In the rapidly evolving world of NFTs, the Solana blockchain has emerged as a hub for innovation, attracting developers and traders alike with its high-speed and low-cost transactions. One of the standout projects making waves in this space is Tater Field, a revolutionary platform designed to transform how users trade and manage their NFT portfolios.
In this exclusive Q&A, we sit down with John Ennis, the creator of Tater Field, to explore the vision behind the platform, the cutting-edge technology powering its matching engine, and its ambitious plans to revolutionize the NFT trading landscape.
From addressing the challenges of bid/ask spreads to introducing unique features like trait-based valuations and incentive systems, Ennis shares how Tater Field aims to create a seamless and efficient marketplace for NFT swaps. Whether you're an experienced trader or a curious newcomer, Tater Field promises to offer innovative solutions that could transform your NFT experience on Solana.
What inspired you to create Tater Field, and how does it address the current challenges in NFT trading on Solana?
Most NFT traders and collectors don't appreciate just how much money they lose when crossing the bid/ask spread when trading NFTs. With Tater Field, we help our users avoid this spread crossing to realize significant savings by matchmaking users with complementary interests. Right now, people trying to avoid the spread do so through traditional OTC swaps, but finding people with whom to trade is time-consuming and still requires negotiating a deal that's acceptable to both sides. At Tater Field, we eliminate this friction to create a 'marketplace of swaps.'
Can you explain the technology behind Tater Field's matching engine and how it determines fair deals for NFT swaps?
Our matching engine analyzes the on-chain order books of existing NFT marketplaces to determine a fair deal for both sides, then shows users the savings they'll realize compared to selling and then buying on the open market.
How do you envision Tater Field transforming how users manage and optimize their NFT portfolios?
As Tater Field evolves, users will be able to state their goals in increasingly general terms, and Tater Field will matchmake for them automatically, allowing them to optimize their portfolio with maximum savings and minimum effort.
What are the key benefits of using Tater Field compared to traditional NFT marketplaces?
Tater Field is a new type of NFT marketplace that can best be described as a 'marketplace of swaps.' It sits between a traditional marketplace like Tensor and a pure OTC swap protocol like FoxySwap to provide the low-effort experience of a marketplace with the savings of an OTC swap protocol.
Could you elaborate on the concept of 'Potatoes' and how they incentivize early adopters of the platform?
Potatoes are our reward points, and we plan to launch a Tater memecoin token in the future to add an element of fun to our platform.
How does Tater Field plan to incorporate trait-based valuations for NFTs in future updates?
Just as we currently work out fair deals for both sides when swapping between collections at floor prices, we are in the process of implementing trait-based deals into our platform. This system functions similarly to our floor-based swapping, in that we analyze the market order books to determine what a fair deal would be to both sides of the swap, and show them how much they would save through the direct swap when compared to buying and selling through traditional marketplaces to achieve the same goals.
Can you share some of the partnerships Tater Field has formed with major projects like Angry Lads and Backpack, and how these collaborations benefit users?
We have been fortunate to establish partnerships with some of the top NFT communities on Solana, including Angry Lads, MonkeDAO, the Tensorians, Claynosaurz, Chads, and more. Members of these communities receive Tater boosts and will soon have access to community-restricted swapping tools that take traits into account when finding fair swaps. Backpack users also receive Tater boosts, and we hope to one day integrate Tater Field's swapping capabilities directly into Backpack.
What measures has Tater Field implemented to ensure the security and fairness of NFT swaps on the platform?
The fairness of swaps is determined by analysis of market order books, as discussed above. Our smart contracts have previously been audited by Quantstamp, and a version of our multi-asset swapping protocol has been open-sourced thanks to a grant from the Solana Foundation.
How do you see Tater Field evolving in the coming year, and what new features can users expect?
As mentioned above, we expect the expression of user intents to become more and more general, with recommendations provided based on an analysis of user behavior both on our platform and based on on-chain analysis. We also expect the interaction to become even lower effort, with the use of a chatbot powered by Tulle, to help the user better understand their goals and make on-chain commitments more easily.
As the founder, what's your long-term vision for Tater Field's role in the Solana NFT ecosystem?
Tater Field is unique in Web3 as it is the only swapping creation of its type. We would love to see the technology under the hood at Tater Field, built by our parent company, Tulle, to be present throughout the ecosystem, helping matchmake users directly. The vision here is a new type of exchange that is more efficient and requires significantly less time to operate. Interested readers can learn more about Tulle's vision at https://tulle.cc/treatise.
Dr. John Ennis is the founder of Tulle, which provides innovative strategy efficiency tools to their partners on Bitcoin and Solana.
