HANGGI

1. After completing your Master's degree at Seoul National University, you built a career as a developer. In which fields did you primarily work, and how did that experience influence the creation of Daren?

After finishing my Master's at Seoul National University, I joined an AI startup founded by former Google employees. There, I focused on developing AI-related products, which deepened my understanding of AI technology and honed my ability to transform complex tech into user-friendly products. This professional experience inspired the creation of Daren, making me realize the importance of providing AI technology in a more intuitive and easy-to-use form. My time at that company directly influenced Daren's development direction, helping me make wise decisions regarding technology choices, product design, and how to better meet user needs.

2. Many developers are interested in the Web3 field. What competencies should developers have to become successful founders in this space?

To become a successful founder in the Web3 field, it is important to possess deep technical expertise along with strategic thinking, business development and operational capabilities, and strong networking and community-building skills. This field has unique characteristics driven by technology and community; a deep understanding of security, as well as the flexibility to quickly adapt to and continuously learn from changing markets and technologies, is essential. These competencies play a key role in maintaining competitiveness and driving sustainable growth within the Web3 ecosystem.

3. Daren is generating many transactions as an AI on-chain service market and freelance platform. What are Daren's unique strengths that make these achievements possible?

Daren stands out in the AI on-chain service market and freelance platform space through the innovative integration of AI and blockchain technology, user-friendly design, decentralized community building, the application of a token economy, customized AI solutions, and excellent security and privacy protection. These differentiated strengths are the main driving forces that facilitate active transactions through Daren and bring innovation to the digital labor market.

4. We are curious about what motivated you to start Daren. From what problem awareness did you begin, and were there any difficulties in the process?

While studying for my Master's degree at Seoul National University, I began researching the blockchain field. Initially, I participated in secondary market trading of digital currencies and developed quantitative trading systems with my peers from the SNU Department of Computer Science and Engineering. I even started a small business by developing bots that supported trading. The trading bots we developed had a good user experience and supported various platforms including Windows and Mac, securing thousands of paid users.

As the number of users grew, some customers began recommending that we provide technical services to project teams. From 2018 to 2019, the technical services we received requests for diversified from smart contract customization and token issuance to market cap management in DeFi. This experience later provided a solid technical and product foundation for creating the DAREN platform. I believe that being able to access the latest projects and quickly put them into practice is an inherent advantage for a technologist starting a project.

As the number of service projects increased, our team recognized that management costs and trust issues were significant when paying with virtual currency. Therefore, we began planning the initial model of the DAREN platform, aiming to completely solve the issue of transaction trust on-chain and make transactions simpler. Starting in 2020, we began development while planning and organizing DAREN's product positioning, functions, and transaction procedures. Our goal is to provide the necessary infrastructure services for Web3 freelancers.

5. Recently, the number of registered users exceeded 600,000. What is the secret to securing so many users in a short period?

The secret to Daren building a large user base in a short time lies in a unique combination of innovative technology and services, continuous efforts to improve user-centered experiences, effective marketing strategies tailored to the target market, the construction and activation of a strong community, and establishing a unique position in the market by securing a continuous competitive advantage. These strategies interacted to make Daren stand out in the market and provided users with clear reasons to choose the platform.

6. Please share your thoughts on being selected for the BNB AI project and your future plans.

I am very pleased that BNB Chain recognized our platform's potential and selected us as an important AI project. This honor motivates us to continuously improve our technology and service levels and make a greater contribution to the development of the blockchain ecosystem.

Our plan is to expand our AI talent models and continuously improve their accuracy and reliability. By further integrating on-chain and off-chain data, we will build more comprehensive and detailed talent profiles and provide more accurate talent matching and recruitment services to project teams. At the same time, we will continue to strengthen our infrastructure models to provide more tools and resources to talent-related Dapp developers, helping them quickly build and launch their own products. We aim to become a leader in the talent market, injecting more vitality and momentum into the industry's development and innovation.

7. With the advancement of AI technology, the growth potential for platforms like Daren is expected to increase further. How do you plan to incorporate AI technology trends into Daren?

Daren plans to actively utilize advancements in AI technology to continuously improve and expand the platform's functions. To this end, we plan to incorporate AI technology in the following directions:

AI-based Talent Profiling: We use AI to analyze freelancers' capabilities, experience, and work tendencies to build sophisticated talent profiles. This allows us to suggest more customized projects to freelancers and recommend the best talent to clients.

Intelligent Matching System: We utilize AI algorithms to increase matching accuracy between freelancers and projects. This system provides optimal matching by comprehensively analyzing past success stories, user feedback, project requirements, and the freelancer's skills and experience.

AI-supported Career Development Assistant: We are developing AI-based career management tools to support the career development of freelancers. These tools analyze a freelancer's career data to suggest personalized career development plans and recommend educational materials or courses for necessary skill improvement.

The integration of these AI technologies is expected to further improve the efficiency and user satisfaction of the Daren platform. Furthermore, these technological innovations will play an important role in Daren's continued competitiveness and growth in the digital labor market.

8. Please introduce the Daren Ambassador Program. What are the roles and benefits for ambassadors?

The Daren Ambassador Program is designed to expand the community influence of Daren products as the world's first AI on-chain service marketplace and to allow more people to benefit. This program seeks to involve excellent talent such as Web3 enthusiasts, remote workers, freelancers, and part-time professionals in our ecosystem.

Ambassadors are deeply involved in Daren's development, contribute to ecosystem growth, and have the opportunity to communicate directly with the Daren team. They play an important role in expanding their personal networks within the Daren community and shaping the future of decentralized talent collaboration together.

Benefits as an ambassador include beta tester opportunities to participate in new product development, invitations to special events, and incentives and rewards based on activities. These opportunities provide a platform for ambassadors to demonstrate their passion and abilities, develop expertise, and broaden their international networks. The Daren Ambassador Program provides participants with innovative ways for decentralized talent and collaboration, creating opportunities for everyone to grow together.

9. Please explain Daren's mid-to-long-term roadmap and vision.

Daren's mid-to-long-term roadmap and vision aim to strengthen the platform's position and promote growth through continuous innovation in AI and blockchain technology, global market expansion, expanding the user base by attracting various business users, strengthening the token economy for a sustainable platform, and close cooperation with the user community. Through this, Daren intends to provide even better services to freelancers and corporate clients and lead continuous innovation in the digital labor market.

10. What is your view on the future that the convergence of blockchain and AI will bring?

The convergence of blockchain and AI technology is expected to bring revolutionary changes to the international business environment and the role of intermediaries. First, blockchain technology provides transparency and security in transactions, which can increase trust in international transactions and contribute to reducing legal and administrative complexities. AI technology helps shorten transaction times and reduce costs by automating and optimizing these processes.

In particular, the reduction in the role of intermediaries will become clearer. Through blockchain's smart contract functionality, the execution and verification of contracts can occur automatically, which will reduce the need for intermediaries in various fields such as legal and financial services and enable direct peer-to-peer transactions. AI can make the setup and execution of these smart contracts more efficient and intelligent, helping to easily manage even complex transaction conditions.

The convergence of these technologies will provide a faster, more cost-effective, and more reliable way to operate businesses globally, ultimately contributing to breaking down the boundaries of the global economy and forming a more inclusive and accessible market.

11. What is the value you consider most important as an entrepreneur? How are you reflecting that value in Daren?

The value I consider most important as an entrepreneur is 'providing true value to users.' This value is deeply reflected in all of Daren's activities and decisions. We focus on accurately identifying user needs and problems and developing products and services that provide solutions for them. For example, we use AI and blockchain technology to optimize matching efficiency between freelancers and clients, increase transparency in the transaction process, and strive to build trust between users. Additionally, we actively collect and reflect user feedback within the platform to continuously improve our services. Through all these processes, we aim to create substantial value for users and make their work performance more effective and satisfying.

12. We are curious about Daren's team composition. What fields are the experts from, and what are the key points of team building?

Daren's team consists of experts from various specialized fields, and the main characteristics of the team composition are internationalization and high-level expertise. Our core team members started primarily as computer science founders from Seoul National University and have expanded to include experts with long-term, in-depth research and development experience in the Web3 and AI fields.

Furthermore, internationalization is a very important factor in Daren's team composition. We secure international perspectives and expertise by including experts from various backgrounds around the world in our team. This diversity provides a great advantage for Daren in understanding global market needs and trends and developing customized services for various cultures and languages.

A key point in team building is 'sharing common goals and values.' We emphasize creating an environment where all team members clearly understand Daren's vision and goals, allowing them to do their best in their respective roles. Additionally, we are continuously improving communication techniques and fostering a culture that respects diversity to ensure smooth communication and cooperation among team members from different cultures and backgrounds. Through this, the unique experiences and knowledge of each team member are becoming the driving force behind Daren's innovation and growth.

When I met the founders of Daren in person, I could feel their kindness and passion for the blockchain market.

Coming from developer backgrounds, they are building a freelance market for the transparency that blockchain creates and for the individuals working within it.