Students from the Cornell Blockchain Club, with Emin Gün Sirer, associate professor of computer science, second from right, rang the opening bell April 11 at Nasdaq to celebrate the Cornell Blockchain Conference at Cornell Tech.

Blockchain conference gets ringing start on Nasdaq floor

The Cornell Blockchain Conference got off to a ringing start April 11 as students, professors and blockchain industry dignitaries rang the Nasdaq bell to signify the start of the trading day as well as the advent of the conference.

“We are thrilled to have the honor of ringing the Nasdaq bell,” said Emin Gün Sirer, associate professor of computer science and co-director of the Initiative for CryptoCurrencies and Contracts (IC3). “This demonstrates Cornell’s reach into the emerging financial tech industry in NYC as well as Wall Street’s interest in and commitment to blockchain technologies.”

Beginning April 12 at Cornell Tech, the Cornell Blockchain Conference will bring together industry leaders, entrepreneurs and academics to discuss the future of blockchain. The conference is organized by the student-led Cornell Blockchain Club.

The conference will also feature alumni involved in the cryptocurrency world, including Tendermint CEO and co-founder Jae Kwon ’05, Tezos CEO and co-founder Kathleen Breitman ’12, and Michelle Gitlitz ’98, co-chair of Blank Rome’s Blockchain and Technology and Digital Cryptocurrencies.

In addition to Sirer, speakers at the conference include: Ari Juels, professor of computer science at the Jacobs Technion-Cornell Institute at Cornell Tech; Elaine Shi, associate professor of computer science and co-founder and chief scientist of IC3; and James Grimmelmann, professor of law at Cornell Tech. The conference is devoted to four key topic areas: platforms, regulation, security tokens, and growth and adoption.

– Leslie Morris

Media Contact

Gillian Smith