ICOs. The mere mention of them will almost surely engender heated responses. The criticism is everywhere. "Scam!" "Cash grab!" "Hastening the bubble!" While I am a supporter of ICOs and consider them to be the future of equity financing, I am well aware of the problems. Any new technology is going to be rough in its earliest iterations. With ICOs, the old adage applies: buyer beware.
That's why I'm excited about projects that aim to improve the ICO landscape, and smart contracts in general. Enter Quantstamp. Quantstamp makes smart contracts more secure. When you're programming Dapps that deal with users' precious coins, security is a necessity. Quantstamp will build a network of developers, investors, and users, increasing transparency and accountability. Smart contracts will be scanned automatically to find vulnerabilities, and users will be rewarded for identifying bugs. In essence, it's a marketplace for better security, where users get paid for protecting other users!
Obviously any project aiming to increase trust ought to have high standards for their own operations, and Quantstamp is no exception.