In the world of Web3, open source has almost become a form of "political correctness." Decentralization, transparency, and verifiability are concepts inherently tied to "public code." A blockchain project that is not open source often struggles to gain the trust of the community. Investors may also question: if it claims to be decentralized, why is it hiding something?

This notion did not arise out of thin air. It is a continuation of the "open source movement" from the internet.

From Linux in the 1990s to Apache and MySQL in the 2000s, and then to Android in the mobile internet era, open source software has gradually established a new consensus: code should belong to all humanity, not to a specific company.

When Bitcoin was born in 2009, Satoshi Nakamoto directly opened the source code on SourceForge. There was no auditing company endorsement, no government permission; the only trust came from the fact that anyone could download the code, run a node, and verify transactions. Thus, open source began to become a guideline in the Web3 world.

However, the significance of open source goes far beyond transparency. Open source means that any developer can fork, improve, and submit code. Many well-known Web3 projects have established a kind of "technical consensus" with the community and developers through open source.

The most typical example is Ethereum. Its open source code has not only been directly reused, spawning hundreds of EVM-compatible chains, but it has also attracted countless developers to join as contributors, continuously pushing the protocol itself to upgrade. For instance, in 2015, community developer Fabian Vogelsteller proposed EIP-20 (which later became ERC-20), laying the foundation for tokens and becoming the cornerstone of DeFi prosperity; in 2017, Dieter Shirley (the chief architect of CryptoKitties) and others proposed EIP-721, which became the basic standard for NFTs; and community researcher Eric Conner and others initiated EIP-1559, bringing disruptive improvements to the transaction fee mechanism, affecting Ethereum's economic model.

It can be said that it is precisely because of open source that Ethereum can continuously attract new developers and turn "external contributions" into "industry standards," forming a true network effect.

But the problem is that open source is not a free lunch. It brings not only trust and co-construction but also means "lowering the threshold, diluting the moat," and naked competition.

When you lay the underlying code in the sunlight, competitors can almost replicate it at zero cost. Countless "Ethereum killers" have been born this way throughout history: from EOS to Tron, and later a series of EVM-compatible chains, most of which directly reused Ethereum's codebase, only making adjustments in consensus mechanisms, performance parameters, or financial subsidies.

The same story also appears at the application layer. The most typical example is the DeFi summer of 2020. Uniswap pioneered a new paradigm of decentralized trading with the AMM model, but due to the completely open-source contract, SushiSwap directly copied the code with almost no R&D costs and added extra liquidity mining incentives. In just a few days, over $1 billion in liquidity was siphoned away from Uniswap, and the market once thought SushiSwap would completely replace it.

The fact is that open source lowers the threshold for innovation but also amplifies "vampire-style competition." Web3 project teams need not only technological leadership but also continuous accumulation in branding, ecology, and governance; otherwise, relying solely on code is not enough to constitute a moat.

This has also led to a paradox: the more open a project is, the easier it is to spawn competitors; the more closed the code is, the harder it is to win the trust of users and investors.

So, what should Web3 entrepreneurs do? Portal Labs believes that the following points may provide support.

First, treat open source as a starting point, not an endpoint.

Open sourcing code can attract developers and the community, but what truly determines a project's value is the subsequent continuous construction. Ethereum's ability to traverse cycles is not because EVM is open source, but because it has formed supporting systems such as the EIP proposal mechanism, foundation support, and a long-term developer community.

For Web3 entrepreneurs, open source is just a stepping stone; the moat must be built through governance, ecology, and network effects.

Second, focus on differentiation.

Uniswap ultimately stabilized its position not because its code was unique, but because it continuously built its own barriers beyond open source. It has consistently launched V2 and V3 iterations, being the first to introduce concentrated liquidity design, improving capital utilization efficiency; it attracts developers and the community to form long-term binding through its foundation and governance mechanisms; more importantly, Uniswap has become the "default entry" for DeFi, with brand recognition and compliance exploration giving it an irreplaceable position.

For Web3 entrepreneurs, if choosing to open source, they must consider: if others copy the code, can they replicate the product experience, community atmosphere, compliance structure, and partnerships? These are often the true determinants of long-term survival.

Third, leverage open source.

Open source is not just a risk; it can also amplify potential. Many projects adopt "layered open source"—the underlying protocol is open source to facilitate community co-construction; core algorithms or application layers remain closed source to maintain a competitive edge. For example, DYDX's underlying matching logic is open source, but its risk control and matching engine core remain closed source, ensuring differentiated advantages.

Some teams also use open source as a business expansion tool, lowering the entry threshold to allow others to drive ecological growth. A typical example is Cosmos SDK and Polkadot Substrate, which attract countless public chain projects to develop on their ecosystems through fully open-source underlying frameworks, ultimately feeding "others' innovations" back into their own network effects.

Open source is both the cornerstone of trust in Web3 and a double-edged sword for entrepreneurs. It can attract developers and foster ecosystems, but it also amplifies competition and dilutes moats. However, open source is not a question of "whether to do it," but "how to do it." Truly smart Web3 entrepreneurs will neither blindly close off nor naively open everything up; instead, they will find a middle path that belongs to them between trust and competition.

If you decide to open source, here is Portal Labs' checklist of open source suggestions:

1. Define boundaries

For foundational code such as protocol layers and smart contracts, it is recommended to be fully open source to establish transparency and trust. Commercial algorithms, matching logic, and risk control models can remain closed source to form unique advantages.

It is suggested to manage repositories separately on GitHub, marking open source licenses (such as MIT, GPL), while maintaining internal modules as independently closed source.

2. Institutionalize co-construction

Learn from Ethereum's EIP model and establish a proposal process (PR → review → community voting).

You can create a public Discord/forum and set up a "proposal submission" section; hold a fixed community call once a month to review proposals.

3. Rapid iteration

Open source means others can copy the code, so your moat must rely on iteration speed.

It is recommended to establish a rhythm of "a minor version every two weeks, a major version every three months," and publish the roadmap on the official website or GitHub Project.

4. Brand and trust

In the open-source world, technology can be copied, but trust cannot. The real barriers often come from community atmosphere and compliance exploration.

It is suggested to treat security audits, compliance endorsements, and community activities as "basic skills," such as:

• Regularly publishing audit reports;
• Inviting law firms to issue compliance opinions;
• Keeping users and developers in the ecosystem through hackathons and developer conferences.

5. Ecological leverage

Use open source as a tool to attract developers and enterprises, rather than merely "donating code."

For example:

• Provide SDK/templates to lower the threshold for secondary development;
• Establish a grant program to fund applications based on your protocol;
• Integrate with three to five key ecological partners (wallets, exchanges, data platforms).

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