As you probably already know, Hive works on Delegated Proof of Stake (DPOS) for governance and distribution of rewards. This has worked well for years, but there are new emerging technologies that show a lot of promise. I have been working on one myself for the last 10 years.
Downsides of Delegated Proof of Stake
- Your influence is directly tied to your stake (aka wallet)
- Buying stake is expensive
- Not everyone has the ability has the same amount of influence potential
Don't get me wrong, DPOS has a lot of benefits and one of the reasons Hive is one of the most secure blockchains. We can do better though.
Announcing HIP-42069: Proof of Feelings — The Future of Blockchain Consensus
I have been working on this project for a while and it's time to let people know about it and start initial testing. It is clear some users have an immense amount of feelings and I wondered why we never took advantage of it. Now we can!
Introducing a revolutionary new consensus method: Proof of Feelings.
I have found human emotions are far more predictable than code and provide a lot of benefits.
- 420% increase in transaction validation speed
- 69% reduction in energy consumption
- 100% more authentic curation
How does Proof of Feelings work?
Using modern technology we are able to track micro-expressions, keyboard pressure, mouse movements, and text sentiment to calculate an emotional value for each user. This means we will need to change how witnesses validate blocks to factor in emotions which we are now calling Collective Emotional Consensus or CEC value. In preliminary testing it has shown to reduce energy consumption by 69%. Nice!

While the libraries are not ready for general release, I put together some example code to give you an idea on how it works. This code is for demo only, until our library and hardware is released, it won't compile.
import numpy as np
from hivemind import blockchain
from sentiment import EmotionEngine
import random
class ProofOfFeelings:
def __init__(self):
self.emotion_engine = EmotionEngine()
self.blockchain = blockchain.get_instance()
self.feeling_threshold = 0.7 # Minimum feelings required for consensus
def analyze_keyboard_pressure(self, keystrokes):
"""Determines emotional intensity based on how hard keys are pressed"""
# More pressure = stronger feelings
return np.mean([stroke.pressure for stroke in keystrokes]) / 100
def analyze_mouse_movements(self, movements):
"""Detects emotional state based on cursor patterns"""
if movements.is_erratic():
return 0.9 # Excitement or anger
elif movements.is_smooth():
return 0.6 # Calm and collected
elif movements.is_hesitant():
return 0.3 # Uncertainty
return 0.5 # Neutral feelings
def analyze_content_sentiment(self, post_content):
"""Evaluates the emotional weight of post content"""
sentiment = self.emotion_engine.analyze(post_content)
# Convert sentiment to feeling score between 0-1
return abs(sentiment.polarity) * sentiment.intensity
def validate_block(self, block, validator_feelings):
"""Consensus is reached when enough validators feel the block is valid"""
avg_feeling_score = sum(validator_feelings) / len(validator_feelings)
if avg_feeling_score >= self.feeling_threshold:
# Strong feelings lead to consensus
self.blockchain.add_block(block)
return True, f"Block validated with feeling score: {avg_feeling_score:.2f}"
else:
# Not enough feelings to reach consensus
return False, "Validators didn't feel strongly enough about this block"
def get_witness_rewards(self, witness, block):
"""Rewards are now distributed based on emotional contribution"""
base_reward = 10
feeling_multiplier = witness.get_feeling_score() * random.uniform(0.8, 1.2)
# Witnesses who feel more strongly get higher rewards
return base_reward * feeling_multiplier
# Example implementation
pof = ProofOfFeelings()
# Connect your EmoSensor™ device to enable feeling detection
Due to the complexity of this new technology, proprietary hardware will be required. The EmoSensor™ peripheral attaches to your keyboard and mouse with extremely sensitive emotion sensors. Paired with a web cam to capture your micro-expressions, we can quickly and accurately weigh your influence based on your current emotional state.
EmoSensors will be available for purchase with HBD, Hive, and Lassecash. We are still working out the final cost and logistics to deliver it all around the world.
