It’s been a couple of weeks since Polkadot Decoded and TOKEN2049 wrapped up, and now that we’ve had some time to digest everything, it’s clear we need to take stock of what worked and what didn’t. These events gave us a lot to think about—there were some real highlights, but there were also some frustrations. I want to be honest about both.
Polkadot Decoded: Celebrating the Tech, But Missing the Mark
Polkadot’s Tech is Better Than We Realize
Let’s start with the good stuff. Polkadot’s technology is just… remarkable. What we’re building here is truly ahead of its time, and the potential is enormous. Honestly, the value that this technology can bring to the world far outweighs what’s reflected in the market right now.
We’ve got builders who have stuck around for years, and they’re focused on the right things—revenue, use cases, and creating solid user experiences right now, not in some distant future. These builders are the heart of our ecosystem, and they’re laying the groundwork for something big. It’s clear that while Gavin Wood is looking far ahead, we’ve got a community of developers who are working on delivering practical value today.
But Where Were the New Faces?
And yet, despite all this promise, we’re still struggling with one major issue: we’re not pulling in enough new people. The energy at Polkadot Decoded was great for those of us already involved, but it felt like we were just talking to ourselves. It was the same faces, the same conversations.
When you’re spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on an event, you need to attract fresh talent, new developers, and different perspectives. And we just didn’t.
A lot of that comes down to the event logistics. In places like Brussels and Singapore, being 4-5 kilometers away from the city center might as well be an hour or two. It’s too far, especially when there are so many other events going on in between. We need to do better here—events need to be easy to attend, not an added hassle.
The Format Isn’t Working Anymore
And then there’s the structure. Two full days felt like overkill. We had great speakers, but often they were talking to just five people in the audience. That’s heartbreaking. We need to rethink this. Maybe instead of these massive events, we focus on smaller, more targeted ones. Imagine something like a Polkadot Founder’s Event—just founders pitching to venture funds and grant committees. Something with more focus and real outcomes.
TOKEN2049: The Swag Problem
Crypto Events Have Become a Circus
TOKEN2049, though, is a bigger conversation. It’s not just about Polkadot; it’s about what these crypto events have turned into. They’re a circus. People rush to booths not to learn, but to grab free merch. It feels hollow.
Polkadot did have smart people at its booth, but at so many others, the teams couldn’t even explain what their projects were about. It felt like we were losing sight of what these events are supposed to be for—building meaningful connections, sharing ideas, and driving the industry forward.
We Need to Make It Matter Again
We need to get back to meaningful engagement. Forget about drawing in crowds of people looking for swag. Let’s focus on 50 builders instead of 500 people who just want free stuff. Let’s give them something to experience. How about we get people to actually use Polkadot’s tech right there at the booth? Let them interact with parachains, do real transactions—make it hands-on. That’s how we get people to care.
Where We Go From Here: Smaller, Smarter, More Focused
Put It All Into Hackathons
If I could make one big change, it would be this: put all our event budgets into hackathons. They work. They bring in the real builders. Let’s keep building this ecosystem from the ground up. That’s how we’ll move forward, and that’s how we’ll win.
Revenue is the Way Forward
And finally, let’s talk about revenue. Polkadot is open-source, and like many Web2 companies, our model is free until you need to host something. That’s fine, but now we need to lean into that and build a strong revenue-generating engine. We can’t rely on token hype or marketing stunts. It’s time to show the world that Polkadot creates real value—and that real value can generate real revenue.
