Polkadot is a network protocol that allows data to be transferred across blockchains. Polkadot is best described as many blockchains operating side by side that leverage the same security layer. It is referred to as the blockchain of blockchains.

This shared security layer is called the Relay Chain. We can think of it as being similar to the way in which apartments in the same building complex share a security guard at the main entrance, instead of each apartment (or blockchain) needing its own security. This keeps costs down and allows for blockchains to focus more on developing applications instead of issues related to security.

The Opportunity

Developers need to spend an incredible amount of time and money to get a new blockchain project up and running. This involves engineering and auditing the code to ensure the security of the project. It is a very costly and time-consuming endeavor. Developers need to spend much of their time creating the code for the project and spend hours reviewing it. The project managers need to spend tens if not hundreds of thousands of dollars to audit the code for security concerns.

If these steps are not taken nor done well, the consequences can jeopardize a project. There have been dozens of hacks and bugs to date that have resulted in millions of dollars of stolen assets.

 In fact, in 2020 there were over $120 million worth of stolen assets from just 15 decentralized finance (DeFi) application hacks. Many of these resulted in projects failing to bounce back. This presents a need in the industry to make this startup process better.

With Polkadot you do not need to build a chain from scratch, you take the existing chain, build XCM compatibility and join the relay chain and you get interoperability and security guaranteed.

Conclusion

I believe that Polkadot and its ecosystem will facilitate the on-boarding of new web 3 dapps making crypto safe to use and  accessible to the mass adoption.