INVESTOR OVERVIEW
A TL;DR OF WHAT WE DO AND WHO WE ARE
WHAT WE DO
Guer introduces the use cryptographic identity (ETH keypairs) as the basis for three encryption protocols critical to the web:
- Single Identity Encryption, for secure remote data storage, from photos to NFTs
- Shared Encryption, for everything from end-to-end encrypted messaging to secured web connections
- Proxy Re-encryption, for licensing, digital rights management, and transerring digital assets
The protocols are completely decentralized, compatible with both emerging Web3 services and existing Web2 services, and completely open source.
WHY WE DO IT
Web3 is decentralizing most web architecture, from web hosting to data storage to virtualization, but continues to use Web2 protocols for security. Internet security has not changed much since 1995, and is extremely centralized. This leaves our new infrastructure vulnerable to the same threats as Web2:
- Internet Infrastructure Vulnerabilities, such as Man-In-The-Middle Attacks
- Device Vulnerabilites, such as SIM swapping
- 3rd Party Vulnerabilities, such as compromised cloud-based key management
Much of this infrastructure serves to add digital identity over location-based addressing, and in the process, increases attack surface.
HOW WE DO IT
Web3 is already built on cryptographic addressing - private/public keypairs. Our encryption suite uses this addressing as the root identity for encryption, security, and privacy.
- Authority, Identity and requests are handled by smart contracts and Web3 services such as ENS, eliminating DNS/Certificate Authority Risks
- Key Generation and Distribution, Securely generate keys, both locally and remotely (using networked TEEs), and safely distribute them across public networks such as blockchains
- Encryption, Our suite generates backwards compatible keys for encryption, allowing developers to use what's familiar, such as OpenSSL
The cryptography is tried and true: AES, ECDSA, and ECIES. Our suite focuses on modified libraries to take advantage of cryptographic identity.
FOR SOCIAL GOOD
Provides meaningful sovreignty over digital identity
Privacy-by-default, rather than Privacy-as-a-privelege
Enables useful alternatives to centralized services such as Big Tech
Digital business has an alternative to Surveillance Capitalism
Segments data, reducing quantity of high-value targets like databases
FOR THE COMMUNITY
100% Free & Open-source: Encourages adoption, fosters trust, and allows anyone to verify the code
DAO Foundation: Codebase, developer support, and governance managed by a community foundation
Sustainable Maintenance: Revenues from gas fees will go towards encouraging maintance and continued development of the suite
Backwards Compatibility: Build Web3 without breaking Web2
DEVELOPMENT ROADMAP
OUR TEAM
Steven and James began tinkering in Web3 in 2017, having met as neighbors in San Francisco. They immediately appreciated the promise of a decentralized web, but recognized that security and permissions were well behind other emerging services such as decentralized storage and virtualization. In February of 2019, following SF's RSA conference, they decided to begin researching web security in order to decentralize it, and pivoted the project completely in November of the same year.
Throughout the pandemic, Steven and James grew accustomed to working remote-first. Steven remains in San Francisco with his family, and James has relocated to Europe to take advantage of the favorable regulatory environment and emerging crypto communities.
Steven has a technical background in Fullstack software engineering, with a BS in Computer Sciences from University of Arizona, Magna Cum Laude. He works in Solidity, JavaScript, React, JSON, GoLang, and HTML.
James has a background in business operations, with over a decade in both corporate and entrepreneurial environments, ranging from corporate hospitality to venture capital. He also conducts much of the research into cryptographic functions and systems architecture.
OUR COMMUNITY
Guer Labs, Inc is a pre-seed, pre-revenue project developing the Web3-native encryption suite. We intend to publish the suite as Free and Open-Source (FOSS), under the guidance and management of a community-supported Decentralized Autonomous Organization (DAO). Revenues generated as gasrelated nano-transactions will be routed through the DAO to supporters and maintaining developers.
In the meanwhile, Guer has been active in the community, building strategic partnerships and collecting community feedback. Notably:
- SKALE Innovator Program
- PANELIST - Decentralized Storage for DaPPS with Skale, Gitcoin, Arweave, Guer
- GITCOIN Apollo Fellowship Program - Guer Encryption Suite
- EthGlobal HACKFS Hackathon - Web3 DRM for Digital Journalism
- TechStars Blockchain For Good Hackathon - 3rd Place, Anti-corruption System
- TechStars SF Start-up Weekend Mentor - Sustainability
- EthGlobal Scaling Ethereum - Prize Winner, Stateless E-commerce
- Berlin Blockchain Week, 2019
- BuildETH San Francisco 2019
- SF Blockchain Week 2019
- Berkeley CESC 2019
- RSA Conference 2020
- Stanford Blockchain Conference 2020
- Paris ETHcc 2021
