Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak believes that blockchain is a bubble similar to that of the dotcom era, but that it could have potential in the future, CNBC reported yesterday, June 26.
During the NEX technology conference in New York, Wozniak said that the dotcom era created a similar kind of hype around companies that did not end up delivering on their promises:
“It was a bubble, and I feel that way about blockchain.”
However, Wozniak did add that blockchain is “decentralized and totally trustworthy,” noting that it just may “take a while” for its potential to fully come to fruition:
“It doesn’t change in a day, a lot of the blockchain ideas that are really good by coming out early they can burn themselves out by not being prepared to be stable in the long run.”
Wozniak had expressed similar sentiments about the future potential for both blockchain and cryptocurrencies last month.
CNBC notes that Wozniak singled out Ethereum (ETH) as one cryptocurrency that could last in the long term, due to its versatility in allowing developers to build on its blockchain. In mid-May at a conference in Vienna, Wozniak had also compared Ethereum’s platform to Apple’s platform, stating that it could become just as influential as Apple in the future.
According to CNBC, Wozniak yesterday mentioned the possibility of using blockchain for a social network competitor to Facebook, which he said was currently working as a monopoly in the sector.
Wozniak, who had referred to Bitcoin (BTC) as “pure digital gold” earlier this month, noted that Bitcoin is still "just amazing” to CNBC.