{"id":"4P3JpWf_yyU","title":"Lesson 1: What is Daml?","description":"Daml is a smart contract language designed to build composable applications on the Canton ledger.\n\n00:00 What is Daml\n00:21 Smart Contracts\n01:48 Composable Applications\n02:45 Daml Ledger\n\nFor a better learning experience, sign up and enroll in this free course at: https://daml.talentlms.com/plus/catalog/courses/141","channel_name":"Digital Asset Training","published_at":"2025-02-19T00:00:00.000Z","thumbnail_url":"https://i.ytimg.com/vi/4P3JpWf_yyU/hqdefault.jpg","transcript_text":"We're going to explore what is Daml and look at its three foundational concepts: smart contracts, composable applications, and the Daml Ledger. Let's get started. Daml is a smart contract language designed to build composable applications on the Daml Ledger Model. There are three important terms here that need some elaboration. Let's start with smart contracts. Smart contract, as a term, was introduced by the computer scientist Nick Szabo, in the 1990s. He defined it as a type of software that combines protocols, user interfaces, and promises expressed via those interfaces to formalize and secure relationships over public networks. Smart contracts are applications designed to automatically coordinate and enforce the execution of contractual terms. For example, let's say we have a smart contract between Alice, who's looking to buy a scooter, and Bob, a scooter dealer. The application can be designed in such a way that as soon as Alice makes the required payment into Bob's account, the scooter's ownership is automatically transferred to Alice. This entire transaction is atomic, meaning the entire transaction is either successfully completed or it completely fails. Another important aspect of a transaction when executed through a smart contract is that it's immutable. If Alice or Bob change their mind, they can't go back and change the old contract. They need to create and execute a new contract to transfer the money and the scooter back to their respective owners. Features such as atomic transactions and immutable contracts are foundational to Daml. Let's move on to the next term from our Daml definition, and that's composable applications. A composable application is a generic term used to indicate developing something from smaller parts. These parts can be workflows, microservices, or architectural networks and domains. The key idea is that Daml allows the application layer to be completely abstracted from the other layers, thereby making them composable and reusable. For example, Bob, the scooter seller, may have a workflow that defines the steps to transfer the ownership of a car to someone else. Alice's bank has a workflow to transfer money to another entity. These two smaller workflows across two different organizations can be brought together to compose a larger workflow to sell and buy scooters. Daml allows you to build workflows that can be stitched together to form larger workflows, enabling reuse and scalability. But how does Daml do that? Well, that brings us to the third important concept, the Daml Ledger Model. The Daml ledger is a record of transactions that are executed as part of a workflow. Examples could be creating a contract, exercising actions defined in the contract, and archiving a contract. An important property of this ledger is that it's shared across multiple parties that engage in a contractual relationship modeled in Daml. In the case of Bob selling scooters, Daml provides a shared ledger between Bob and the buyer's account. Bob gets to see the contracts executed for the scooters sold, and the bank gets to see the contracts based on the funds transferred to Bob. Daml as a language allows us to build applications on top of this shared Daml ledger so that multiple parties can create and act on contractual agreements.","transcript_synced_at":"2026-10-26T04:03:51.946Z","segments":[{"start_seconds":0,"text":"We're going to explore what is Daml and look at its three foundational concepts: smart contracts, composable applications, and the Daml Ledger.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=0s"},{"start_seconds":10,"text":"Let's get started.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=10s"},{"start_seconds":12,"text":"Daml is a smart contract language designed to build composable applications on the Daml Ledger Model. There are three important terms here that need some elaboration.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=12s"},{"start_seconds":21,"text":"Let's start with smart contracts.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=21s"},{"start_seconds":24,"text":"Smart contract, as a term, was introduced by the computer scientist Nick Szabo, in the 1990s.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=24s"},{"start_seconds":30,"text":"He defined it as a type of software that combines protocols, user interfaces, and promises expressed via those interfaces to formalize and secure relationships over public networks.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=30s"},{"start_seconds":42,"text":"Smart contracts are applications designed to automatically coordinate and enforce the execution of contractual terms.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=42s"},{"start_seconds":49,"text":"For example, let's say we have a smart contract between Alice, who's looking to buy a scooter, and Bob, a scooter dealer.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=49s"},{"start_seconds":56,"text":"The application can be designed in such a way that as soon as Alice makes the required payment into Bob's account, the scooter's ownership is automatically transferred to Alice.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=56s"},{"start_seconds":65,"text":"This entire transaction is atomic, meaning the entire transaction is either successfully completed or it completely fails.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=65s"},{"start_seconds":74,"text":"Another important aspect of a transaction when executed through a smart contract is that it's immutable. If Alice or Bob change their mind, they can't go back and change the old contract.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=74s"},{"start_seconds":85,"text":"They need to create and execute a new contract to transfer the money and the scooter back to their respective owners.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=85s"},{"start_seconds":92,"text":"Features such as atomic transactions and immutable contracts are foundational to Daml.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=92s"},{"start_seconds":98,"text":"Let's move on to the next term from our Daml definition, and that's composable applications.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=98s"},{"start_seconds":104,"text":"A composable application is a generic term used to indicate developing something from smaller parts.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=104s"},{"start_seconds":110,"text":"These parts can be workflows, microservices, or architectural networks and domains.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=110s"},{"start_seconds":115,"text":"The key idea is that Daml allows the application layer to be completely abstracted from the other layers, thereby making them composable and reusable.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=115s"},{"start_seconds":124,"text":"For example, Bob, the scooter seller, may have a workflow that defines the steps to transfer the ownership of a car to someone else.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=124s"},{"start_seconds":132,"text":"Alice's bank has a workflow to transfer money to another entity.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=132s"},{"start_seconds":136,"text":"These two smaller workflows across two different organizations can be brought together to compose a larger workflow to sell and buy scooters.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=136s"},{"start_seconds":147,"text":"Daml allows you to build workflows that can be stitched together to form larger workflows, enabling reuse and scalability. But how does Daml do that?","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=147s"},{"start_seconds":156,"text":"Well, that brings us to the third important concept, the Daml Ledger Model.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=156s"},{"start_seconds":161,"text":"The Daml ledger is a record of transactions that are executed as part of a workflow.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=161s"},{"start_seconds":166,"text":"Examples could be creating a contract, exercising actions defined in the contract, and archiving a contract.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=166s"},{"start_seconds":173,"text":"An important property of this ledger is that it's shared across multiple parties that engage in a contractual relationship modeled in Daml.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=173s"},{"start_seconds":181,"text":"In the case of Bob selling scooters, Daml provides a shared ledger between Bob and the buyer's account.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=181s"},{"start_seconds":187,"text":"Bob gets to see the contracts executed for the scooters sold, and the bank gets to see the contracts based on the funds transferred to Bob.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=187s"},{"start_seconds":194,"text":"Daml as a language allows us to build applications on top of this shared Daml ledger so that multiple parties can create and act on contractual agreements.","url":"https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU&t=194s"}],"youtube_url":"https://youtube.com/watch?v=4P3JpWf_yyU","url":"https://ccpedia.xyz/videos/4P3JpWf_yyU"}