedback

• Open Asset Standards announces QED, a new ZKP protocol catered to blockchain developers

• Manta Network launches Manta Pacific, an EVM-native Layer-2 execution layer

• Silent Protocol, a privacy-focused full-stack middleware protocol, raises $5M in a round led by Sora Ventures

Arkham Intelligence, an on-chain data and analytics provider, recently released its Intel Exchange and also their $ARKM airdrop. Matching buyers and bounty hunters in its vision of a decentralized intel-to-earn economy, Arkham’s Intel Exchange has come under fire for what privacy advocates claim is the outright buying and selling of personal information. Additionally, it was found that referral links by Arkham could be reverse-engineered to reveal users’ personal information. Miguel Morel, Arkham’s CEO, addresses this on Twitter.

Coinbase Wallet has added a new function, this time introducing end-to-end encrypted private instant messaging on the app. While this is currently only rolled out to Lens profile holders or users who scan their invitation QR code, communicating through wallet addresses can be a sign of things to come for Web3 messaging.

Manta Network introduces Manta Pacific, an OP Stack layer-2 solution built on top of the Ethereum ecosystem, and which relies on Celestia for data availability. As an EVM-native modular execution layer, the team aims to provide an environment specifically designed for deploying ZK applications, based on its Universal Circuits. A few days after the launch, it was announced that P0x Labs, the developer team behind Manta Network, raised $25M in a Series A round at a $500M valuation.

To connect with Automata - we are active and friendly on both Twitter and Discord.

Hello, world. Or gm, as they say.

At Automata we work on protecting privacy and fairness. And in this newsletter, we find more reason to talk about it. Explore headlines and catch up on the biggest crypto news and ideas at the dizzying intersection of Web3 and privacy.

It’s the debut edition, but we deliver weekly.

• Oasis Privacy Layer goes live, powered by their confidential EVM, Sapphire

• Sam Altman’s Worldcoin reaches 2M sign-ups. World ID uses zero-knowledge proofs to protect users’ privacy while offering a global digital passport

• Coinbase Wallet launches end-to-end encrypted private messaging feature built with XMTP

• Arkham Intelligence faces backlash after the launch of Intel Exchange, a crypto data bounty marketplace

• It’s easy to protect your privacy when it’s a simple matter of updating settings. Turn off the toggle for Batch account balance requests on MetaMask to avoid linking your wallet addresses; Follow this pull request on Github to learn how the team listens to - and takes notes of - user feedback

• Open Asset Standards announces QED, a new ZKP protocol catered to blockchain developers

• Manta Network launches Manta Pacific, an EVM-native Layer-2 execution layer

• Silent Protocol, a privacy-focused full-stack middleware protocol, raises $5M in a round led by Sora Ventures

Arkham Intelligence, an on-chain data and analytics provider, recently released its Intel Exchange and also their $ARKM airdrop. Matching buyers and bounty hunters in its vision of a decentralized intel-to-earn economy, Arkham’s Intel Exchange has come under fire for what privacy advocates claim is the outright buying and selling of personal information. Additionally, it was found that referral links by Arkham could be reverse-engineered to reveal users’ personal information. Miguel Morel, Arkham’s CEO, addresses this on Twitter.

Coinbase Wallet has added a new function, this time introducing end-to-end encrypted private instant messaging on the app. While this is currently only rolled out to Lens profile holders or users who scan their invitation QR code, communicating through wallet addresses can be a sign of things to come for Web3 messaging.

Manta Network introduces Manta Pacific, an OP Stack layer-2 solution built on top of the Ethereum ecosystem, and which relies on Celestia for data availability. As an EVM-native modular execution layer, the team aims to provide an environment specifically designed for deploying ZK applications, based on its Universal Circuits. A few days after the launch, it was announced that P0x Labs, the developer team behind Manta Network, raised $25M in a Series A round at a $500M valuation.

To connect with Automata - we are active and friendly on both Twitter and Discord.