Global payment giant Mastercard continues supporting cryptocurrency and blockchain startups as part of its fintech accelerator, the Mastercard Start Path program. Mastercard has chosen another seven industry startups for its Start Path program in order to promote the adoption of crypto and blockchain technology, the firm announced on Nov. 3. The new cohort of startups includes the crypto gateway provider Fasset, Singapore’s crypto payment platform Digital Treasures Center and the Colombian stablecoin-focused firm Stable. Mastercard previously partnered with Fasset in July to jointly work on digital solutions to drive financial inclusion in Indonesia. The latest Mastercard Start Path program also …

Nonfungible tokens (NFTs) are stepping into the next wave of Web3 with utility capabilities and community building at the forefront. A new collection from the Mint NFT marketplace and metaverse entertainment platform Animal Concerts does this across the musical genre spectrum, as well as blockchain networks. The collection, “A Hard Working Man,” features the crypto-savvy hip-hop star Snoop Dogg in combination with country music icons Billy Ray Cyrus and the Avila Brothers. The collection features highlight physi-digital experiences with digital artwork, as well as in-person concert perks. Unbothered, building, and trudging through the NFT bear market like: pic.twitter.com/nPNLNswYG8 — A …

Interoperability in Web3 domains is now a priority for a cross-chain coalition of leading blockchain and Web3 players that has formed the Web3 Domain Alliance, announced on Nov. 2 at the Web Summit in Lisbon. Sandy Carter, senior vice president and channel chief at Unstoppable Domains, told Cointelegraph the group will work together to protect the naming space on Web3: "There's not an ICANN [Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers] for Web3. We don't think there should be. We think there should be some sort of self-regulating in the spirit and ethos of Web3. We think there should be …

Where are the top destinations for a career in crypto? For some, it’s traditional innovation hubs such as Miami or Silicon Valley. For others, it’s Singapore or Seoul. In addition, some would even argue that as long as you have a stable internet connection, irrespective of location, is sufficient for one to carve their own path in the realm of Web 3.0. To answer this question, Cointelegraph’s editor-in-chief Kristina Lucrezia Cornèr asked a panel of experts at the annual Web Summit panel live in Lisbon. Speakers at the event included Coelius Capital’s managing partner Zach Coelius, Laura González-Estéfani, founder and …

Disclaimer: This article is updated all day long. All time codes are in the UTC time zone, and updates are in reverse order (the latest update is placed at the top). Web Summit, one of the premier world tech conferences, is back live in Lisbon. The event brings together the founders and CEOs of technology companies, fast-growing startups, policymakers, and heads of state to discuss the future of the tech industry. In 2022, Web3 is one of the biggest topics of tech discussion, and Web Summit 2022 is no different. Cointelegraph has set up a team for the event to …

Giant companies like Apple have made a fortune by centralizing their powers and profits and expanding their product and services network to be a part of people’s lives in as many ways as they can. Until recently, however, Apple had also demonstrated an ability to tunnel-focus its efforts to stay relevant and up to date with what consumers wanted, what mattered to them and what they needed most from the tech giants they rely on. It seems that this is not strictly true anymore, and that is a real shame. In its updated App Store guidelines unveiled on Oct. 24, …

It’s been just over a year since social media giant Facebook rebranded as Meta at the Facebook Connect conference on Oct. 28, 2021. The name change reflected the company’s growing ambitions to transcend past social media and into the world of Web3, crypto, NFTs, and the Metaverse — virtual worlds where consumers are likely to spend more of their time for both work and play. The company has been busy. In December 2021, Meta debuted its Horizon Worlds virtual reality social networking project, while it also opened up advertising for more crypto ads on Facebook. In April 2022, reports emerged …

As inflation continues to grow, coupled with a looming recession, many tech firms are having to cut portions of their staff. To put this in perspective, data from Layoffs.fyi found that over 700 tech startups have experienced layoffs this year, impacting at least 93,519 employees globally. It has also been reported that tech giants like Google, Netflix and Apple are undergoing massive job cuts. While many of these layoffs are likely due to an economic downturn, this has resulted in an overwhelming amount of talent flocking to early-stage Web3 companies. For example, Andrew Masanto, a serial entrepreneur who has founded …

On Oct. 28, NFT Steez, a bi-weekly Twitter Spaces hosted by Alyssa Expósito and Ray Salmond, met with Web3 content writer, Julie Plavnik to discuss the importance of self-sovereignty while building a digital identity in Web3. Plavnik references author Gavin Wood when describing Web3 and says that “communication” is a core tenant in the subsequent iteration of the internet. “Web3 is the communication of encrypted channels between decentralized identities,” Plavnik affirms. According to Plavnik, the emerging concept of Web3 placed a magnifying glass on user data and ownership, especially concerning the creator economy. Plavnik describes the creator economy as a …

An NFT event ticketing marketplace has teamed up with a major electronic music brand. SeatlabNFT says its goal is to help artists build a closer connection with fans — all while eliminating fraud and reducing the impact of scalping. The NFT ticketing and experience platform has partnered with Elrow Dubai to become their exclusive VIP ticketing provider. This means all VIP tickets will be issued as NFTs — with digital collectibles, airdropped rewards and on-site gamified interactive blockchain installations also on offer. Elrow is famous for carnival and circus-themed events where crowd interaction and immersiveness take center stage. Speaking to …

The Web3 and cryptocurrency space is seeing a significant amount of smart contract scams proliferating, with blockchain risk monitoring firm Solidus Labs saying it has detected on average 15 newly deployed scams every hour. Solidus Labs said on Oct. 27 that it had been monitoring 12 blockchains including Ethereum (ETH), Polygon (MATIC), and BNB Chain (BNB) since Oct. 10 and in that time had detected 188,525 smart contract scams. Former United States Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) director, Kathy Kraninger, who is now Solidus’ VP of regulatory affairs, said in the statement that “while some of the big rug pulls …

The ride-sharing industry is poised for another paradigm shift with Web3 protocols, allowing new companies and drivers to bid for rides using a matching algorithm, according to the Decentralized Engineering Cooperation (DEC) — the company behind the Solana-based protocol TRIP that enables mobility-based applications. According to DEC, on the TRIP ecosystem, companies and riders can collaborate and compete in a shared marketplace. The protocol also rewards the most active participants with stake in its governance for both drivers and customers. The first company to operate on TRIP is Teleport, a decentralized ride-sharing application set to be launched in December and …