Princeton launches blockchain research initiative with $20M from crypto-alumni

cointelegraph.com:

Prestigious Princeton University has launched an initiative to study the "decentralization of societal power" through blockchain technology in an effort to explore the vast depths of it’s social capabilities.

For the launch, Bloomberg reported that Princeton’s Venture Forward campaign received $20 million in donations from high-profile alumni Peter Bridger from Fortress Investment, Ethereum co-founder Joseph Lubin, Pantera Capital CEO Daniel Morehead, and Galaxy Digital’s Mike Novogratz.

The initiative is designed to study the ways in which modern technology, especially blockchain, can interfere with and change social norms, just as other technologies such as the printing press and the internet have in the past. A March 11 video from the university states that “we are at a very early stage in understanding the opportunities and challenges” associated with cryptocurrency and blockchain.

Princeton’s Venture Forward campaign is an engagement and fundraising campaign to build community and alumni engagement, seek critical philanthropic support for the University, and share Princeton’s defining principles and their impact on the world.

The university believes that focusing on decentralization will promote growth in three areas of study. An official post from the university states that it will help it understand “the underlying engineering behind blockchain and related technologies,” discover new uses for blockchain in finance, voting, news, and elsewhere, and determine “the implications that such technologies could have for society.”

#PrincetonU is launching an initiative on blockchain and its potential to disrupt and redistribute power in society, supported by Peter Briger, Jr. ’86, @ethereumJoseph ’87, @dan_pantera ’87 and