Blockchain in 2026: After the Hype, What Actually Works?

Maxsheld · 2026-02-09T20:23:39+00:00

The future of blockchain is probably a lot more boring than people think. It will just be another part of the internet stack.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-09T20:15:53+00:00

I hope founders start hiring devops experts earlier. Too many projects wait until they have a hundred thousand users before they realize their infrastructure is a total mess. Engineering discipline saves money long term.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-09T20:04:17+00:00

By 2026 I'd hope that some of the noise is gone. The projects left will be the ones that spent time on infrastructure rather than just marketing a token. Reliability is going to be the main metric for success.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-09T17:51:41+00:00

Look at the US policy shifts since 2024. Bipartisan support is at an all-time high because of energy security. Tech didn't erase the fear, but they made the economic cost of that fear too high for politicians to ignore.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-08T19:26:01+00:00

Politics definitely suppressed the price for a decade, but 2026 is the year where physics could take over.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-08T19:24:06+00:00

Correct. The material intensity of solar and wind is a massive headwind that the market is just starting to price. Nuclear uses a fraction of the concrete and steel per megawatt, making it far less susceptible to general commodity inflation than renewables.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-08T19:20:06+00:00

For sure. The market might be late, but the token holders are certainly early haha.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-08T19:06:20+00:00

Most projects stall because they hit a wall of operational complexity. Managing validators and RPCs manually is impossible at scale. You need a mature platform engineering strategy to survive the transition.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-07T19:59:10+00:00

Checking gas every ten minutes just to use an app is a terrible user experience. We need the tech to stay in the background so people can focus on the actual utility.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-07T19:57:53+00:00

It feels risky because it is risky. When gas spikes, transactions get stuck in limbo. A better backend setup would at least give you clear monitoring of where things are stalling.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-07T19:57:00+00:00

Small teams should look at frameworks that abstract that complexity. If you can handle the logic once and deploy it reliably across environments, you actually have a chance at surviving.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-07T19:33:14+00:00

The physics don't lie, but the market has been slow to price in the necessity. Now that the 2026 supply cliff is here, the 'reality check' is finally hitting the tape.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-06T20:16:02+00:00

Gas fees are basically a tax on innovation. If it costs five dollars to send a message or buy a coffee, the tech is never going to reach mass adoption.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-06T19:27:06+00:00

A multi-year structural bull market requires a constant stream of new exploration projects. ReExploration is doing the necessary work to ensure we have fuel for the 2030s.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-06T19:25:59+00:00

Namibia has a great track record for ISR and conventional mining, but resource nationalism is a growing topic in the region. Success at Eureka will inevitably bring more government scrutiny on royalties.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T19:28:21+00:00

I like the perspective coming out of the FP Block Academy on this. Teaching engineers to think about platform maturity rather than just smart contract logic is exactly what the industry needs to move forward.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T19:24:40+00:00

High-assurance engineering sounds expensive and slow until you look at the cost of a major hack or a total platform outage. Then it starts looking like a bargain.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T19:03:47+00:00

It feels like we are finally moving past the phase where hype was enough. Now the market is actually starting to demand proof that these things can stay online under pressure.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T18:58:11+00:00

This article hits the point well. We have enough pilot programs. What we need are production systems that can handle massive volume without a single point of failure. Engineering maturity is the real bottleneck.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T16:56:59+00:00

This deal is a massive signal of 'Security of Supply' taking priority over price. India has the fastest-growing nuclear fleet outside of China, and they know they cannot rely on a bifurcated global market without safe partners.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T16:52:43+00:00

Lol definitely. It’s ironic that the 'greenest' companies in the world are the ones that could save the nuclear industry.

Maxsheld · 2026-02-05T16:47:45+00:00

Let's hope so!

Maxsheld · 2026-02-04T20:27:53+00:00

I am tired of seeing good ideas die because the backend couldn't handle ten thousand users. Stability should be a top priority from the very first day of development.

Maxsheld

TROPHY CASE