Dapp

What is a Dapp?

A dapp is a decentralized application: essentially, any app that runs on blockchain technology. Although found in all kinds of industries, dapps most commonly appear in the financial and gaming industries, particularly with DeFi dapps like Uniswap.

Variant spellings include DApp and dApp.

Why Is It Important to Have a Dapp?

Dapps promise—and more than not deliver—the ability for anyone to create apps with the security and speed that are characteristic of blockchain technology. These apps apply to commercial, public, and private uses; however, most dapps have been created to address market niches. Financial decentralization, for example, has shown itself a particularly fruitful application of this technology as it enables populations without bank access to receive and use money.

Dapps also work well for people with little to no app development experience; existing open-source dapps allow users to edit their code to suit their own needs.

What Internal Data Should I Have for Good Dapp Development?

To develop a decentralized app, companies or individuals must consider their own needs or goals. An anti-counterfeiting dapp, for instance, verifies the authenticity of artwork, documents, and so on with the unique IDs of blockchain technology; thus, the original artwork or documents must be utilized. As another example, healthcare institutions may set up blockchains for medical supply needs or insurance claims.

Developers should also consider architecture: would their application work best with public, private, or hybrid architecture?

What External Data Is Essential for Good Dapp Development?

Aside from the blockchain technology itself, essential external data consists of whatever the developer considers relevant. Healthcare supply chain management dapps, for example, must have accurate data about suppliers, devices, and distributors.

What External Data May Prove Useful for Good Dapp Development?

As above, additional external data depends on the dapp’s intended uses. To this end, the intended audience may also be an important consideration. Demographic data, for instance, will impact the development, design, and marketing of any publicly-released dapp such as a casual game.

What Are the Main Challenges of This Use Case?

One of the greatest challenges of dapps is the fact that this is not a well-established field. Despite resources from public blockchains, developers may encounter difficulties in finding guides or other resources when they run into issues. For this reason, many companies outsource to developers.

It is also possible—though very unlikely—that a very popular dapp can slow down other transactions on the larger blockchain.

Interesting Case Studies and Blogs to Look Into

DappRadar
IEEExplore: A Blockchain-Based Application System for Product Anti-Counterfeiting

Tangible Examples of Impact

The founder of a Reddit group responsible for rallying retail traders against large institutional hedge funds is planning to release a decentralized application (dapp) he says will help tackle “market manipulation” in traditional finance.
…
“The amalgamation of blockchain technology with financial markets is the next logical step for finance,” said Rogozinski. “It will result in stronger, more democratized markets and will empower individuals around the world.”

CoinDesk: WallStreetBets Founder to Launch Blockchain App to Combat ‘Market Manipulation’