After months of renovations, entrepreneur Marlon Williams has opened an incubator for startups that use blockchain technology.
The Atlanta Blockchain Center aims to catalyze blockchain and cryptocurrency startups in Atlanta and comes amid a downturn for the crypto industry.
The ribbon cutting ceremony for the center took place June 13 with Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens, Atlanta Tech Village Managing Director Aly Merritt and crypto venture firm Transform Ventures CEO Michael Terpin in attendance.
How it works
The center, located at 45 Old Ivy Road NE in Buckhead, includes a co-working space and a learning center for startups that use blockchain, or a secure ledger of digital transactions used by cryptocurrencies and other industries.
The Atlanta Blockchain Center is akin to the Atlanta Tech Village, an incubator for software startups founded by serial entrepreneur David Cummings. Local unicorns Salesloft and Calendly both came out of that incubator, which has also been credited with growing Atlanta's technology ecosystem.
The blockchain center provides a shared-desk environment and holds a capacity of at least 50 people. While no businesses have opened a space in the center yet, Williams anticipates accommodating 10 to 30 businesses at a time.
The Atlanta Blockchain Center will act as the in-person component of decentralized investor network Starter International, founded by Williams. Starter International includes venture arm Starter Capital, which has over $16 million in assets under management.
The investor network will invest an average of $50,000 to $100,000 into companies who come out of the blockchain center, Williams said.
Williams renovated the building to match an aesthetic of a space to foster blockchain innovation. Glass walls enclose its office spaces with NFT artwork displayed throughout the center.
Turmoil in the blockchain industry
The opening of the center comes at a time when some may find themselves apprehensive to enter the blockchain and cryptocurrency industry.
On the day the center opened, shocks were felt in the crypto market when cryptocurrency bank Celsius announced it was halting withdrawals by its nearly 2 million users. Earlier this month, Coinbase said it extended a hiring freeze for both new and existing positions and rescinded some job offers.
To Williams, the recent headlines don't hinder the possibilities of future innovation.
“To me, it's the perfect time to start moving when things are crashing down and the house is on fire, that's when the quality products and ideas are developed,” said Williams. “When the market is up or down, it doesn't stop the core mission, which is to evangelize blockchain technology."
Why Atlanta has a blockchain center
The inspiration behind the center in part came from Williams watching his hometown of Miami become a hotspot for crypto.
Miami Mayor Francis Suarez constantly promotes cryptocurrency and Miami as a site for company expansions. Miami became the first U.S. city to launch its own digital currency, MiamiCoin, according to Miami Inno. Suarez's support of innovation, along with Miami's robust investor network, is a huge driver of that startup ecosystem.
The Atlanta Blockchain Center will help lobby for government support of crypto so Atlanta can provide similar supportive infrastructure for blockchain and crypto startups.
“The threat to Atlanta is to be a laggard in adopting blockchain or not being open minded, because they'll lose people who are builders that can create jobs,” said Williams. “It’s going to take collaboration with the government and old laws that were created for other securities in the past can't just be applied to blockchain.”
Atlanta, already seen as a financial technology hub, has potential in the growing cryptocurrency and digital asset industry. Blockchain payment provider BitPay is a leader in the fintech industry for crypto transactions, and digital asset startup Bakkt went public last year.
