Cityverse Founder and Head of Network Joe Hamilton joined Blockspaces’ Gabe Higgins and Tampa Bay Rays’ Yuki Taketani on a panel at the Florida Bitcoin and Blockchain Summit last Friday. Lauren Prager of Synapse moderated the panel to discuss “Tampa Bay’s Emerging Web3 Scene”.
Each member of the panel offered a unique perspective on how the web3 space is evolving in Tampa Bay. Higgins spoke about how the blockchain industry has changed since he founded Blockspaces with Rosa Shores in 2017. Although interest in web3 has increased over time, Higgins emphasized that growing a strong community, along with further investment, will solidify Tampa Bay as a leader in the space.
Yuki Taketani, Emerging Technologies Coordinator with the Tampa Bay Rays, spoke about the baseball team’s recent integration of NFTs. A promotional Wander Franco NFT was made available to ticket-holders earlier this summer. Teaching fans to adopt this new technology has proven challenging. According to Taketani, 30% of eligible fans claimed their NFTs, a statistic that, while impressive, indicates the technologies remain short of mass adoption.
All members of the panel agreed that the Tampa Bay web3 community was especially primed to take advantage of these emerging technologies. Members of the panel praised our cities’ culture of networking, sharing ideas, and coming together to discuss a new industry that energizes us all.
As the founder of the St Pete Catalyst, Hamilton understands community on a deep level. The Catalyst has provided a local pulse for the St Pete community since 2018. Cityverse provides the next step for local news by providing citizens themselves with the tools to explore and contribute to their community.
These panelists were three of many who appeared at the summit to discuss blockchain infrastructure, art, and applications. The Florida Blockchain and Bitcoin Summit was held on November 4, 2022, and included over 20 speakers and panelists discussing the future of blockchain technology in Florida.
