June 3, 2024

One evening in 2018, businessman Jodee Rich and Devin Finzer had a conversation over dinner about the fast-growing NFT field. A year earlier, Finzer had become co-founder and head of OpenSea, an innovative platform-marketplace for digital assets. Jodee Rich recalled the meeting this way: “We talked about how fascinated we were with the idea of tokens. We decided that we wanted to give the NFT community a voice, and that remains one of our core values to this day.” Shortly after that, Rich and his partner Cameron Bale organised the first NFT.NYC conference in New York, which gained popularity and global recognition at a dizzying pace and, over time, also helped to promote the activities of Finzer’s OpenSea application and many of today’s other leading “players” in the NFT market (CryptoPunks, Nifty Gateway, and Rarible, for example).

Last year’s conference attracted more than 6,000 people from dozens of countries, as well as 1,500 speakers and 500 brands. This year, the number of applications exceeded all the organisers’ expectations, so attendance will be much higher. NFT enthusiasts know that this is the perfect opportunity to continue or start an adventure with digital goods. Artists, programmers, digital art creators who use tokenisation to sell their work announced their presence in Times Square and Hudson Yards. Business people, representatives of trading platforms, digital security experts, NFT investors, musicians, gaming fans, celebrities and technology enthusiasts will also come. Everyone wants to know how NFT is influencing the arts, entertainment, science and many other areas of our lives today. It is a great opportunity not only to deepen your knowledge, but also to network, exchange inspiration, and present your own digital activities in film, music or games. You can also exhibit, sell or buy blockchain digital artworks – exclusive, unique, special.

The New York Times called the NFT.NYC conference one of the most creative events in the world, where dreams, talent and culture meet business. The Forbes magazine went even further, comparing it to the Super Bowl. This is probably why big brands are so keen to participate as partners and sponsors. These include Amazon Web Services (AWS), NF Technology, Warner Music Group, Macy’s, Hollywood Capital Group, OpenSea, CryptoMondays, Solar Punk, Sorare, Forbes Web3, Orbis86, Canon, Sony Electronics, Baddies in Tech.... the list is practically endless. Also speakers from various industries, digital creators, visionaries, and artists register for the NFT.NYC every year. Anyone can create their own event, showcase their knowledge, thoughts or creativity. Jodee Rich and Cameron Bale, the originators and organisers of the conference, take great care to promote the artists during the event – their work is featured on large billboards in Times Square, on free postcards, conference tickets and in numerous galleries. Those who need support can even apply for a scholarship to come to New York.

The international NFT community is growing steadily and rapidly. Why? Because the world is changing and so is our way of living, creating and collecting goods. More and more industries are therefore opening up to the NFT space, as it is evolving and offers new opportunities for the arts and the business sphere – and this is what will be discussed at this year’s conference. The issues talked about during the presentations and panel discussions are innovative and exploratory. How do AI, blockchain and neuroscience come together? Could NFT disrupt e-commerce? Tokenisation of media and entertainment, bringing the traditional music industry into blockchain technology – will this become commonplace? How does art fare in the age of artificial intelligence – in the confrontation between NFT and the creative human spirit? There will also be talks about the powerful role of women in the development of Web3 technology, the economic ecosystem and its impact on space.

The NFT.NYC conference is not only about lectures and discussions. It is also, and perhaps most importantly, entertainment – such as playing together, programming, or performances by artists who have moved from traditional music making to NFT. There will also be prizes – and their presentation – for innovative ideas, digital assets and achievements. For example, in 2022, one of the winners was the Yacht Club NFT’s Bored Ape collection, or the famous NFT “bored ape”, which has 10,000 unique images and has celebrity fans, including actress Gwyneth Paltrow. Those who are awarded will have their careers and promotions open to them at the next edition of the event. There are plenty of talented people, and the world of arts, thanks to the NFT, seems to have no boundaries. Digital assets are at our fingertips – investing and collecting them is becoming increasingly popular.