Trends & Signals
Explore the latest insights, thought leadership, and research from FCAT®
Behind the Blocks: How Solana Staking Powers the Network
October 28, 2025
Solana’s ecosystem is set to undergo significant transformation, and this report from FCAT’s Blockchain team explores a new era of network performance and efforts to redefine the underlying economics that drive validator activity on-chain.
The Bitcoin Renaissance Part Two: A Technical Deep Dive
August 28, 2025
In this second installment of our "Bitcoin Renaissance" series, FCAT’s blockchain analysts explore the surge in Bitcoin developer activity prompted by ordinals and new technologies — examining the emerging use cases and innovations that are enhancing the protocol's functionality, scalability, and utility.
A Conversation with Rhaina Cohen: Author of The Other Significant Others: Reimagining Life with Friendship
July 16, 2025
Journalist and author, Rhaina Cohen, recently joined FCAT to discuss the power of deeply committed friendships to those who prioritize non-romantic relationships.
Ask an FCAT Researcher: Anjali Lai on Parenting in the 21st Century
June 27, 2025
“Parents potentially need different kinds of guidance for their financial planning, both when they are preparing for a child and then later, as they support them through life.”
A Conversation with J. Doyne Farmer: Author of Making Sense of Chaos: A Better Economics for a Better World
May 14, 2025
In his most recent book, Making Sense of Chaos: A Better Economics for a Better World, J. Doyne Farmer presents a carefully researched and lucidly written argument showing how complex systems science and agent-based modeling can revolutionize economics.
A Conversation with Julian Bleecker: Author of The Manual of Design Fiction
May 5, 2025
Engineer and author Julian Bleecker joined FCAT to offer his perspective on how the design field is changing as we enter a new era of emerging technologies. FCAT’s Will Reed spoke with Bleecker to discuss how artists, technologists, and everyday users can envision the future of design.
A Conversation with Sayash Kapoor: Author of AI Snake Oil
January 17, 2025
Thought leader Sayash Kapoor joined FCAT to offer his perspective on bogus AI claims, why people fall for them, and strategies for better leveraging AI technologies. FCAT’s John Dalton spoke with Kapoor to uncover how users can cut through the hype and tap into AI’s true potential.
Iterative Combinatorial Brain Surgeon: Scalable Pruning of Large Language and Vision Models (LLVMs)
November 26, 2024
FCAT collaborated with Amazon Quantum Solutions Lab to propose a new scalable pruning algorithm for large language and vision models.
Ask an FCAT Researcher: David Bracken on Synthetic Data
November 19, 2024
Generative AI models have been trained by enormous amounts of data scraped off the internet, but as new data becomes scarce, companies are increasingly experimenting with synthetic options.
Bitcoin Renaissance: Exploring Layer 2s
November 1, 2024
In January 2023, Bitcoin developer Casey Rodamor combined two previous upgrades to Bitcoin Core’s protocol to launch Ordinals and Inscriptions. The project jumpstarted Bitcoin and Layer 2 development as projects previously deemed impossible on Bitcoin were reconsidered with newfound enthusiasm. This movement has been dubbed the “Bitcoin Renaissance”. This paper is the first in a three-part series providing an overview of what L2s are, how they function, and what sorts of applications they enable on Bitcoin.