Outer Edge LA showcases NFT technology
Outer Edge LA is a conference dedicated to what’s next on the Internet. The event was held this week at the Los Angeles Convention Center.
“We wanted to create an innovation festival that celebrated all the incredible converging technology coming together in this special moment,” said Joshua Kriger, co-founder of the show and host of the Edge of NFT podcast.
On display: Blockchain, metaverse and NFT technology.
While many mainstream crypto investors are still hesitant after the recent declines, those involved in the technical side of things still believe that blockchain database technology has a lot of promise.
“The value will come from the intrinsic value and utility of the products as opposed to the speculative hype that we saw in this last wave of the market cycle,” explained Jack O’Holleran, co-founder of Skale Labs.
Some of the interesting technologies I came across included HelloVacay, a kind of AAA that uses blockchain technology. They sell an NFT “membership” that gives you discounts on travel.
“If you traditionally buy a membership somewhere, it’s also a sunk cost, so in this case it’s transferable, salable,” co-founder Brandon Beachum said.
Roofstock sells 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] The property is located in Georgia, a suburb of Atlanta, and it sold for $218,000 dollars, and it literally took minutes to close on this property,” explained Sanjay Raghavan of Roofstock.
Right now, homes must be rental properties due to current laws.
Digital art is a large area of use for NFTs. There were many on display. Snark.art sells NFT art that changes over time.
“People gathered for sculptures, paintings and now it’s a digital era. We are still on the surface, I believe in what blockchain technology can bring for art,” said Nadia Taiga of Snark.art.
One of the most popular booths I saw belonged to “CryptoJeweler.” They had a piece on display that cost 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 CryptoJeweler himself Michael Gauthier.
While you’ve heard stories of people misplacing their crypto backup codes and losing their money, a special notebook called the Shieldfolio Stonebook keeps that from happening.
It’s not digital at all. You write down your passwords 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 sentence and keep it safe,” explained Freddy Hernandez of Shieldfolio, which retails for about $35, not including the pen.
Even the vending machine at the event was unique. You can pay for the items inside using a variety of cryptocurrencies.
