Arcana: Our Web3 Odyssey - Four Years of Resilience

The Web3 landscape, characterised by decentralisation and innovation, has witnessed the rise of Arcana. Join us on our four-year journey that has shaped both us and the Web3 world.‍

Chapter 1: Inception of a Vision ‍

Our journey began in the early days of Web3 when decentralised storage was an unexplored frontier. Aravindh Kumar, Abhishek, and I (Mayur Relekar), driven by innovation, sensed the potential.

This was around 2018-2019, a time when Web3 was still in its infancy. Infrastructure options for developers were limited, especially in the storage domain. IPFS was the sole notable player, but it had its limitations and uncertainties. We saw an opportunity.

We took a leap of faith, leaving our secure jobs to fully commit to this vision. Thanks to our early efforts, we managed to put together a proof of concept. Armed with this, we ventured into the market, hoping to find allies who shared our vision.

However, the market had other plans. It became evident that decentralised storage wasn't a priority for people. What they desired was a place to store their data, be it centralised or decentralised. The storage landscape boiled down to two things: price and quality. 

The more we pondered, the clearer it became that decentralised storage's true potential required massive scale - something beyond our immediate reach. 

So, we found ourselves at a crossroads. We needed to pivot. We brainstormed various ideas, and one stood out - repurposing the technology we had built for the storage layer into a consumer product.

This time, we promised ourselves that we'd validate the idea with users before venturing into the market. We spoke to over a hundred people, and the feedback was promising. This marked the birth of Skizzle, a simple browser extension. It allowed users to send and receive end-to-end encrypted attachments within their emails seamlessly. No frills, just a practical solution. As we worked on this encrypted file storage concept, we realised it could be generalised and offered to developers through SDKs and APIs.

Our journey from the initial idea in mid-2019 to the birth of Arcana and the genesis of our groundbreaking concept took roughly a year and a half. It was far from a dramatic saga, but it was real, filled with challenges, learning curves, and decisions made from the heart.

Since then, we've always returned to our roots, emphasising the importance of validation. We've learned to listen to our customers, allowing them to guide us in shaping our solutions. It's not the sole determinant, but it's a crucial benchmark.‍

Chapter 2: Building the Foundation‍

Arcana evolved from a quest for decentralised storage into a platform designed to tackle core Web3 challenges. Early interactions with the blockchain community, including support from figures like Sandeep Nailwal, fortified our resolve.

Fundraising in late 2021 enabled us to assemble a stellar team, and in 2022, we unveiled an alpha version Arcana Auth. Valuable insights from early users fueled our progress.

A pivotal realisation led to a strategic shift. We transitioned from being privacy-centric to empowering developers to create exceptional Web3 apps, prioritising user experience. Recognizing the complexities of onboarding non-Web3 users, we introduced Arcana Auth, simplifying user access. This marked a significant step in our journey.

Our path emphasises the balance between complexity, abstraction, and trustlessness in Web3. Cryptography became pivotal in our product development, and we focused on empowering developers to craft high-quality, trustless Web3 applications.

“In pain, an individual always looks for a painkiller, but at the time, serving a vitamin is not an ideal solution. Similarly, as a builder it is important to identify what are the pain points of users and focus on solving them.”

The foundational year laid the groundwork for Arcana's potential as a UX techstack for the Web3 developers.

Chapter 3: Addressing Key Challenges - Pioneering the Way Forward

After finding initial validation, we ushered in a transformational phase. Arcana ventured beyond just being a storage  solution, boldly tackling challenges such as Auth, Developer experience and starting work on Gasless transactions and Crypto payments.

Our technology empowered various utility-driven features, such as token integration, subscription management, and content sharing. Detaching our narrative from privacy-only allowed us to explore a broader market, opening doors to diverse applications.

In 12 months, Arcana Auth went from a feedback-intensive beta phase to the mainnet. Today, Arcana Auth has more than 80 enterprise customers and 20 partners. 

While building Arcana Auth and interacting with so many partners/customers , we realised the best way to onboard users to Web3 was just to send them some crypto. But non-Web3 people didn't know how to create wallets, manage keys, or even transact. That's when we thought of building Sendit. A tool that lets you send crypto to anyone just through their email. The goal of SendIT was twofold - first onboard millions of users to Web3 & second was to showcase the power/scalability of Arcana’s tech stack. The whole of SendIT is built on Arcana's stack. 

Through developer and community-focused products, we aimed to demonstrate our capabilities to a broader audience, igniting curiosity about the technology behind these apps. Organic inbound interest, sparked by these products, played a pivotal role in our growth.

We recognized the need to nurture a thriving community. Arcana isn't just about building tech; it's about fostering a sense of ownership and participation. We understand that a healthy ecosystem requires both developers deeply engaged with the technology and users aware of its intrinsic value.

Chapter 4: Customers and Partners - Our Pillars of Strength

Arcana's journey is an amalgamation of insights from our customers, fruitful partnerships, and an ambitious roadmap into the future. Our diverse user base spans various industries and applications, with Arcana Auth finding success in gaming and social apps by offering a seamless Web3 login experience.

Our technology shines in DeFi applications, particularly those that tokenize real-world assets, making crypto investments accessible to a broader audience. Expanding into thriving markets, especially in Asia, is part of our strategic plan to deepen our impact.

We're not just improving login experiences but also simplifying NFT purchases. Our goal is to create a user-friendly NFT buying flow, reducing the process to a couple of clicks.

Nurturing a thriving community is pivotal. Our commitment to early-stage partnerships ensures effective engagement and collaboration. Collaboration isn't limited to customers; we actively partner with Layer One chains, both established and emerging, to provide essential tooling and support.

Chapter 5: The Road Ahead

As we look ahead, our core strengths and developer-centric approach will continue to guide us. We're committed to creating user-centric products, streamlining interactions within the Web3 ecosystem, and enhancing user experiences.

An exciting development is the creation of a high-performance, decentralised database, aligning perfectly with Web3 principles. We're expanding our suite of services, going beyond Auth to provide developers with comprehensive tools and solutions.

Building a strong community is vital for any Web3 project's success, and we'll continue to engage with early-stage partners, offer extensive support, and foster collaboration. Collaborating with Layer One chains remains a priority, contributing to emerging ecosystems by providing essential tooling and support.

The dynamic Web3 landscape keeps us on our toes. We adapt by closely monitoring market trends, user needs, and emerging technologies, ensuring our services stay relevant and effective.

Conclusion

It's a journey filled with challenges and breakthroughs, fueled by a burning desire to simplify, empower, and transform.

We've been inspired by the stories of developers who've unlocked new possibilities with Arcana Auth, partners who've seen the impact of our collaborations, and users who've experienced the magic of Web3. These stories are the soul of our journey, the beating heart that propels us forward.

As we look ahead, we see not just a roadmap but a promise. A promise to keep pushing boundaries, to keep innovating, and to keep shaping the Web3 future. Together, we will write the next chapters of this remarkable journey. We invite you to join us, for the future is not a distant destination; it's a path we create together.

Thank you for being a part of our story, and here's to the endless possibilities of the Web3 frontier.

From,

Mayur Relekar
Co-Founder, Arcana Network