web3
Uniswap launches venture capital wing for Web3 investments
Popular decentralized exchange (DEX) Uniswap has announced the formation of Uniswap Labs Ventures (ULV), a venture capital fund focused on investing in Web3 companies and projects. The firm will invest at any stage of development into various projects or technologies related to Web3, infrastructure, developer tools, and consumer-facing applications as areas of interest according to the announcement on Monday, April 11. The firm has already invested in 11 companies and Web3 protocols, including decentralized money market Aave, the decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) behind the DAI stablecoin, MakerDAO, and blockchain bridging protocol LayerZero. In the announcement, Uniswap expressed what it looked for in other projects it was interested in funding, but did not reveal any further pr...
‘Our democracy will better evolve because of DAOs,’ says Animoca’s Yat Siu
The rise of Web3 has paved the way for new business models that could shape the next phase of the internet. For instance, nonfungible tokens (NFTs) will play a large part in the open metaverse as the underlying assets people interact with. Decentralized autonomous organizations (DAOs) are also coming to fruition to allow for community governance within virtual environments. The growth of Web3 has essentially allowed NFTs and DAOs to flourish. For example, recent data from DeepDAO — a DAO stats platform — shows that DAOs have experienced 130-times growth over the last year, reaching a market capitalization of $24.8 billion. In December 2021, DeepDAO found that the total assets under management (AUM) for DAO treasuries listed on the platform increased from around $380 million in Januar...
First Look: Peek Inside FutureFest’s Digital Pinball Machine Ahead of Kaskade’s Metaverse DJ Set
Planning one of the year’s most innovative concerts in the metaverse, FutureFest is on a mission to reinvent shared music experiences. Thanks to FutureFest, you can soon roam around a giant, digital pinball machine as a robot avatar—and serenaded by the sounds of Kaskade. The iconic DJ and electronic music producer is gearing up for a one-of-a-kind performance for FutureFest, an innovative Web3 project based on the Cardano blockchain. The event is co-presented by Space Yacht, who recently launched their “Space Pass” utility NFT on Nifty Gateway, giving fans access to over 100 IRL Space Yacht events as well as metaverse events. Kaskade will be beaming in for a virtual performance in Future Fest’s intricately designed metaverse, which is situated inside a polychromati...
The concept and future of decentralized Web3 domain names
The primary purpose of the Ethereum name service (ENS) is to convert machine-readable identifiers like Ethereum addresses to human-readable names. The web began as a decentralized system based on the DNS, with anybody able to buy, own and manage their domain name and move it from one host to another as needed, with complete control and ownership over all underlying data. But, how does a decentralized Web3 name service work? The community has shown a lot of interest in ENS, which is a new name service built on top of Ethereum. The Ethereum Name Service is a Web3 blockchain system that allows users to establish their own unique and memorable usernames. Therefore, ENS intends to provide a complementary solution to DNS by utilizing Ethereum smart contracts to govern domain name regis...
From Slip-N-Slide to Miami NFT Week, Ted Lucas Talks Embracing Tech to Close the Black Wealth Gap
Back in 1994, Ted Lucas was an entrepreneur on a mission. That quest led to his founding Miami-based Slip-N-Slide Records, home to hip-hop pioneers such as Trick Daddy, Trina, Plies and Rick Ross. Now 28 years later, Lucas is embarking on another mission. This time he’s determined to close the Black and Brown wealth gap through technology and innovation programs. In addition to establishing the non-profit organization TechNolij (pronounced tech knowledge) to support women and minorities seeking to enter the field, Lucas co-founded the inaugural Miami NFT Week conference, which kicked off Friday (April 1) at the Mana Wynwood Convention Center. Wrapping April 3, the three-day event is part of the city’s Miami Tech Month campaign. Three days before the launch of Miami NFT Week, Billboard chat...
Inside Track: NFT LA Brings Web3 Networking IRL; Miami Music Week’s Big Return
The NFT | LA conference brought web3 networking into real life this week, taking over the Los Angeles Convention Center and surrounding downtown restaurants, bars and venue spaces with the city’s first-ever blockchain-focused gathering of this size. From March 29-31, official programming at the convention center included panels and keynotes covering music, gaming, art, fashion, cryptocurrency and more intersections of culture, commerce and emerging blockchain technology. Mark Cuban, Sandbox CEO Mathieu Nouzareth, Andrew Yang and Baron Davis were some of the big names speaking, as startups showcased their new products, patrons sported shirts with their own Bored Ape characters on them and frames for displaying those virtual non fungible tokens in your IRL living room took up a considerable ...
Crypto Biz: Proof of integrity? Gold industry wants blockchain to solve its biggest problems, March 25–31, 2022
As Bitcoin (BTC) continues to eat away at gold’s market share, the bullion industry is looking to blockchain — the technology first made famous by BTC — to solve its most enduring challenges. How’s that for irony? Someone should really check on Peter Schiff. Speaking of Bitcoin, a MicroStrategy subsidiary confirmed this week that it plans to buy more “digital gold” through a crypto-collateralized loan. Terraform Labs CEO Do Kwon also ramped up his Bitcoin purchases to provide solid backing for Terra’s UST stablecoin. This week’s Crypto Biz takes a deep dive into the gold industry and the latest business developments surrounding Bitcoin. Gold industry taps blockchain for supply chain management and fraud prevention Blockchain has been identified as a potential game-changer for the gol...
New Blockchain-Based Platform, Independent, Lets Fans Invest In Their Favorite Artist’s Music
A new blockchain-based platform wants to empower independent artists—and the fans who support them. Based on the Solana blockchain, Independent is a decentralized marketplace that caters to the interests of independent musicians by letting them share a piece of the pie with their fans. The goal is for artists to release music as NFTs and monetize their creations while empowering their fans. Built on the Solana blockchain, Independent is powered by the creators of Monk Mafia, an NFT marketplace that made international headlines after receiving support from a number of high-profile backers in Asia. Those include Keiji of the chart-topping J-pop band EXILE and the award-winning Netflix documentarian Nirmal Purja. Artists releasing on Independent choose what percentage of t...
Binance becomes official crypto exchange partner of 64th Grammy Awards
The Recording Academy, a major music recording company famous for its annual music awards Grammy Awards, has inked a partnership with Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange by trading volumes. According to a joint announcement on Thursday, Binance became the first-ever official crypto exchange partner of the 64th Annual Grammy Awards and Grammy Week events to bring various Web3 technology solutions and experiences to the organization’s events and projects. The partnership was announced just a few days before the 64th Grammy Awards ceremony, which will take place on April 3 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Recording Academy co-president Panos Panay specified that the agreement envisions the development of new monetization avenues for the Recording Academy and the crea...
Is Austin the next US crypto hub? Officials approve blockchain resolutions
Innovative cities across America are racing to become the next hot spot for cryptocurrency and blockchain adoption. Miami was the first city to adopt its own part of CityCoins last year, allowing it to implement its own cryptocurrency called “MiamiCoin” to be used for civic engagement. New York City has also made a name for itself as a crypto-friendly city by implementing educational initiatives and withMayor Eric Adams receiving his paycheck in Bitcoin (BTC) in January this year. Austin takes a strong stance Most recently, Austin — the state capital of Texas that goes by the slogan “Keep Austin Weird” — has taken a strong interest in cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. While Texas’ desire to lead the way for crypto innovation was established about a year ago when G...
Decentralization, DAOs and the current Web3 concerns
What we call Web3 will be centered on an ecosystem of technology products that are decentralized, based on blockchain networks, interoperable, and without a traditional trusted validator (such as corporations, institutions and government bodies). But exactly what does this mean? What is Web3? Web3, a term coined by Gavin Wood, Web3 Foundation president, is the next phase of the internet and, perhaps, of organizing society as a whole. Web1 was the era of open, decentralized protocols, where most online activity involved browsing individual static pages. Web2, which we are now experiencing, is the era of centralization, in which a large part of communication and commerce occurs on captive (closed) platforms and is owned by a handful of technology corporations, subject to centralized co...
Crypto and NFTs at F1: What are firms bringing to the races beyond sponsorships?
The cryptocurrency community has always put an emphasis on decentralization and globalization. Therefore, it shouldn’t come as a surprise that a number of crypto companies are sponsoring Formula 1 (F1) racing teams in an attempt to further connect with audiences across the world. Research by global analytics company Nielsen Sports found that Formula 1 has the potential to reach about one billion fans globally this year, with the 16–35 age group accounting for the biggest share. The appeal of F1 is clearly on the rise, and cryptocurrency companies are jumping on board to demonstrate their presence. To put this in perspective, there are 10 F1 teams for the 2022 season and crypto companies are currently sponsoring eight. Source: Motorsport.com Crypto and F1: An ideal marketing match Mar...
