Amidst a crowd of enthusiastic developers, NEAR is showcasing the immense potential of BOS. The team looks forward to sparking curiosity, fostering innovation, and expanding horizons within the global developer community, setting the tone for a transformative two days.
Let’s take a quick look at what happened on Day 1 with NEAR at We Are Developers, before taking a look at what’s on the schedule for Day 2, July 28th.

On the agenda: NEAR’s engaging BOS offerings

The conference kicked off with “Exploring BOS: The Blockchain Operating System by NEAR”, scheduled for Thursday, July 27, at 3:30 PM and led by Andrej Šarić, senior NEAR developer. The presentation dissectd how BOS is redefining the application-building landscape while highlighting user-friendly onboarding and seamless multi-chain interactions.

Friday, July 28, will see the enlightening “Mastering BOS: A Developer Workshop”, helmed by Andrej along with fellow senior developer, Alen Meštrov. A must-attend for developers keen to enhance their BOS acumen, this comprehensive workshop promises an in-depth, immersive learning experience, centered around the innovative capabilities of BOS.

Additionally, the “Tekuno Activation: Devs Without Limits” is adding an exciting gamified element to the conference, running throughout both days (more on this below). Attendees are encouraged to collect PODs at the NEAR booth, as well as during both BOS sessions, culminating in the exclusive “We Are Devs” POD and a shot at winning a ticket to NEARCON 2023.

Making waves: the buzz at the NEAR booth

NEAR’s BOS booth is serving as a dynamic hotspot of interactivity and engagement throughout the event. Attendees enthusiastically participated in the “How Big of a Dev BOS(s) are you really?” quiz, testing their knowledge about blockchain development while adding a dose of fun to their conference experience.

In addition to being a learning hub, the booth continues to be a place for connection. Visitors had the opportunity to meet some of the brilliant minds behind NEAR, fostering meaningful interactions, exchanging ideas, and discussing BOS’s transformative potential. The booth was also brimming with awesome NEAR merchandise for everyone who stopped by.

Tekuno activation: “Devs Without Limits” POD

The feature stealing the spotlight at the NEAR booth is the Tekuno activation. Offering the exclusive “Devs Without Limits” NFT collection, attendees can collect PODs at the booth, the “Mastering BOS” workshop, and the “Exploring BOS” talk. Successfully gathering these PODs unlocks the ultimate “We Are Devs” POD and offers the chance to win a free ticket to NEARCON 2023.

With the We Are Developers World Congress 2023 in full swing, the NEAR team continues to engage passionately with attendees and fellow developers. Every conversation, presentation, and interaction amplifies the buzz around the transformative power of the Blockchain Operating System (BOS).

There’s plenty more to explore and experience as the event unfolds. If you haven’t yet visited the NEAR booth or attended our sessions, seize the opportunity to dive into BOS and discover its revolutionary impact on the application-building process. And don’t forget to partake in all the fun and rewards, like a chance to win NEARCON tickets with Tekuno PODs.

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A dedicated NEAR team  will be engaging with attendees over 10,000 expected global attendees at We Are Developers. The congress will take place in the dynamic city of Berlin, Germany, on the 27th and 28th of July.

So if you’re in the area and want to explore new BOS development opportunities in-person, NEAR at the We Are Developers World Congress 2023 is a must-attend.

NEAR’s participation in the event

Kicking off on Friday, July 28, 2023, from 9:00 AM to 11:00 AM, the “Mastering BOS” workshop, hosted by senior NEAR developers Andrej Šarić and Alen Meštrov. This deep dive session aims to equip attendees with the skills and knowledge to leverage BOS development and tolling, from a smooth onboarding process to deploying their first application.

On Thursday, July 27, 2023, from 3:30 PM to 4:00 PM, Andrej Šarić will add depth to NEAR’s presence during “Exploring BOS.”  The session will delve into how BOS simplifies the application-building process, improves user onboarding, and facilitates multi-chain interactions, positioning it as an essential tool for developers and users alike.

NEAR’s BOS booth will be an interactive hub, offering engaging activities and a fun quiz. Visitors can also get their hands on cool NEAR merchandise. And Tekuno’s Devs Without Limits activation allows participants to collect PODs at three specific locations: the “Mastering BOS” workshop, the “Exploring BOS” talk, and the NEAR BOS booth.

The Tekuno collab will allow participants to collect PODs at specific locations, which unlocks a special “We Are Developers” Proof-of-Doing (POD) with a chance to win a ticket to NEARCON 2023. Successfully collecting all three PODs unlocks the “We Are Developers” POD, affirming their active participation and engagement at the congress.

The Tekuno Activation: Devs Without Limits will be happening throughout the duration of the conference, from Thursday, July 27 to July 28, 2023.

Importance of BOS and NEAR for the Developer Community

The NEAR team will spread the word and underscore how BOS is making the application-building process smoother and more accessible for developers worldwide. By participating in the “Mastering BOS” workshop and “Exploring BOS” talk, developers can explore the myriad advantages of using BOS and the NEAR Protocol. 

NEAR’s team will highlight BOS’s ability to facilitate composability, swift app creation, and its chain-agnostic capabilities, empowering developers attending the congress. NEAR’s presence at the congress aims to showcase BOS’s significant potential for expanding the NEAR ecosystem. 

By engaging with global developers at this event, NEAR aspires to foster a greater understanding of BOS, stimulate increased adoption, and consequently, amplify awareness and growth of the NEAR community.  

As NEAR gears up for We Are Developers World Congress 2023, their mission is clear —  to illuminate the immense potential of the Blockchain Operating System (BOS). The mission will be  to drive BOS  adoption, foster developer engagement, and strengthen the NEAR ecosystem.

Mark your calendars for this awesome  event, and join us in the hip and modern city of Berlin on 27th and 28th July. From engaging workshops to in-depth discussions, come on down to the We Are Developers World Congress begin Berlin BOS building.

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Mastercard, a leader in global payment systems, enabled the Tekuno team and NEAR Balkans to realize this ground-breaking experience with NFTs. The NFT activation provided MoMo visitors with a gamified experience through which they could gather evidence of their participation at the conference and various NFTs — a concept called Proof of Doings (PODs).

These PODs had time and space restrictions, so participants could only pick them up during a particular period of the conference. PODs demonstrated a novel use case of how NFTs can be used to gamify real life, while strengthening Mastercard’s brand as forward-thinking in the loyalty and payments space.

Behind the Tekuno and Mastercard partnership

The city of Zagreb, Croatia, recently hosted the first edition of an exclusive FinTech conference called Money Motion. With Mastercard as one of the conference organizers and NEAR Balkans as a sponsor, this presented the perfect opportunity for collaboration.

Before the conference, NEAR Balkans Hub’s Product Lab was ready to launch Tekuno,  a blockchain as a service (BaaS) platform for NFT experiences. A user-friendly product for seamless onboarding of mass audiences to Web3, the Tekuno platform makes blockchain knowledge a preference rather than a requirement. 

Tekuno can be used for a variety of campaigns and experiences, including loyalty programs, marketing activations and events, CRM, HR initiatives, and much more. The technology does this through the creation of secure and transparent Proof-of-Doings (PODs) in the form of digital collectibles (NFTs) to attest and reward a wide range of activities. For the “Experience the Motion” campaign, Tekuno was used as proof-of-attendance.

How MoMo attendees claimed NFT PODs

In “Experience the Motion”, MoMo attendees proved their attendance by collecting a total of 5 different NFT PODs. These PODs were exclusive — attendees could only claim them at specific times during the conference.Attendees claimed their PODs by simply scanning QR codes at several predefined locations — the entrance, speakers presentations and panels, and the NEAR Balkans booth.

The PODs functioned as a prize raffle gateway, which attendees entered by following certain rules. MoMo attendees competed for a number of exciting prizes, including: exclusive Mastercard merchandise; a special 1–2–1 session with Christian Rau, Senior Vice President Crypto and Fintech Enablement Mastercard Europe; an invitation to a Web3 NEAR educational workshop, VIP access tickets for conference party; and the grand prize — a Mastercard Priceless.com experience at Chiavalon, Istria, an  olive oil making and tasting experience for two. 

NEAR Balkans and Mastercard campaign results 

The “Experience the Motion” ultimately reached more than 14,000 people on social media, and was available for over 1,000 attendees over two days of the conference. Tekuno’s user-friendly technology made it possible to distribute more than 500 PODs to more than 200 unique collectors.

Feedback from the attendees regarding the NFT experience and rewards was overwhelmingly positive. Participants found the Tekuno platform to be intuitive and easy to navigate. Participants  were able to easily open accounts, allowing them to follow the challenges and collect the PODs for a chance at winning exciting prizes. 

“This is the most seamless experience I have ever had with a Web3 app, and I’ve experimented with many, trust me,” said Vlaho Hrdalo, Lawyer and Chairman of UBIK — Croatian Association for Blockchain and Cryptocurrency. 

Nikola Škorić, the CEO of Electrocoin, Gold sponsor of the conference, added: “‘Experience the Motion ’ —  the NFT activation made possible by Mastercard and organized by NEAR Balkans and Tekuno for the Money Motion conference, engaged our audience in an authentic and fun way that brought extra value to the conference while rewarding the luckiest ones.”

“We’re happy that Money Motion is a place of technology adoption and that brands see us as a great partner for such activities,” Škorić added.

Driving engagement with NFTs

As Mastercard and NEAR Balkans noted, many attendees, who ranged from fintech professionals to regional bank representatives, retail marketing leads, and others were particularly interested in Tekuno’s various use-cases. Indeed, it demonstrated the real-world applications and versatility of NFTs, helping traditional industries see the value in Web3 integrations. 

Gea Kariž, Marketing Director at Mastercard Croatia, shared her insights on the successful collaboration between Mastercard, Money Motion, Tekuno, and NEAR Balkans. 

‘’Our collaboration with the Tekuno and NEAR Balkans teams provided Mastercard HR with a seamless and exceptional entrance into the Web3 domain,” said Kariž. “Through this activation, we not only gained significant brand visibility but also reinforced our commitment to embracing blockchain and other cutting-edge technologies.”

“The added value of this campaign was the deep engagement we experienced with our end-users, fostering a strong sense of community around our brand and further solidifying our position as a forward-thinking and innovative company,” Kariž added.

The NEAR Balkans General Manager, Ida Pandur, was similarly inspired by the partnership — especially as it aligns with NEAR Foundation’s Web2.5 strategy of onboarding the masses with real use cases in Web3.

‘’We at NEAR Balkans are committed to help and enable mass adoption of Web3 and decentralization into everyday lives,” said Pandur. “The way we do it is by educating, enabling and  partnering with innovative organizations to bring Web3 to users in simple, value added, use cases. We are happy to have been working with Mastercard and use Tekuno, which is one of the best Web2→Web3 tools UX wise to bring it to life at MoneyMotion and from the interest we see across the region, it’s just getting started.’’

Sally Meouche-Grawi, CEO of Tekuno, noted that the campaign illustrated how Tekuno demonstrated that Web3 products can be user-friendly. 

“We’re trying to make it as user friendly as possible, but it’s still realistically a Web3 product, but it’s a Web3 product that is easy to use,” said Meouche-Grawi. “And this is what a lot of these products are critically lacking, which is the easy onboarding experience.”

“So, we are trying to set the standard… to show how we can create a Web3 product that any average user can actually use,” Meouche-Grawi added. “Because from my experience when it comes to Web3 products they are usually developed by developers for developers, this is the trend and we are trying to break it.’’

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