Stanford University to Host Bitcoin Blockchain Workshop
Stanford University has since Saturday been playing host to a Bitcoin workshop that has featured several big players in the cryptocurrency space. The workshop will examine the relationship between blockchain technologies and the existing regulatory environment. The first two days of the workshop which were for a private audience ended on Sunday March 22nd, 2015, while the public part of the workshop will be held from Monday March 23rd, 2015 and will end on Tuesday March 24th, 2015.
It brings together different experts in technology, law and business who have been involved in the development of blockchain technology in their respective domains. One of the topics to be discussed during the workshop is about what kind of techno-legal framework will best suit the emerging applications built on the blockchain including virtual currency. Such an envisioned techno-legal framework would be able to scaffold rather than hinder the potential of distributed technology such as the blockchain.
Monday: Alternative Economies and Cyber-Security
The sessions on each of the workshop days have been organized around themes. After the introduction session on Monday morning, the mid-morning session heading into lunch will have Alternative Economies as the theme. Michael Harte, CTO at Barclays will give the keynote presentation followed by a panel that will feature among others Elizabeth Rossiello, CEO of Bitpesa, a remittance service based in Nairobi Kenya. The evening session will feature Cyber-Security as the theme, and a book launch is slated for the evening. The book is entitled “From Bitcoin to Burning Man.”
Tuesday: Internet of Things and Governance
Tuesday will feature four themes as well. The first will be on the Internet of Things and the second will be about Autonomous Communities. Later on in the afternoon the workshop will deliberate on Identity and Reputation. The workshop will wrap up with a discussion on Voting and Governance. The keynote during Voting and Governance will be presented by Preeta Bansal, a Senior Advisor and Research Strategist at the MIT Media Lab and a Visiting Scholar at Harvard Law School.
This workshop at Stanford points to a growing recognition that countries around the world will need to begin wrapping their heads around blockchain technology, as we have only just begun to understand its potential. To register please follow this link .
Image credit: Stanford University.
