Arweave (AR) was CoinMarketCap’s most-trending cryptocurrency on 1 August 2023. However, Arweave does not reveal any details of its product or technology.

Hence, we know little about Arweave. For example, the Arweave website uses the strange language “like Bitcoin, but for data: A permanent and decentralized web inside an open ledger.” This statement is nonsense because Arweave is nothing like Bitcoin (BTC).

To explain, Bitcoin is just a store of value and an alternative form of money. They built Bitcoin as an alternative to fiat currency and precious metals. Yet they intend Arweave as a data storage solution.

What is Arweave (AR)?

Decepitvely, the Arweave (AR) website offers no details on Arweave’s protocol or what it does. I could not even find a white paper.

Moroever, Arweave SCP Ventures, the organization behind Arweave, offers a different view of Arweave. They promote “a Storage-based Consensus Paradigm (SCP) that enables on-chain, scalable storage with guaranteed persistence.” The SCP is the protocol that forms the base layer of Arweave’s network.

Therefore, Arweave is a data solution. Arweave’s goal is to create “a truly decentralized and open web where users have complete control over their data and can access it anywhere, anytime.” I consider this impossible because a user loses control of data anytime she shares it.

There is no way to share data without losing some control. Hence, Arweave claims to do the impossible. Moreover, it offers the public two descriptions of its product. One description is vague and simple. The other sets impossible goals.

Is Arweave (AR) trying to deceive investors and speculators?

I think the Arweave (AR) website is deceptive because it makes impossible claims. For example, it claims Arweave offers permanent storage and a “permaweb.”

I think permanent storage is impossible cause nothing is permanent. In particular, they claim a digital construct, the blockchain can be permanent. This is impossible because anything digital is flexible and temporary.

You can hack any digital system, including the blockchain. Hence, they claim Arweave has the attributes of a physical object which is impossible.

They add another layer of deceptive by using the worst technique of bad journalism “writing at an eighth-grade level.” Hence, Arweave’s website copywriting is shallow and deceptive.

Arweave’s Deception

Writing at an eighth-grade level produces the idiotic statement “like Bitcoin, but for data.” To explain, it assumes Bitcoin (BTC) is the only cryptocurrency readers are familiar with. In reality, there are thousands of cryptocurrencies and millions of people use some of those cryptocurrencies.

For example, many people are familiar with Ethereum (ETH) and Binance (BNB). Yet, Arweave’s website does not mention Ethereum. Why? Are Arweave’s developers ignorant of Ethereum? I doubt it.

If Arweave’s builders are unaware of an industry standard. They are incompetent. If they refuse to compare their blockchain to an industry. I think they are hiding something.

Why not mention Ethereum and ERC-20 currencies and state whether Arweave is compatible with them? For example, is Arweave an ERC-20 token? I cannot tell. Although they claim Arweave can support smart contracts and decentralized apps (DApps) which sounds like Ethereum.

Moreover, they do not provide an example of one of the Arweave smart contracts or DApps. Nor do they mention any protocol that uses Arweave.

Instead, they claim Arweave works with Meta (FB), the company formerly known as Facebook (FB) and Meta’s popular social media solution Instagram.

What Value does Arweave (AR) offer?

Conversely, Mr. Market thinks Arweave (AR) some value. For example, CoinMarketCap named Arweave the third-largest cryptocurrency, with a $5.52Coin Price on 1 August 2023.

CoinMarketCap gave Arweave a $361.0210 million Market Capitalization, a $364.615 million Fully Distributed Market Cap, and a 24-Hour Market Cap of $9.603 million on 1 August 2023. They base those numbers on a 65.454 million AR Circulating Supply, a 65.454 million Total Supply, and a Maximum Supply of 77 million AR.

I think all Arweave (AR) proves is that clever public relations (PR) can make the worst cryptocurrencies attractive. I cannot tell if Arweave (AR) has an effective technology or just a business plan. Nor is there any evidence Arweave has anything to do with the technology known as augmented reality (AR). To explain, AR is another term for virtual reality (VR).

Arweave shows why smart investors and speculators need to examine a protocol’s website and materials. If there is no evidence, anybody else is using the technology. You should avoid it. I think Arweave makes impossible claims and fails to prove them. Thus, I advise speculators to stay far away from Arweave.