The current state of the crypto world is indeed shaky. Fewer checks are being written, and regulatory pressure in the U.S., as well as economic uncertainty globally, are casting a shadow on the sector as a whole. However, the developer space is exhibiting signs of promise.
Web3 Developer Activity Continues to Grow
According to Alchemy’s latest Web3 Development Report, web3 developer activity continued to grow in the second quarter, both year-on-year and quarter-on-quarter. Ethereum and crypto wallet software developer kits (SDKs) saw 26.8 million and 11.1 million installations, respectively.
Market Recovery
The market is showing some signs of recovery. The top five topics in web3 that people were most interested in, as per a survey by Alchemy, were smart contract security, account abstraction, ZK-rollups, smart contract development, and AI, in that order. At the same time, those surveyed also acknowledged that funding is the biggest barrier to growth.
Developer Momentum Continues
Even with market fluctuations, the industry has reached a stage of maturity that is "no longer solely dependent on speculative trading trends," according to Zakrzowski. Mainstream adoption of blockchain continues to grow, and as more industries discover the value of decentralized solutions, the demand for skilled developers will only increase.
The Future of Web3 Development
As market conditions change — and possibly improve — O’Holleran expects more developers will be interested in learning about blockchain technology and how they can contribute to the space. However, the task at hand may not be that simple, Hamilton said. "[Developers need] to figure out how to bring the masses into crypto with applications that can drive value for the end users without them having to know it’s even crypto."
Growth of the Crypto Industry
In the past seven years, the crypto industry has seen over 22,000 monthly active developers enter the space, bringing the total number to 23,343 as of December, up 5% from a year earlier. Around 52% of all monthly active developers began contributing in 2022, marking a big wave of people entering in recent quarters.
Real-World Use Cases
This time allows developers to focus on building products and dApps with real-world use cases, rather than catering to the swarm of users that enter crypto during a bull market. As blockchain gains recognition in various sectors beyond crypto, such as supply chain management and gaming, developers will continue to be enticed by the diverse range of applications and use cases.
Funding as the Biggest Barrier
The survey also revealed that funding is the biggest barrier to growth for web3 developers. However, with more industries discovering the value of decentralized solutions, the demand for skilled developers will only increase.
Conclusion
Despite the current market fluctuations, the crypto industry is showing signs of promise. With developer momentum continuing into the third quarter and beyond, it’s clear that the industry has reached a stage of maturity that is no longer solely dependent on speculative trading trends. As more industries discover the value of decentralized solutions, the demand for skilled developers will only increase.
Related News
- Alchemy: Alchemy is a leading provider of web3 infrastructure and tools for developers.
- Crypto Developers: The number of crypto developers has been growing steadily over the past few years.
- Web3 Development: Web3 development is an exciting field that’s gaining traction in the industry.
Sources
- Alchemy
- Crypto Developers
- Web3 Development
