tech: ‘ny’ internet

danish builders and other european participants in emerging tech convened in copenhagen to discuss the future of decentralized web and distributed ledgers.

organized by the nordic blockchain association, the two-day event was backdropped by the immaculate urban planning of copenhagen, raising the question:​ is the nordics in the best position to showcase the transformative power of “new internet” to the world?

following are conference highlights.

owning internet
europe lost the web2 battle (social media, online shopping) due to lack of investment. it did not build and then became a secondary market to american builders. unlike web1, which was read only, and web2, which was read and write, web3 is about reading, writing, and owning. this makes europe well-suited to lead an ownership-focused internet because of intrinsic value alignment: prioritizing governance and protecting individual freedom.
​
comments by armin zadakbar, president of the european web3 organization

governing paradox
challenges in emerging tech are not technical issues but governance issues. from sourcing materials and delivering healthcare to managing refugees, processing payments, and powering energy grids, the concept of “digital privacy for the sake of social good” is contentious and debated. jurisdictions around the world hold deep and divergent beliefs around how to manage personal information. mediating these differences is key to unleashing their full potential.

comments by andreas holbak espersen, brian christensen, simon ousager

engaging fans
giving governance control to fans via blockchain infrastructure has drawbacks. fans have emotional connections to athletes and entertainers and may not bring a context certain situations require. involving fans in some decisions but focusing on using the tech to create intimate fan experiences is more sustainable.

comments by juan fuentes fernández, luis ferreira, michael jeppesen, lars-erik ravn, elgin kim.

negotiating innovation
few european startups go global, typically. with the lines of crypto governance blurred in the us while mena regulation merges with eu practices, this may change with emerging technologies. notably, while us-led negotiations are typically driven by contracts, the common negotiating practice in the eu and mena is conversation.

comments by yulin liu, samuel arvidsson, andreas baand larsen, bugge holm hansen

evolving crypto
crypto adoption is highest in africa because there’s an immediate need for simplified transactions, where the amount of choice and level of confusion in western countries is slowing down adoption. at the same time, if no one were to challenge or provoke regulators, the industry wouldn’t progress or be clarified.

comments by caner sevinc, tony evans, marius smith, adrian larsen, erina penkovsky
​
powering lifestyle
a shared challenge in the nordic startup ecosystem is the gap between those with funds and those with ideas focused on leveraging emerging technology to maintain a lifestyle as the primary incentive. this is in opposition to the conventional view of building tech infrastructure, products, and services for generating wealth as the primary incentive.

comments by morten rongaard

issuing identification
an evolution of the non-fungible token (nft), a soul-bound token (sbt) cannot be transferred. with this protocol, the entity or individual issuing the document, the issuer, holds the key. this concept is said to be the future of identification and recognition for critical documents such as for degrees, certificates, licences, subscriptions, finances, and travel. the question is: who should be the issuer? should it be the government, banks, tech, or teco? the easy answer is government. most likely, it has to be everything.

comments by nizzar ben chekroune, sander gansen, hanne shapiro, jake hirsch-allen, raido saar, armin zadakbar, frank poncelet

reference:
​https://www.nordicblockchain.com/