State of the Union January 2023

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build_republic kicked off the New Year with some really exciting updates and increased clarity on how the digital-physical ecosystems are converging. With ETH Denver around the corner and a series of upcoming feature releases, we can't wait to build_2023 with you all.

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First Global On-Chain Governance Vote with 50 Cities

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We conducted the first on-chain governance vote between all 50 City NFT holders to issue the Denver City NFT to the SporkDAO/ETHDenver/Bufficorn Ventures team.  As one of our earliest believers/investors that embodies the same "just build it" ethos and deeply integrated with the State of Colorado on digital initiatives, it was a no-brainer to make the proposal which passed unanimously and demonstrated the first foray into global on-chain governance of the build_republic. Denver is now available to join on our web application. Join the Denver chapter ahead of ETH Denver to see who's in town from your digital communities.

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BIP (build_improvement_proposal) #1 on Snapshot for the issuance of the build_denver City NFT.
After the on-chain votepassed, Denver is now available for access on the web application.


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build_cities Heads to Dubai

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build_republic gave a presentation to the 42 Geeks in Dubai as part of a series of presentations on Network States alongside Jur, Plumia, RNS ID, WestDAO, and Prospera with an opening by Zane Austen and Balaji Srinivasan. Dubai has proven to be one of the fastest growing cities in the world, originally seeded from a small fishing village but then rapidly morphed into a port city that served as a critical trade route to the Persian Gulf.  With an offshore oil discovery in the 1960s bringing an accelerated uptick to the region, oil comprises only 1% of the economic activity today despite a 500% population boom in recent decades that lends itself to Dubai’s newly established reputation of a truly global business hub. With all this economic activity, a diverse population with global reach, and perhaps the symbolic magnet of the world’s tallest building, it also makes for a perfect recipe to manifest a rapidly growing startup ecosystem.  With over $1.25 billion cumulatively deployed into early stage (up to Series A) venture funding, there are no signs of slowing down.  This makes Dubai an increasingly attractive region for founders and investors alike making it a model startup city for other build_[city] chapters to learn from.

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Co-Founder Angelo Alessio presents the web application through the lens of Dubai at the DFIC Innovation Hub.
Dubai is a modern-day testament to the building of new startup cities.

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Quarterly Summit in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho

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Startup Cities pioneer Zach Caceres and Retired Brigadier General Blaine Holt came to speak at our blueprint ecosystem in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho for the quarterly speaker series where they shared memories, stories, and guidance for the community there and got to see first-hand our full-stack of work across software, real estate, and community-as-a-service offerings.  

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Retired Brigadier General Blaine Holt (left) explains the importance of conviction in life with build_cities co-founder Nick Smoot (middle) and accompanied by Startup Cities author Zach Caceres (right) who emphasized the critical need for invigorating newly built environments.

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Verify Your Networks in the Web App

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The claim network feature is now live on the web app allowing any community to update their profile and make it more discoverable to other members on the web application. Verified networks receive a green check mark and will be featured higher up in the Networks tab.

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Networks in the web application with at least 10 people can now update their profile data which is then minted on-chain to create a networks database available for future dApp developers.

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Looking Ahead

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Stay tuned next month for updates from ETH Denver as well as the planned release of "Dream Maker" serving as a fully automated ecosystem building product to connect people, places, and dreams.

What does build_republic do again?  We build cities.  More specifically, we build cities based on shared values, collective ownership, and human flourishing.

Onward.

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