Outer Edge LA is a conference dedicated to what’s next on the Internet. The event was held this week in the Los Angeles Convention Center.
“We wanted to create an innovation festival that celebrated all the incredible convergent technology that are coming together that this special moment in time,” said Joshua Kriger, a co-founder of the show and host of the Edge of NFT podcast.
On display: Blockchain, the metaverse and NFT tech.
While many mainstream crypto investors are still reeling from recent downs, those involved in the tech side of things still believe that blockchain database technology holds a lot of promise.
“The value will come from the intrinsic value and the utility value of the products as opposed to the speculative hype which we saw in this last wave of the market cycle,” explained Jack O’Holleran, co-founder of Skale Labs.
Some of the interesting tech I came across included HelloVacay, sort of a AAA using blockchain tech. They sell an NFT “membership” that gives you discounts on travel.
“Traditionally if you buy a membership somewhere it’s a sunk cost as well, so in this case it’s transferable, sellable,” said co-founder Brandon Beachum.
Roofstock is selling real houses using blockchain technology with financing and transfers in minutes, not weeks.
“We’ve actually sold 3 of these so far… We sold one last week, [a] property is located in Georgia a suburb of Atlanta, and it sold for $218,000 dollars, and it literally took minutes to close this property,” explained Sanjay Raghavan of Roofstock.
Right now, homes must be rental properties because of current laws.
Digital artwork is a big use case for NFT’s. There were many on display. Snark.art is selling NFT art that changes over time.
“People collected sculptures, paintings and now there is a digital era. We are still on the surface I believe of what blockchain technology can provide for art,” said Nadia Taiga of Snark.art.
One of the most popular booths I saw belonged to the “CryptoJeweler.” They had a piece on display that runs about $35,000.
“Now you’ve opened up a whole new world of ways that people can experience jewelry on a digital level and in the physical realm,” said the CryptoJeweler himself Michael Gauthier.
While you’ve heard stories about people misplacing their Crypto backup codes and losing their funds, a special notebook called the Shieldfolio Stonebook keeps that from happening.
It’s not digital at all. You write down your passwords inside, using invisible ink.
“I created it because my wife threw away my seed phrase. Because of that I noticed how important it is to write down a seed phrase and keep it safe,” explained Freddy Hernandez of Shieldfolio, which sells for about $35, not including the pen.
Even the vending machine at the event was unique. You could pay for the items inside using a variety of cryptocurrencies.
