NEARCON ON-SITE DAY 1
Lisbon, Portugal — Over 2,000 members of the NEAR community have gathered at the stunning and vibrant city of Lisbon in celebration of NEARCON 2022, the flagship event for the ecosystem’s most impressive achievements and cutting-edge technological developments. During the three days, NEARCON sees countless new announcements, and acts as an interactive showcase of the ecosystem’s builders, developers, talent, and enthusiasts.
Attending NEARCON, we take a look at the diverse range of booths, events, and people coming together to ‘build beyond the hype.’
NEAR Protocol: Mastering the Art of Thriving During a Bear Market
In a major moment for DeFi on NEAR, the NEAR Foundation announced a new important partnership with Tether that will see the arrival of the USDT stablecoin to the NEAR ecosystem. Speaking about the future of the partnership, CEO of NEAR Foundation Marieke Flament states:
‘We look forward to seeing what Tether will achieve with the launch of USDT and the vital role it will play in shaping the future of finance and the digital economy.’
In addition to the Tether announcement, major news regarding Phase One of Nightshade sharding was revealed, offering a significant step towards scaling to a billion users.
During various talks, the foundation also announced a strategic partnership with Caerus, a newly launched venture capital firm.
The Podcast Studio: A Place for the Convergence of a Diverse Range of Voices
NEARCON is a great chance to see what the future holds for Web3. And its podcast studio is the ideal place to convene and discuss your own personal projects, thoughts, and ideas surrounding NEAR and its wider ecosystem. The space offers an intimate time to get feedback from NEAR’s creative and supportive community.
NEARWEEK will be making full use of the studio at the event to host its own personalised interviews, which you can expect to be released over the coming weeks.
Aurora: Exploring New Horizons
The green pastures of the aurora space are a perfect representation of its blooming ecosystem. The team behind the Layer-2 EVM network on NEAR hosted office hours during the day and gave out plenty of merch featuring its iconic lime green Aurobot.
Alex Shevchenko, CEO of Aurora Labs, came on stage to pack his 20-minute speech full of unexpected announcements, including: cross-contract calls with the release of Aurora’s 2.7.0 engine, a Rainbow Bridge native token connector, and a complete new Aurora+ referral program. At NEARWEEK, we’re excited to see these features being implemented and look forward to seeing what Aurora has in store for us next!
-Alex Shevchenko
NEARWEEK: STARTS THE WEEK WITH A BANG
In a post-apocalyptic bear market, NEARWEEK has set the night aflame by throwing a late-night party on the first day of NEARCON. Over 600 people attended the event, and it continued deep into the night as people danced their worries away.
Situated next to the water, the venue contained its own boiler-room and terrace, while laidback house tunes set the tone for the evening, creating a cosy and welcoming environment. Attendees were also welcome to order a custom ‘NEARWEEK special’ at the bar.
