Achain is a public blockchain platform that enables developers of all levels to issue tokens and create smart contracts, decentralized applications, and blockchain systems. Achain is committed to building a global blockchain network for information exchange and value transactions. Unlike Bitcoin or Ethereum, Achain utilizes a modified version of DPoS — RDPoS (Result-delegated Proof of Stake) to establish node consensus. Shortly, DPoS suggests that all coin holders vote for the validator nodes that will produce the next blocks. On the project website, only info about CEO Tony Cui is listed. Cui has a few significant accomplishments, including winning the Future Star award from the Zhongguancun Alliance and being listed in the 30 under 30 on CYZONE, a famous venture capital magazine. On LinkedIn, 51 people are listed as employees at Achain. Most of the team is based in Beijing. Achain also has a few key industry partners. It has even co-organized a “Blockchain Technology Open Course” with Tsinghua University, which is widely recognized as one of the world’s top universities. The roadmap for Achain development is fairly detailed. However, most goals listed are development-oriented rather than marketing or design. Still, it’s important to note that focusing on making the protocol interoperable and building a technology that is more accessible to mainstream adoption could also be considered a marketing-oriented part of this project. There are three major phases with projected completion dates listed. These include Singularity (completed Q1), Galaxy (ongoing), and Cosmos (complete at the end of Q4). One thing to note is that dates for these phases are not consistent between the homepage and the whitepaper. This could be simply due to a scenario in which phase names remain the same while new goals and timeline dates within those phases continue to change. In January 2019, the project will update the website to reflect roadmap goals for the new year. Looking at the current landscape of blockchain projects, Achain certainly offers the possibility of much-needed technical innovations. The ability to easily create an Achain fork, as well as, the protocol’s unique RDPoS consensus algorithm make this a promising project. It will be interesting to see how Achain builds upon its accomplishments, and how the project team continues to develop a long-term strategy for improving the protocol’s technical capabilities and increasing participation in its ecosystem.
AppCoins is a protocol for the App Economy created by the Aptoide App Store, and the first ICO serving 200 million users with the goal of creating a trustworthy economy without intermediaries. The AppCoins project was designed to foster innovation in technology. To create a universal digital advertising protocol for mobile devices, the developers at Aptoide designed AppCoins. AppCoins is an application-specific token which was designed to create a universal digital advertising protocol for mobile devices. It can be used to incentivize behavior which can then be used to raise money for the development of an app. Aptoide is the 3rd biggest app store with a with over 4 billion downloads and 1 million Apps. WIth over 230,000,000 users, apps and support in 40 languages, more than 2.8 billion downloads, the cryptocoin can revolutionize how people use mobile technology and applications. AppCoins will bring in a range of standard protocols to be followed by all developers to advertise their games or apps in the app store.The “AppCoin” ERC20 token will bridge the gap between the advertisers and the users. A user earns 85% from every advertising investment that goes inside the app store. The user has to then use those coins to buy items (in-app purchases) inside the apps and games, thus, generating the return of the investment to the developers. Most industry enthusiasts believe that the immediate forecast of AppCoins price trends leans towards the downward slope. It is expected to be priced at an average price of ~$0.191 for a long while, with a few minor fluctuations.The trend is however, expected to stabilize at this point until Aptoide as a platform gains traction within the mobile usage industry. Once the ROI of the Aptoide platform starts multiplying significantly due to an increase in the number of users and developers on the network, the price will increase significantly and will correspond to good returns for investors. AppCoins is an innovative concept with a tidy site that conveys the underlying ideas well. As described above, investment in APPC is a favorable option for both developers and users. However, it is evident that the returns of the AppCoins’ solution are directly proportional to the development of the relationship of the App-store and the OEMs in the ecosystem. Thus, the amount of profit or returns gained by a trader will be a function of the ROI which the platform develops and its reputation in the crypto space.With almost 50% of the APPC coins in circulation as of July 2018, users have a good opportunity to buy them. However, it should be noted that it does not form a good investment option for a short period of time.