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- The Full Node Blockchain coworking space will open in Berlin with space for 100 members.
- The space will host Blockchain startups and hold regular public events and meetups.
- Full Node will also use Blockchain technologies in the space.
Cryptocurrencies have hit the headlines hard in recent times as people clamour to get a slice of a Bitcoin. However, Blockchain (the technology lying behind cryptocurrencies) could be far more impactful beyond Bitcoin and introduce a range of applications across every industry.
Blockchain is also a very nascent technology, and one that many people do not fully understand yet. To address these issues, a dedicated Blockchain coworking space called Full Node is due to open in Berlin this April. The space will not just house Blockchain-based startups, but also host community events and hackathons to help people get to grips with the technology.
The teams behind two leading blockchain-based projects, Cosmos/Tendermint and Gnosis, have joined forces to create the Full Node blockchain space. Nadja Beneš, responsible for brand and content strategy at Gnosis, said: “Blockchain technology is quite complicated and there is an ocean of things that can be done with it. We want our community members to collaborate, experiment, and help others understand and work with Blockchain as this technology evolves.”
“The timing for this coworking space is just right because we are at the beginning of grasping the technology’s full potential. We’re at the beginning of a revolution, and it’s our responsibility to share our knowledge with the public through workshops and meetups to help people understand and see the potential of it,” Beneš explained.
The need for this dedicated Blockchain space is also due to the growing amount of businesses tapping into this technology. When the Full Node team sent out an informal email to potential attendees, they got almost 100 requests back for a dedicated coworking space.
Beneš added: “We needed more office space at our company but soon realised we were not alone. Other Blockchain-based businesses were growing rapidly too. So, we wanted to bring all these companies together to boost collaboration and push the technology forward.”
Gnosis and Tendermint (the software company developing Cosmos) have jointly rented out
1,000m² of space in the city’s neighborhood Kreuzberg. The building will serve as their new Berlin offices, as well as a coworking space for 100 people. Full Node will also offer meeting rooms, open space, and social areas for events and work.
The beauty of Berlin
The space will cost just over $1 million to renovate and the city of Berlin is the perfect fit, according to Beneš, who added: “Berlin is a super edgy city and its creativity matches the transformative power of Blockchain. We believe Berlin will be the Blockchain capital of Europe.”
Not only is Berlin regarded as the first place to accept Bitcoins at the city’s Room 77 bar in 2011, it also hosts regular hackathons and meetups for the Blockchain community. But a dedicated space is needed to further advance the technology, as it slowly moves into the mainstream.
Beneš said: “While generic tech and hacker spaces are cool places to work, we wanted to create an environment where the technology is being used and developed. Our space will also allow us to hold more regular community events, happy hours and hackathons as we now have a dedicated space to do that.”
For example, Full Node will use the Slock.it locking system to secure the space, which relies on (you guessed it) Blockchain technology and the IoT. Slock.it goes further though than purely provided access to members — it also provides smart contracts where you can exchange money or anything else of value in a transparent way, without the need for a middleman.
Innovation is clearly at the heart of Full Node, as the space will be populated purely by Blockchain-based startups. “We want everyone to keep working on their own projects but we’d like to ground this young ecosystem in a common space to work and closely collaborate towards making the technology more mature — that’s the mission of the Full Node space,” Beneš added.
