What is Horizen?
Before I get into Horizen, I'd like to start of with a quote on privacy by Edward Snowden. If you don't value privacy then you don't value freedom.
Privacy isn't about something to hide. Privacy is about something to protect. That's who you are. That's what you believe in, that's who you want to become. Privacy is the right to the self. Privacy is what gives you the ability to share with the world who you are, on your own terms, for them to understand what you're trying to be. And to protect for yourself the parts of you that you're not sure about, that you're still experimenting with. If we don't have privacy, what we're losing is the ability to make mistakes. We're losing the ability to be ourselves. Privacy is the fountainhead of all other rights. Freedom of speech doesn't have a lot of meaning if you can't have a quiet space.
So, now on to Horizen. ZEN is the first ever TLS end-to-end encrypted (SSL) anonymous money network, messaging service, content platform, and decentralized autonomous organization (DAO).
The Horizen team echoes a similar sentiment of wanting increased privacy and liberty for users in their whitepaper: We live in a hyper-regulated and surveilled world where billions of individuals are deprived of basic human rights, such as property ownership, privacy, free association, and access to information.
ZEN formed from a hardfork of ZClassic/ZCash like many other privacy coins. But, unlike other forks, Horizen has some unique features and a team of developers that set it apart from the rest. Unlike the previously mentioned coins, ZEN utilizes a masternode system similar to Dash. ZEN also has supernodes which are higher-stake versions of masternodes as well. The ZEN masternode/supernode system has a lower barrier to entry than a lot of other coins thus increasing the decentralization.
Horizen is building a technology platform with optional privacy features that aims to enable an application-rich and inclusive ecosystem to provide people with freedom and everyday usability. Launched in May 2017, the leading-edge platform enables real-life uses beyond its cryptocurrency -