By MARIA AVORY
Compiled by: TechFlow
The emerging longevity space is attracting many cryptocurrency natives who can both benefit from it and contribute to it using blockchain tools.
The emerging longevity industry is focused on researching and implementing solutions and technologies to extend human lifespan – enabling people to live healthier, longer.
Longevity is not yet recognized as an official medical term, and aging is not officially considered a disease, but rather a natural phenomenon of every living thing.
However, some biologists, researchers and practicing doctors believe that this approach should change and are working to discover the mechanisms of human aging. In the process, they are creating age clocks by defining biomarkers to measure biological age, exploring optimal lifestyle habits and natural supplements, and inventing new drugs that can stop us from getting older.
It’s no surprise that longevity has become a focus for cryptocurrency leaders, given the industry’s promise to improve humanity through innovation. In fact, one of the key events in the longevity space is the Longevity Investor Conference, organized by Marc P. Bernegger and Tobias Reichmuth, who were previously involved with Crypto Finance Group.
When encryption meets longevity
At a recent longevity investor conference in September 2022, speakers on the “Crypto and Longevity” panel noted that both industries — cryptocurrency and longevity — are disruptive sectors that challenge established norms.
“Everyone in this space is a pioneer in some way because we’re really getting to a stage similar to the internet, bitcoin and other exciting industries,” said Bernegger, founding partner of Maximon, an accelerator in the longevity space.
British author and biomedical gerontologist Aubrey de Grey stressed that the mentality of cryptocurrency and longevity innovators is very similar, with both “working in a field that is unorthodox and in need of advancement.”
Ryan Pyle, founding partner of Maine Investments, a Zug-based firm that manages digital assets, said the longevity industry reminds him of cryptocurrencies in 2013, and while no one knows exactly where the industry will be in 5-10 years, the potential is huge:
“I think the ecosystem is very exciting and it’s really early in the process of what Maximon is doing with this longevity conference, which is good. It’s better to be too early than too late. A lot of people in crypto are investing in this space just because they fully accept that level of risk.”
Bernegger also shared that because the longevity industry is at such an early stage, it is currently an attractive entry period for investors, "similar to Bitcoin back then, it doesn't care too much about the price, it cares about the underlying technology and potential."
How blockchain can be used in the longevity industry
Regarding the applications of blockchain technology itself, Bernegger was less optimistic, saying: “I think it’s hard to combine blockchain technology with another exciting field like longevity. From my personal perspective, I think the biggest synergy is not in combining the two technologies, but really in funding.” Regarding the investment and financing potential of cryptocurrencies, Bernegger added:
"I personally would rather focus on the funding side rather than the technology side, without ignoring that there are some exciting projects in the DeSci "decentralized science" space that definitely have huge potential. But I think it will take at least a few years to really see tangible products solving real-world problems."
Bernegger also mentioned compliance issues for both industries, saying that regulators could become a burden on research and adoption, not only because their role is to protect the end customer, but also "to another degree to protect the status quo."
The longevity industry is still in its infancy and has not seen many blockchain-related use cases. However, knowing what kind of problems have been solved with the help of blockchain technology can allow some professionals to see potential applications.
Claire Cui, a self-proclaimed longevity enthusiast and blockchain consultant, mentioned decentralized data as a potential use case:
“What cryptocurrencies are discovering is basically the technological potential of blockchain to solve some of the problems that people have today, like data privacy, data ownership. So, that’s where people are very curious. And in health, it’s even more sensitive. Nobody wants their DNA in their health records leaked somewhere.”
Data ownership also allows users to earn revenue from sharing their data with companies for scientific research. Thus, ordinary users become part of the revenue chain.
Another application of blockchain in the longevity industry is decentralized autonomous organizations, or DAOs, and decentralized intellectual property. An existing example is a platform called VitaDAO, a DAO for community management and drug development that co-funds and digitizes research in the form of non-fungible tokens representing IP. Christian Angermayer, founder of Apeiron Investment Group, said:
“One of the interesting parts of blockchain technology might be that we kind of make sure that people can work together better, but also make sure that everybody cooperates and gets a fair share of any outcomes, whether reputational or financial.”
The longevity industry appears to be an exciting area in which the cryptocurrency community can explore investments and use cases, especially because by its nature it is reminiscent of the early days of blockchain. At the same time, many existing blockchain technologies can be applied to the longevity industry to solve some of the problems it faces.
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