Web3 > Bitcoin, According To Google Trends

Beautiful morning, everyone. It's BitDegree Insider time. But first, would mind answering this simple question? It helps us understand our audience better:

Did you notice we started adding a 'TL;DR' section in our newsletter? Do you find it useful?

Here's what we've got for today:

• ⚡ Web > Bitcoin
• ⚡ Yet Another 'Solana Killer'?
• ⚡ Venture Monday
• ⚡ Selected Meme of The Day
• ⚡ Bite-Sized News

Web3 > Bitcoin

That's not us who said it. It's what the latest Google Trends data tells us. One way to look at it is to think that people don't search for 'Bitcoin' anymore, since more and more people have become Bitcoin-educated.

Another way to look at it, is to realise that the public's attention has went from observing a particular brick to concentrating on the entire structure. Because if you understand Web3… You understand Bitcoin.

Google Trends data shows that people's interest in Web3 stands at 72 points, while Bitcoin stands at 27. Such a difference further consolidates the fact that web3 is truly entering the standardised vocabulary, and becoming more than simply a 'marketing buzzword', as Elon Musk famously said.

Let's zoom in. What are the exact countries that show the highest interest in these keywords? Not too surprisingly, El Salvador takes the lead in the quest of Googling Bitcoin. Nigeria and the Netherlands are also at the top. But here's where things get interesting. Guess what country shows the highest interest in 'Web3'? Go on, take a ludicrous guess. And the answer is… China. Yes, the People's Republic of China. The country has famously banned crypto. And Google. And yet… takes the #1 place in the race of googling about Web3.

TL;DR: People are googling 'Web3' more than 'Bitcoin'. It marks a cultural change in people's perception of what's important.

Another 'Solana Killer'?

The word starts with a 'C' and ends with 'elestia'. Say hello to Celestia, a modular blockchain that (at least) promises to deal new cards on the DeFi table.

So the news just arrived that Celestia just raised $55M. What's the big deal here? This is what they say on their website:

"Celestia's new modular blockchain architecture is made to supercharge the scale and rate of Web3 innovation in the next decade." Big words.

But what does 'modular' mean? Here's their explanation:

"We envision a blockchain ecosystem with modular data availability layers and execution environments that all integrate together. We believe modular blockchains are the next generation of scalable blockchain architectures".

To put it simply: It's a cool-sounding word, which will (or will not) actually provide innovative scaling solutions. The project received funding from such names as Placeholder, Galaxy, Delphi Digital, Blockchain Capital, NFX, Protocol Labs, FTX Ventures, and more. This means they have the resources to actually make their vision come to life.

So, remember the name, follow the news, be ready, and eventually you won't find yourself perplexed when Celestia falls from the sky like an unknown celestial body on your head.

TL;DR: New blockchain called Celestia is in the makings. It has potential to be huge. 

Venture Monday

It's Monday. Time to check out what and why attracted heavy investments since last Monday.

Developer MetaJuice has closed its final metaverse token VCORE presale, even though the exact amount was not disclosed.

Among strategic presale investors, you can find such names as Animoca Brands, Meta Impact Capital, BITKRAFT Ventures, Blockchain CoInvestors, Immutable X, DWeb3 Capital, Rosemoor Digital Assets, Peer Ventures and Mirana Ventures.

One more important mention: Crypto services company BlockchainCom raised an undisclosed amount of additional capital in a round led by Kingsway Capital, with participation from Baillie Gifford and Lightspeed Venture Partners.

What catches our eye is the fact that neither of the companies disclosed the amount they pocketed in during the investment rounds. It sounds kinda sus, not gonna lie. Yet, on the other hand, the names of the investors are huge. This definitely means we're not talking about a fistful of pennies. It's more like a fistful of dollars. Millions of them.

Yet here's a company who doesn't play the secret game. Video games platform Stardust raised $30M in a Series A funding round led by Framework Ventures.

Selected Meme of The Day

Bite-Sized News

• Hong Kong to Launch Several Crypto-Related Initiatives Separately from China
• DeFi Platform Freeway Halts Its Services, Citing Market Volatility
• Kazakhstan the Third Biggest Bitcoin Miner in the World
• Japan Credit Bureau to Launch CBDC Infrastructure Testing