Identity and background
What is the delegate’s identity and background?
My name is Blake Bartenbach and I have been involved in cryptocurrency since the early days of Bitcoin. One of my fondest memories with my late stepfather was back in 2012-2013, setting up a 42U server in his condo with rows of ASIC miners. I loved configuring them, administering them, and participating in the blockchain.
As time went on, I explored various blockchains like Litecoin, Ethereum, Dash, Monero, and many others. However, each chain I explored seemed to have significant shortcomings, and I was never fully convinced by any of the technologies. Despite this, I continued running nodes and participating in these ecosystems because I remained optimistic about the future of this technology.
In late 2021, I discovered Solana, and it transformed my perspective. I had finally found a blockchain that checked all the boxes: speed, low cost, permissionless access, excellent tooling, and a supportive community.
After extensive research, I launched my own validator, Pumpkin’s Pool. After a year in the ecosystem, I took over the Solana Community Discord server and was appointed as a moderator on Solana Tech. Today, I run a validator with over one million SOL staked and actively engage with the community. I am passionate about writing automation tools and contributing to the continuous improvement of the Solana ecosystem.
Has the delegate historically contributed to the Jito Network?
When the Jito validator client was still relatively new, I was one of the first adopters. When discussions started about the importance of running your own relayer, I was also one of the first to start doing that.
I have been agile in adopting changes as needed, writing automation for those changes, and then guiding others to do the same.
I have been quick to communicate any bugs or issues I have found.
Has the delegate historically been involved in protocol governance?
Absolutely. I have been quick to participate in every governance discussion on Solana tech and have voted in every decision to-date. I have been interested in the tooling around governance and have submitted a couple pull requests to improve some of that tooling.
Is the delegate committed to helping the Jito Network and Solana succeed?
Absolutely. Not only is it obviously in my best financial interest to do so, but I am very passionate about the technologies. Jito has been a catalyst for positive changes on the network from the beginning (and adapting to the changes in the environment when needed). We cannot have a healthy network without the success of both.
Candidate views
How should JitoSOL validator delegation balance performance (yield) versus decentralization goals?
This is tricky. I think the current trend in delegation algorithms is leaning towards validator performance and yield rather than decentralization. However, that’s not necessarily a bad thing. I think one area where that focus can go very wrong is a situation where we have a sybil getting multiple delegations because the author has a really good software mod to inflate their vote credits.
I think the focus on performance should be slightly dialed back and shifted towards decentralization a little bit. Stake pools have gotten increasingly more competitive over time, and while focusing on performance is certainly admirable, I don’t think we want to craft a network where only those with software engineering experience and bandwidth to craft modifications can receive delegations.
This is really larger discussion and other potentially centralizing elements come into play like TVC and validator location, so I will try to be brief, but I will say at some point we have to accept a level of error in the spirit of decentralization (think TVC slot grace period). If we don’t have an acceptable level of error, we will centralize.
What should be the priorities for JTO liquidity mining and DAO token grants?
Priority for DAO token grants should be projects that contribute positively to the ecosystem in the long-term. There is a lot of room for people to contribute meaningfully in the form of tools, UI/UX’s, education materials, and more. There is a lot of room for innovation, but there should be a focus on value-added.
What are your goals for the DAO as a delegate?
To contribute meaningfully to the conversation in the spirit of creating a better overall network. I pledge to be active and informed as we continue to iterate towards better products.