Thanks for putting ANT on my map. I've seen it around but sometimes you gotta think how diverse can I really go. But this one might be worth a peg or two.
Serious answer, I agree with a fair amount of your list. Love steem hence why am on it. But it really depends on how they hold onto this niche they seem to have at the moment. If facebook has taught us one thing its that you have to diversify out of your original concept.
I'd stick ARK in there as well, serious contenders with a solid reputation for delivering on their road map, and as their core 2 rebuild shows, they are able to adapt to an evolving landscape.
And then there is Presearch :)
https://www.presearch.io/
As seen on CNBC so that gives them all the gravitas of a wet fart, but they are trying to be the blockchain of search engines. Who knows.
I agree 100% about Facebook, but I think Steem is valuable way beyond Steemit. Steemit is just the first but next is APPICS and more down the pipeline.
Presearch is directly going after Google and that concerns me. Like you mentioned with facebook diversifying I think Google will too. They might buy up coins like Presearch or Redd or others to give them a starting point, but I am willing to bet they already have team on it. ARK is a great choice, and one on my radar, that I have not pulled the trigger on. I've been on the fence, but since your checking out ANT, I'll check out ARK, lol. Thanks for the great reply.
Yeah I'd agree on that. Google have a lot of clout behind them. I don't know how you begin to make a decentalised search algorithm though. Half of google's success is its search engine's ability to learn, but that code is very much a closely protected asset of the business.
It reminds me of something in the mining industry where Leapfrog have been doing implicit modelling for decades now. A few years ago a load of the Standard Mining Packages released their own Implicit functions, but the tech is so far behind. Leapfrog can easily stay decades ahead of them and be the preferred option. Though funnily enough they are now looking to get into Resource estimation.
Anyways back on point:
To have something that doesn't belong to anyone, but can simultaneous self learn to become a better product than what Google offers. It may take a few years if not decades. Even if the code is left very much open source, it's still open to exploit and bias. But I would be interested to see what Google's move into crypto might be like. I see even Fuji film are getting in on the action and challenging cryptos like PoeT for a slice of the digital rights side of things. And Atari making a play for Tron and the like
Lines are getting blurred as the franchises weigh in :)
Yeah think I am going to sell some 10% of coins that have moved back into the green for me, and get a little ANT anyways.
Nice thing about ARK is that even if the coin only goes to lets say $10 in 5 years time. 10% APR on the coins held in wallet is a nice gain. Better than most high risk managed funds I've looked at.
If it shoots to $50 or so, in 10 years time, then I'm looking at a passive income of around $15,000 per year. Worth the risk for the $2,500 I've sunk into it.
I should add the 10% (Really ~8-10% as weekly payout will get compounded) is based on current ARK calculator, and the white paper gives around 6.31% for first year inflation, so there will be a gradual drop in payouts from delegates, but the drop rate is less extreme than LISK or Ethereum:
http://calculator.reconnico.com/