Image source @ Visual China
On January 18, ouyi OKEx, a global digital asset service provider, announced the launch of a new brand "OKX". Prior to this, the multi-chain wallet MetaX launched by Ouyi was also named after "X".
In fact, the popularity of "X" in the field of technology has a long history, from the aviation field to the consumer electronics field, to the Internet and blockchain, "X", as the smallest space occupied in the 26 letters, is often given more meaning and greater ambition, such as SpaceX, Google X, Tesla Model X, Samsung Galaxy X...
So, what is the magic of "X" and why is it so frequently favored by these future-oriented technology companies? Is the renaming of OKEx a hot spot, or is it a hidden strategic ambition to define the future?
The "X Whirlwind" of the Tech Circle
X represents the unknown and variable in mathematics, symbolizing the ability to think outside the box and explore innovative solutions when encountering uncertainties and challenges.
In the aerospace field, "X" is generally an abbreviation for extreme( experimental) and also means to explore uncharted territory. For example, SpaceX, which carries Musk's dream of Mars colonization, also represents an innovative spirit that explores uncharted territory.
In fact, as early as the 1940s, the United States began to explore the unknown territory to open the X series of test vehicle research. In 1945, the world's first rocket-powered test aircraft, the X-1, made its first successful flight. Since then, from the X-1 to the X-50, the X series of aircraft has continued to evolve, creating several records in human flight history.
At the turn of the century, a large number of Internet technology companies named "X", such as ImageX, eBenX, Xpedior, Xcare, Exult, Webex...
Inside Google, there is a mysterious department that focuses on the development of various black technologies and is regarded as the representative of Google's innovative spirit, called Google X. Google Glass, Google Balloon Project Loon and self-driving project Waymo are all from Google X.
In 2016, google X simply removed "Google" when replacing the new logo, leaving only an "X" character. Astro Teller, the head of Google X, once said: The "X" in Google X was just a placeholder at first, but later everyone found that "X" is a perfect name because it reflects the spirit of innovation very well.
Before and after the release of the iPhone X in 2018, the smartphone field also blew up the "X whirlwind" such as NEX, Find X, and Galaxy X.
In addition, in science fiction works, X is also a very popular element, such as "X-Files", "X-Men" and so on.
In the blockchain field, where technological innovation is changing with each passing day, new ways of playing, and new species are emerging in an endless stream, "X" also represents bold innovation, fearless exploration, and is full of infinite possibilities of unknown and imagination. At the same time, "X" also has the meaning of interaction and linking, which is in line with the cross-chain, cross-function, cross-platform and interoperable characteristics of the blockchain.
Therefore, this time OKEx was renamed OKX, removing the single attribute of Ex, declaring the ambition to provide users with cross-chain, cross-functional, and cross-platform interoperable services, and aspire to become an interactive hub of the crypto industry.
Tech companies change their names
"OKX is positioned as a crypto economy infrastructure provider in the Web3 era, which will be comprehensively laid out from the basic end (OEC public chain), the entrance end (MetaX multi-chain wallet), and the application side (DeFi, NFT, DEX, etc.), allowing users to easily switch between CeFi and DeFi worlds, and combine the advantages of centralized and decentralized services to create a one-stop service platform for the crypto economy." The relevant person in charge of OKX said.
That is to say, OKX is no longer satisfied with just being a digital asset service provider, but to fully lay out the future of Web3, and circle ordinary traders, new investors, NFT players, GameFi geeks and DeFi adventurers into its target user category, CeFi, DeFi business take-all.
There are also many cases of technology companies that subtract from brands like OKX, add business, and achieve geometric volume growth through self-innovation.
In 2007, Apple Computer changed its name to Apple, symbolizing that they will focus on more product lines, no longer just a computer company, so there is the iPhone 4 that led the world's mobile phones into the era of smart phones, as well as airPods, iPads, Watches and other classic product lines.
In 2017, Tesla Motors Inc. changed its name to Tesla Inc., eliminating Motors and fully entering the new energy industry. Today's Tesla is not only an electric vehicle manufacturer, but also the world's only vertically integrated energy company.
Facebook is even more bold and aggressive, announcing in October 2021 that it has changed its name to Meta and has full access to Web3, making it the most thorough technology company to enter the metaverse. Facebook's name change has also triggered an arms race in which technology giants such as Microsoft, Tencent, Alibaba, and ByteDance accelerate the layout of the metacosm.
Facebook all in the metaverse, in Zuckerberg's words, is the search for "the ultimate expression of social technology." So, okEx brand upgrade to OKX, and what opportunities in the blockchain field are smelled?
OKX out of the "comfort zone"
Nowadays, the deFi full chain is in full bloom, and new tracks such as NFT, SociFi, and GameFi are blooming. In the face of the unstoppable trend of on-chain applications, the demand for crypto players is also growing.
Just as Apple's PC market extended to the mobile terminal and wearable device field, tesla also saw a larger blue ocean beyond new energy vehicles such as home power supply and energy storage, and Facebook aimed at the next trillion-dollar "universe", as OKX, which is familiar with the rise of the crypto economy, with its deep insight into the industry, decisively stepped out of the "comfort zone" and began to lay out in the basic layer, entrance layer and application layer of Web3.
Today, OKX is upgrading to become an infrastructure provider in the crypto space, building a bridge to a decentralized world for users. To this end, OKX actively participates in the exploration and innovation of Crypto's new track: the launch of MetaX, providing multi-chain non-custodial wallets, Ouyi NFT market, DEX, DApps and other products; the ecological construction of self-developed public chain OEC has emerged; OKX Ventures has invested in hundreds of blockchain projects around the world.
Now open the OKX official website, you can see that the homepage integration has increased the MetaX function. The latter is open, decentralized, and okx's fist product to welcome Web3, aggregating DeFi, chain game, NFT and other scenario applications. Users want to use the MetaX function, you need to connect the wallet first, after the connection will form the user's asset Kanban, the assets in the user's wallet at a glance, you can also enter the OKX NFT market through MetaX, or through the "discovery" function directly to the game, DeFi and other types of on-chain applications.
MetaX doesn't just aggregate a variety of self-developed and third-party applications, its greater significance is to occupy the future of on-chain and Web3 portals. At present, this entrance has been formed, and in the future, it will be enriched from the Web side and plug-ins to the mobile end, and the basic functions will be continuously improved to create a one-stop service in the decentralized world and become the "best multi-chain wallet". MetaX currently covers 15 public chains such as Ethereum, OEC, Bitcoin, Litecoin, etc., and its product leader revealed that the access of public chains such as Solana, BSC, Polygon, Fantom, Avalanche, Arbitrum, xDAI, Heco and so on is already planned.
With the flow entrance, the construction of the application layer will also be completed. At present, NFT, DeFi, chain game and other OnChain applications are the main scenarios of MetaX. The Ouyi NFT platform, which was launched in September 2021, has now been connected with MetaX, and now supports multi-chain assets such as Ethereum, OEC, and BSC, and will support more mainstream public chains such as Solana, Polygon, and Flow in the future to build the most comprehensive multi-chain NFT market.
"We remove the E from the brand because we go further, just as digital assets are far more than just speculative assets." OKX CEO Jay Hao said. It is foreseeable that the future of MetaX is far from a multi-chain wallet, as for what it is, this "X" still needs to be explored by OKX and users.
[This article was originally published in ChainDede, authorized to be published by Titanium Media App, author: ChainDede]