CDTB Colloquium – “Cryptocurrency and Blockchain,” “NFT, Metaverse, and Web 3.0”

CDTB Colloquium, hosted by KUBS (Dean=Johngseok, Bae) Center for Digital Transformation & Business (CDTB; Co-directors=Baeho Kim and Byungcho Kim), was held online on Tuesday, January 25. The event consisted of two sessions, each session lasting 50 minutes. Professor Seungjoo Kim of Korea University School of Cybersecurity gave a lecture on the topics “Cryptocurrency and Blockchain” and “NFT, Metaverse, and Web 3.0.”

Before the lecture, Co-director Baeho Kim of CDTB introduced Professor Seungjoo Kim, explaining, “As we enter into the 4^th Industrial Revolution, blockchain technology starts to show infinity possibilities.” Professor Kim, as a blockchain expert, gives blockchain lectures in the KUBS Master’s program and serves as an advisor for various companies and committees.

In the first session, Professor Kim explained, “Blockchain technology was created to identify counterfeit money in the cryptocurrency model.” Then, he explained in-depth the benefits of blockchain, such as △decentralization △transparency △availability and △immutability. Professor Kim gave an example of a dApp called “CryptoKitties,” stating that “Ethereum, beyond its function as a cryptocurrency, is now valued as a platform.” He further explained the limitations of decentralized authentication in blockchain, wrapping up the first session.

Professor Kim began with his second lecture stating, “The main keyword of the 4^th Industrial Revolution is hyper-personalization – and the role of data and blockchain technology is essential in achieving this.” Next, he explained how decentralized financial services branched into the trend of NFTs (Non-fungible tokens). Professor Kim defined NFTs as “certificates of registration on blockchain,” explaining that “Bubbles will inevitably form when trading NFTs since it is difficult to see them in person.” He further explained NFTs in three sub-topics: △NFT Media Data △NFT Meta Data and △NFT Smart Contract. Professor Kim mentioned, “There is a view that NFTs have led to a highly intelligent and personalized era of Web 3.0.” He continued, “We aren’t sure whether the era of Web 3.0 has come, but we should pursue in that direction.”

The CDTB Colloquium ended with a brief Q&A session. Co-director Baeho Kim of CDTB ended the event by stating, “Thank you Professor Seungjoo Kim for giving a wonderful lecture. We hope you continue to pay attention to our upcoming CDTB Colloquium events.”

Article | Hyunmin Lee (School of Media & Communication 20^th)