{
Superlunar
adjective / ˈsuːpərlaɪnar / スーパールナ
Situated beyond the moon, celestial;
}
We are Superlunar,
a web3 research & design studio.
Our work is focused on the applications of decentralized technology, and the practical intersection of the browser and the blockchain.
Beyond the Moon
Our mission is to explore blockchain technologies without hyperbole, or dogma.
At Superlunar, we believe honest dialogue — and treating blockchain as a technology vs a religion — is the best way to build a solid foundation to help advance the space and identify and solve real problems.
The last few years have seen a rapid mainstreaming of decentralized technology. All things considered, it doesn't feel like "crypto" or "web3" will be going away any time soon.
Since the publishing of the Bitcoin paper, the reality of our evolving digital ecosystem is that blockchain technology has and continues to impact the lives of users on a global scale. This reality demands careful attention and thoughtful, user-centric development.
Builders and developers have been presented with a unique challenge: to re-examine existing technology and business architectures in relation to the blockchain ecosystem.
Right now, builders and users in this new ecosystem typically have more questions than answers:
What, if any, are the benefits of blockchain platforms?
Do blockchain technologies offer anything of tangible architectural value to a web2 world?
How can developers, builders and contributors help effectively iterate on the concept of returning data ownership and control to the user?
It is because of these types of questions that we are firm in our belief that the time to make an investment in blockchain research is now.
Research Methodology
Superlunar's cross-functional research team encompasses an array of disciplines ranging from data science, platform engineering, design, security, and thought leadership.
Our work is firmly rooted in collaboration with the community of builders and contributors in the web3 ecosystem.
FUNCTION//
UTILITY//
UI/UX//
FUNCTION//
UTILITY//
UI/UX//
Sharing Knowledge
As a research group, one of our primary goals is to generate new knowledge and insights that can advance our field and benefit society. An essential part of this process is publishing the results of our efforts, so that others can learn from our work and build upon it. By sharing our findings in reputable journals, conference proceedings, and other forms of publication, we can ensure that our research has the maximum impact and reach.
UX Design in Web3, or why Web 1 + Web 2 does not equal Web3
Rather than regurgitating the sweeping promises and potential advantages of the new web3 world, we thought it would be valuable to look at some of the discrete technical advancements, both of Web 2.0 and web3, and what they mean for designers.
A Guide to NFT Royalties // How They Work and Why They Matter
Royalties are critical to the success of NFTs, for both creators and marketplaces alike. This article is for creators, offering actionable advice on how to add NFT royalties to your projects.
Geth Freezer Files: Block Data Done Fast
At Superlunar we have been investigating how to quickly access the large and complex data contained within the Ethereum blockchain. In this post we will explore some of the data collection methods evaluated, detail the Geth freezer file format, and provide some pragmatic approaches for anyone interested in parsing Ethereum chain data quickly.
The Making of an NFT
Superlunar recently redesigned Gemini’s security onboarding process from the ground up. As part of that redesign, Gemini now mints a unique non-fungible token (NFT) for every new employee.
FUNCTION//
UTILITY//
UI/UX//
FUNCTION//
UTILITY//
UI/UX//
Community Support
RUN PROGRAM { [FUNCTION, UI/UX] };
Cultivating the Crypto-Native Community
In 2022, as part of the Gemini Opportunity Fund's ongoing mission to support crypto-native developers, Superlunar pledged $971,900 to individuals and organizations across five continents.
We took a holistic approach to the type of support we offered. To ensure our grantees were able to meet their goals, we provided organizational support, design work, content creation, and opportunities for collaboration with other grantees.
$971,900
total funding across all sponsorships
5 continentsincluded in our Global Spread of pledged support
+400 individualsBitcoin development journeys supported
Path of Bits
Bitcoin Core Contributor
Jarol Rodriguez
Project
Bitcoin Core GUI
Quote
“The win I’m most proud of is the community
I’ve built around the development of the GUI. That’s critical for its continued existence and maintenance”
"The win I'm most proud of is the community I've built around the development of the GUI, that's critical for its continued existence and maintenance."
Jarol Rodriguez
Superlunar Grant Recipient
"I felt so technically and emotionally supported during the Des Femmes mentorship program. This program helped me create a one-year career plan to being working as a developer for the Lightning Network."
Des Femmes Student
Superlunar Grant Support Recipient
"Thank you so much Superlunar for helping not only La Libreria de Satoshi, but also for taking an interest in the problems of our Latin American and Caribbean region. I value your work very much, thank you!"
Education Lead, La Libreria de Satoshi
Superlunar Grant support Recipient
FUNCTION//
UTILITY//
UI/UX//
FUNCTION//
UTILITY//
UI/UX//
Technical Research
RUN PROGRAM { [UTILITY, UI/UX] };
A Problem-First Research Approach
Early on in its inception, our team found the need to answer large scale questions against EVM based blockchains, and could find few existing solutions to meet our needs in terms of breadth, programmability, or ability to operate at scale. Off-the-shelf wouldn't cut it, the solution was to build our own solution.
This initial need to build bespoke tooling to enable in-house research grew into a much stronger thesis around facilitating universally easy access to reading, writing, and filtering through on-chain activity.
As with most things involving research, our work stems from asking questions. Such as, “how many NFTs are currently broken or dead?”
Analyzing & Orchestrating On-Chain Data
Core sampling from every block in the EVM ecosystem.
Monitoring every new block in the EVM ecosystem.
Automated on-chain transactions at regular intervals.
RUN PROGRAM { [SUPPORTERS] };
Thanks to Our Contributors & Partners
RUN PROGRAM { [THE TEAM] };
Rich Smith
CTO
Pete Baker
VP, Design
Beth Kurteson
CEO
Kristina Rogers
Chief of Staff
Caralie Chrisco
Principal, Fund
Jamie Chapman
Principal, ESG
Emily Neimann
Communications Lead
Hafsah Mijinyawa
Senior Designer
Nick Steele
R&D Manager
Jake Olsen
Architect Fellow
Baron Oldenburg
Principal Research
Engineer
Parker Thompson
Principal Research
Engineer
Hanzhao Yu
Research Engineer
Blaine Malone
Staff Research
Engineer
Chris H.
Principal Software
Engineer, Frontend
Mark Ma
R&D Intern
