Businesses show interest in Web3, despite U.S. regulatory challenges

Consensus, the annual crypto and blockchain conference, attracted over 15,000 attendees, 220 sponsors and 410 speakers to its 2023 edition in Austin, Texas, despite recent regulatory struggles around cryptocurrency adoption in the United States. 

The turnout at Consensus 2023 demonstrated that U.S.-based companies and international organizations are still very much interested in implementing Web3 technology into their business models.

Caitlin Long, founder and CEO of Custodia Bank — a Wyoming-based digital asset bank — told Cointelegraph that the conference attracted serious ecosystem participants, saying, “We’ve seen during crypto winters before where Consensus gets overrun with high time preference people and companies (for example, multiple Lambo’s parked out front of the New York Hilton in 2018), and in bust years the low-time preference people and companies just keep building. This year was the latter.”

ADIOS AUSTIN! This was my fave #Consensus conf since 2017—by my guess it had the highest % in attendance of fellow “low-time preference peeps on principled missions” since that year. Huge thanks to everyone who showed your support—it was like a great big warm hug! Safe home! pic.twitter.com/NOPmU03VAV

— Caitlin Long ⚡️ (@CaitlinLong_) April 29, 2023

Businesses discuss Web3 strategies

Several large organizations were present at Consensus 2023, with Mastercard, Google, Robinhood and Coinbase, among others, gathering to discuss their Web3 strategies.

James Tromans, head of Web3 at Google Cloud, told Cointelegraph about some blockchain-based initiatives the company has recently launched.

“At the end of last year, Google Cloud announced Blockchain Node Engine, which allows users and developers to run an Ethereum node without having to manage or support it themselves,” he said.

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At Consensus, the firm announced that it had expanded support for the Blockchain Node Engine to Polygon proof-of-stake, in addition to Ethereum.

Tromans added that Google Cloud knows what Polygon has been doing in the zero-knowledge (ZK) space, noting that Polygon ZK Ethereum virtual machines (zkEVM) and Polygon supernets will benefit from the provision of Google Cloud’s infrastructure and developer tools.

Moreover, Tromans pointed out that Google Cloud’s startup program will help onboard companies interested in building on Web3 using existing Google Cloud products….