Author: Katherine Ross, Blockworks; Compiled by Bai Shui, Jinse Finance
This weekend, I went back to college... I traveled north to attend the Midwest Blockchain Conference held on the University of Michigan campus.
I was the only reporter on site, which meant I had unrestricted access to the crypto-native college students eager to learn more about the industry and technology. I also interacted with speakers and the workshop leaders guiding them.
Students from universities like the University of Kansas, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Illinois gathered in Ann Arbor. The mood was very upbeat, with people discussing the next steps for crypto in light of last week's election results.
The next generation of developers, investors, and builders stood shoulder-to-shoulder in the university's commons, making tacos with industry experts from companies like EY, who had a strong presence at the conference.
But what's a crypto conference without a little fun? When I arrived, I saw an artist named Idris Busari dressed as Bitcoin, who said this was his first time attending a Block event.
One eye-catching event that generated a lot of excitement and lively discussion was a session with Ravi Bakhai, the founder of Hype, who delved deep into the world of memecoins, drawing in students and some industry professionals.
Bakhai said: Memecoins are risky, but you can get rich.
Bakhai noted that memes no longer exist just on Crypto Twitter; TikTok is a must-visit for anyone trying to stay ahead of the volatile memecoins cycle. He called it the "TikTokification" of finance, emphasizing how quickly these trends are developing. To drive the point home, he shared a story about a memecoin that spiked 1,000% in just 18 minutes before being sold off.
"In America, this is how we're getting retail back into crypto," Bakhai told Blockworks.
But the memecoin mania wasn't the only highlight. There were also conversations with industry professionals from a16z, well-known venture capital firms like Volt Capital, and representatives from university endowment offices, including Daniel Feder and Brandon Schroedle, who discussed universities' interest in crypto and shared their views on the industry.
Feder told a packed audience on Friday that the endowment fund holds over $20 billion. The two then spent 30 minutes explaining the University of Michigan's interest in crypto.
Schroedle said: "The U.S. financial system is very outdated... it's all duct-taped together." He not only sees crypto as a way to diversify investments, but is also excited about use cases for DePIN.
However, Feder believes crypto should not become a standalone asset class - though this doesn't dampen his optimistic outlook. He emphasized that for institutions, the real key is the sustained increase in institutional interest in crypto.
Other highlights included a16z's Jane Lippencott predicting a "AI winter" in the coming years, and Volt's Soona Ahmaz sharing tips for pitching to venture capitalists.
The overall mood of the conference was positive and palpably excited.
But one thing that struck me was not just that the next generation is crypto-native, but that they are poised to fill the gaps as they enter the crypto workforce.
Coinbase (which also had a recruiter at the event, drawing a lot of student attention) released a report in June showing the U.S. has lost significant developer market share, partly due to its uncertain regulatory environment.
But if the regulatory environment becomes more certain, the talent pool is here, ready for the taking.
