Do Not Pass Go, Do Not Collect $200.

Permissionless & NFTNYC

So you’re probably wondering what this title has to do with this message. It is me, I am the biggest loser. lmao. Now hear me out and it will likely be of value to you. Skip this first block if you want to just get to the recap and what’s next.

Imagine you come back home to LA from Dubai, Denver, Toronto & Las Vegas having executed really successful events for companies and your brand (New Friendship Tech) the whole first half of this year… You’ve started planning your next set of upcoming activations and accepting bookings (i’m available) to be a Speaker, Moderator, MC/Host & DJ at NFTNYC & Permissionless in New York…

Sounds good, right? I get home, reach in my bag to grab my Macbook only to have it not turn on. I repeatedly try various methods and end up having to bring it to my trusted repair shop. After a few days, they call me and tell me the SSD (Hard Drive) is failing. Leaving all of my data inaccessible. We escalate it and bring it to a referral, but the plot twist is my Cloud Services have been disabled/broken for a few years now and Google/Apple provide literally zero support or explanation. So about 6 years worth of Art, Music, Videos, Writings, Mixed Media, Contracts, Invoices and more not backed up. ( I know… always back your sh*t up on externals etc ).

To add insult to injury, I take a DJ gig and have my phone charging next to the CDJs. Some girl gets into the booth and manages to knock it on the floor, cracking the screen despite protector. I bring it to get repaired the next day, get it back… Now there’s a hardware issue. I bring it to Apple. they can’t touch it and tell me to reset it. Soooo same week, similar issue can’t backup or transfer anything, all my data, photos, videos, notes, apps, contacts gone (again) within a 72hrs of each other. Annnd if that’s not enough insult to injury, I come home to a notice on my door (and all of the ones on my floor) that my building is increasing rent again (for the 5th year b2b) as the DTLA Arts Dist continues to get rapidly gentrified. Basically forcing me to accept it or move out. So I give a 30-Day and move 1100sqft of my life into storage.

I don’t know what I did or who I pissed off or what pandoras box was opened, but this whole month of losses really kicked my ass to say the least… If you say everything for a reason, you’ll have a reason for everything annnd this is something I can’t for the life of me figure out. Besides a reminder to invest more into storage and securing whats important.

If you’re reading this, probably a good idea to do the same so you don’t end up like me.

While having this “clean slate” if you will, it really got me thinking about the mass migration that’s been happening in Los Angeles and major metropolitan cities worldwide. Alongside the. 9,500 homes burned down during the Eaton Fires, As well as the wars happening worldwide that are literally erasing history and decimating cities on the other side of the globe.

There’s a lot to be gained in studying Loss, from income and employment to relationships and identity, loved ones or animals. Whether by choice or circumstance.

When I was on bedrest in 2016 to 2018 recovering from a near fatal car accident after undergoing heart, leg and hip surgery. I thought it was all over. I literally had my business stripped from me by my partner. all of my revenue streams were killed, any momentum and motion I had came to an abrupt and immediate stop. I had close to $800k in medical surgery. I was told I might not be able to walk again from top physicians from one of the best hospitals in the nation. I got into a deep dark depression, addicted to pain killers, tapered off with edibles. Nothing mattered more to me in the world than my health. After countless outpatient nurse visits, a personal trainer, physical therapist, chiro and daily regiments and routines to get back on my feet. I was finally able to go from wheelchair to walker to crutches to a nasty limp to being able to walk and run again.
From the stents in my heart to the metal in my hip, this is a constant reminder that things can always be worse, and people are constantly fighting silent battles and invisible pain. It changes you.

So throughout all the L’s i’ve taken through life, I have scars to remind me that sometimes things have to get really, really bad before they can get really really good. Needless to say, despite the fumbles and stumbles, we’re back.

Anyways, enough with the personal stuff, the feedback I get from these monthly mailers get a pretty significant positive response so I do my best to keep it

The Biggest Scam Since Uncle Sam

So this years NFTNYC and Permissionless happened at the same time, one in Time’s Square the other in Brooklyn. It was really unique this time to see the sentiments because NFTS and Memecoins have both somewhat ran their course of running too hot for too long and burning out. A lot of the builders have since shifted into AI or alternative industries, while some of the familiar faces are still around creating really unique use cases for Crypto and Blockchain Tech.

It’s crazy to think when NFTNYC started in 2018, Bitcoin was as low as $3,300 in December and now it’s hit an all time high of $120,000.

While the city was buzzing and the energy was electric, both conferences kinda felt like we had some sort of quiet breakthrough. Less vaporware, scams, speculation and grifters. More meaningful connections, conversations and dialogues. It probably also didn’t hurt that the Government and legislation are finally acknowledging and actively participating in the future of finance.

Which means the industry at large is finally gaining much needed destigmatizing, credibility and mainstream adoption. Especially as heavy hitters like Paypal, Robinhood and Mastercard all get into the mix.

Unbiased opinion (not), I feel like the best activation all week was our New Friendship Tech event hosted at one of the cities top Nightclubs (GOSPËL) where we had insightful talks with Carrie Lyn of Stand With Crypto, Clare Tattersall of Digital Fashion Week, Rachel Wilkins of the Good News Show, extremely talented Street Artist Goldloxe & Landy Slattery of Channel 4, alongside digital artist Patrick Amadon + a handful of others special guests. Huge Thanks to Empirical Spirits for the bar support as well.

There was also a really amazing event called DeAI Day by a great team over at The Wire Network, it was a blast to learn about new products and projects coming out that are worth exploring and supporting. We truly are at a very interesting inflection point, with significant changes happening to the way we do literally everything. That said, if you’re not first, you’re last. Lead with curiousity and explore these tools of tomorrow today, you never know what magic you’ll be able to unlock.

New Friendship Tech x DIGFA (Digital Innovation For America)

Clarity Act & Genius Bill.

We're proud to stand with over 30 organizations - from state blockchain councils to DAOs to chambers of commerce - in a nationwide call to Congress. This bill gives builders and users the clear rules they need to thrive, while ensuring strong consumer protections.

For too long, the lack of legal clarity has pushed innovation offshore. The CLARITY Act is how we keep jobs, talent, and opportunity here at home.

It’s kinddddd of a BIG deal, so i’m happy we were able to be part of the coalition or organizations representing innovators, entrepreneurs, businesses, and consumer advocates across the United States.

If you’d like to know more about this you can read the full thing here:
https://x.com/DIFA_USA/status/1945486791114473902

Web3 & AI Pitch Competition & VC networking by Ga^3in Ventures x Fibonacci Capital at Web3 Investors Day in Chicago

CHICAGO

​If you’re in Chicago you do not want to miss this!
Web3 & AI Pitch Competition & VC networking by Ga^3in Ventures x Fibonacci Capital lands at Web3 Investors Day in Chicago on Thursday, July 24, 12:00 PM  at Convene Willis Tower, uniting 100+ venture‑funding powerhouses - including Decasonic, ParaFi, CMT, and VanEck. Pitch in front of Web3 VCs that deploy capital, sharpen your story, and grow priceless relationships; 

The pitch competition winner gets 15,000$ in prizes sponsored by QuillAudits.

Seats are limited—Reserve your spot.

P.S. Bonus - attend the full day for the price of pitch competition.
Space is limited—register today

Follow them on Twitter for future info.

NEW FRIENDSHIP TECH

Let’s Talk Sponsorships.

Having 15 Years of experience in Events, Nightlife and Luxury Hospitality dealing with Celebrities, Athletes, Musicians, Diplomats alongside Fortune 100-500 companies c-suites. I’ve seen my fair share of bullshit sponsorship decks in circulation. People really think they deserve something for nothing, and being in the trillion dollar crypto industry. I’ve seen some of the absolute worst bang for your buck with these offerings. $50-100k for literally a negative ROI while simultaneously creating lots of waste. Fly-By-Night agencies running the pockets dry as fast as a puncture in a tire or fuel tank. Leaving this most recent conference, I think about how many shirts, socks, totes, backpacks, notepads, pens and other things that’re just left behind or addtl. costs in shipping back to some storage unit bc nobody wants the promo merch. Instead of it going to a school or people in need.

With us, we become your liaison when we know your goals - creating introductions and interviews before, during and after with valuable prospects for new business. Consider us an extension of your team in the rooms we curate. A fractional cmo, biz dev or sales ambassador. Beyond that, we’re producing rich content that’s transcribed, distributed and syndicated across our media partners. All while providing guests with a unique and memorable experience, packaged and presented by us with you. No waste, no vanity metrics, just pure 1:1 results, or in our case 1:500, since we can account for everyone who’s in the rooms.

If you’d like to chat further about this, ping me on @ericspivak to discuss options or Insta, LinkedIn or X.com 

• Denver | Complete
• Dubai | Complete
• Los Angeles | Complete
• Toronto | Complete
• Vegas (May) Complete
• New York Complete
• Cannes Complete
• Tokyo (Aug)
• Seoul (Sept)
• Singapore (Oct)
• London (Oct)
• Malta (Nov)
• Miami (Dec)
• Abu Dhabi (Dec)