An international summit on NFT took place in Istanbul at the end of the last month. It was a two-day organisation full of fun, networking opportunities, and invaluable occasions to learn about the ecosystem at an international level.
- Venue -
@ International Convention and Exhibition Centre (ICEC) - one of the greatest convention and exhibition centers in Turkey.
- Elements of the Summit -
1. Speakers
In the auditorium, there was a continuous series of panel discussions and speeches by experts of their respective fields.
While the majority of these inspiring speakers were representing from NFT-related startups and multinationals, the stage hosted various backgrounds such as musicians, photographers, actors/actresses, producers, journalists, and lawyers...
Note #1: Opportunity to enter-exit in between speeches is nice but be sure that happens "in between" not "during" the speeches 🙃
2. Fair
The u-shaped fair hall allowed tens of NFT initiatives to pitch their activities and connect with NFT enthusiasts. These international initiatives had plenty of different areas:
- Games with play-to-earn mechanisms,
- A periodical magazine launching its own NFT collection,
- Startups focusing on potentials of influencers and celebrities for promoting NFTs,
- Exclusive communities for NFT holders (i.e. private dining events),
- An NGO focusing on woman empowerment in the field.
This interactive space allowed all attendees to mingle with others all day long.
Note #2: It worths mentioning that university clubs had a notable interest. There were university clubs even coming from other cities.
3. NFT Exhibition Area
The summit curated its own collection exclusive for the event. The creators of the selected pieces were invited to the summit and had a chance to display their works in the "NFT Exhibition Area".
It is my utmost pleasure to share that I was one of these lucky artists! Ten of my NFT works were selected for the collection. You can check out the collection on OpenSea here to view all 87 items: opensea.io/collection/nft-summit-istanbul-a..
It was a new experience for me; I had an awesome opportunity to exhibit my works in public and talk to viewers face-to-face. I also got acquainted with other NFT artists and chatted with attendees and representatives.
- Closing Words -
I was so excited and happy for being a part of such a great event. Having observed the atmosphere prudently, I can confirm that there is a looong way for NFTs - or web3 in general - to be understood and developed in Turkey.
Yet, this summit helped interested people to hear about different perspectives and learn about the best practices while networking with people from all over the world.
Looking forward to seeing more organisations in the upcoming months!