Designing For Blockchain.
Aug 14, 2018 · 4 min read
Episode 2 of our new podcast: Builders. A live session featuring Sarah Baker Mills from Consensys and Connie Yang from Coinbase, recorded at betaworks Studios.
One of the very first talks we held at betaworks studios was on how to design for the blockchain. This subject is perfect for our new club for builders. We like to talk about theory as much as the next person but what really excites us is putting things into practice. Making things, building things.
Now that we have all these great people in the space we are recording them so that everyone — not just members of studios — can benefit. Builders is our new podcast — a collection of some of the sessions at Studios. Listen to the full episode here:
This talk from Sarah Baker Mills, the Product Design Director of Consensys and Connie Yung, design Director at Coinbase is all about the practicalities of making products that use blockchain — from two of most respected companies in the space. The event was put together by the Raw Haus team and hosted by Amy Jung.
Sarah digs in to the make up of a design team and how designing for blockchain is different from normal design. She tells some great stories about building her team. Including one great snippet from an off-site where her team start thinking about Ethereum as a tattoo. Listen in — it all makes sense. Kind of.
Sarah Baker Mills from Consensys
Connie then talks a little about why design needs to change with the times. How visual design adapts as technology changes. She uses road signs as a great example. Cars used to drive slow so signs had lots of words, then around the 70’s cars got really fast, so signs had to be immediately understood.
Connie also talks about how important it is that any design around blockchain must be inclusive so that everyone can participate. She uses the example of an article in the NY Times that reminds women that it’s vital they take part in this new system, as it potentially rebuilds the world’s economy and economic institutions — because if they don’t all the wealth will be snaffled up by all the men. Again.
Connie Yung from Coinbase
The panel was great example of what we are trying to create with betaworks studios. A place where real builders can come to learn about technology and society, get the basics, but also go deep if they want to. We had a packed crowd of diverse people wanting to build their own version of the future. Thank you to everyone who attended, asked questions and made the evening such a success.
The podcast is of course just a quick cut of the evening. Some of the best conversations take place before and after the panel talks. To be involved in them you’ll just have to come to another session. For a list of public events click here and for full access to every event, including THINK Sessions and Frontier Tech Live, become a member or grab a day pass.
But for now, take a listen the podcast. We’d love to know what you think.
For more episodes of the builders podcast — including more on taking Blockchain mainstream, building experiences in the age of Instagram and Jaron Lanier on why you should delete your social media — subscribe on iTunes.
And for more on betaworks, check out the first podcast we made: The Intern. The self-produced story of a young woman navigating New York City and a new career in tech and media.
