ETHDenver 2021 Opening Ceremonies: Colorado Governor Jared Polis

uh so yeah we're gonna keep things rolling here uh we have a really exciting uh speaker next um you know when we say colorado is very crypto friendly this is not hyperbole we really live and breathe this and our next speaker is somebody uh that that i i think is really pushing this forward uh somebody with a strong tech background who's really taken the time to truly understand the the uh the impact and the game changing aspects of blockchain technology so we're we're actually very fortunate to have the landscape as russell mentioned earlier in the conversation um to have a technology friendly governor a person who's actually an entrepreneur himself somebody who's passionate about the expression of personal creativity and also setting the table for you know having you know people in key leadership positions who really think about digital transformation and the future of what statehood might look like so it's our pleasure to introduce and welcome governor jared polis to the stage governor thank you good to see you thank you john is that the is that maroon bells behind you is that your art i think that's maroon bells i can't quit of course it's wintertime maroon bells of course it's one of our iconic uh colorado landscapes absolutely gorgeous also one of the finalists for our uh new driver's licenses we're featuring um colorado art people you can actually vote on um right now um on which license uh design we're gonna have for our drivers licenses and that's one of them but thank you and um thanks for the introduction i'm excited to be with you this morning um you know i want to thank all the buffett horns who are contributing unique skills creativity to colorado jam east denver this year i got to join you last year in person it was a lot of fun i hope that we get to be in person again and we will in the future because it's a really amazing event so when you have that opportunity you should come just you know hacking together coding together um all the vendors on exhibit really cool um stuff but um look uh colorado before the pandemic now and after is really ripe to emerge as a leader in in the field location independent employment people who can live anywhere choosing to live and work in amazing colorado whether it's near maroon bells or in one of our thriving cities uh you know and in these in these crazy times a lot of companies are rethinking how they do business and many more are considering remote work even considering the use of blockchain technology that they may not have before the pandemic so there is we have a great foundation in place in colorado and a huge opportunity to grow from education and research to healthcare and life sciences to fintech software engineering there are so many blockchain related opportunities here in colorado uh companies funded through uh startups through large players that are here so if blockchain technology is your thing and you happen to work for the organization outside colorado we invite you to come make colorado your home for remote work for your company our goal in colorado is very simply to establish colorado is the national hub for blockchain innovation in business and government we want to have the very best uh legal framework for that and make sure that people can innovate and experiment uh in our state and really i think it's the strong leadership and innovative spirit that kind of frontier spirit that colorado has that'll help us do that last year we hired thad bad as our state's very first blockchain solution architect here in colorado he's been working to explore blockchain solutions across state government including assessments and guidance and support for so many different initiatives as an example the colorado hemp advancement and management plan which is a collaboration between our own department of agriculture the department of public health and many others is looking to utilize blockchain technology to develop supply chain and commodity tracking application that certifies and ensures adherences to all the federal regulations around production and processing of hemp that project can is very likely will be the very first interagency service that makes explicit foundational use of blockchain technology and current planning around this program may also bring additional states into this consortium this can start here and grow elsewhere on top of that as you know eth denver has launched a colorado jam incubator which will foster innovative blockchain and web 3 projects right here in colorado in 2019 i signed the digital token act which passed the legislature unanimously which unanimously speaks to the dedication of both republicans and democrats innovation it creates a common sense uh safe harbor exemption from securities laws for companies that produce products that of course should not be labeled the securities uh we're still subject to federal law but we want to create the maximum safe harbor for innovation anywhere in the country right here in colorado uh we also want to use uh blockchain better to power the people of the state and serve the people of the state so we launched the my colorado app with the colorado digital id uh which we now have digital driver's licenses in colorado where you can display on your iphone or android so if you better not be speeding on our highways but if you get pulled over you can you can pull it up there because a lot of let's i'm sure a lot of people of the youth community don't carry wallets anymore right why would you so but you do have a digital device an android or an iphone and so guess what in colorado uh you can get into a bar with that uh and you can uh get pulled over with that don't get pulled over especially not after you've been in a bar bad combination um but this pandemic has really shined a light on the cracks that exist within our system but by further incorporating blockchain technology we can really build that confidence among with colorado leading the way in the whole world for entries transparency security and personal ownership of our data so i want to thank you for having us on me here today i can't wait to be with you in person next year and go get them thank you governor we really appreciate your support and all the leadership that you've put into the technology community here in the state we we wouldn't be able to do really any of this without your executive leadership and without the vision that you've cast for the the digital statehood of colorado so thank you again for joining us thank you take care all right