Web3’s Transformation — The Perfect Conclusion to the 2024 Hong Kong Web3 Carnival!
On April 9th, the Hong Kong Web3 Carnival came to a successful close with a closing speech by Xiao Feng, Chairman of Wanxiang Blockchain and CEO of HashKey Group. This four-day event continued the enthusiasm of previous years, gathering top thought leaders from the industry. Since its inaugural edition in 2023, this annual event has become a focal point for the global blockchain sector. Co-hosted by Wanxiang Blockchain Labs and HashKey Group and organized by W3ME, the event adopted a “1+3+1” format within a 9,000-square-meter venue, featuring one main stage, three breakout sessions, and an Open Stage area. Compared to last year, this year’s event was more diverse and vibrant, showcasing a plethora of insightful speeches, engaging panel discussions, thrilling esports competitions, and lively stage performances. Additionally, this edition collaborated with over 160 popular global projects, more than 100 industry-specific media outlets, and over 300 experts, scholars, prominent project representatives, and industry leaders as speakers, collectively marking a milestone in the history of Hong Kong’s Web3 development.
Exhibition Highlights
As the platinum sponsor of the event, SlowMist enjoyed an exclusive communication space at booth E03. Many attendees came specifically to engage deeply with us, expressing their admiration and interest in SlowMist. We were also fortunate to meet many new friends and had engaging conversations with them. Additionally, a variety of gifts were prepared for attendees, and congratulations to the lucky winners who received them.
Main Stage Recap
During the 2024 Carnival, we witnessed an array of innovations and breakthroughs.
During the grand opening ceremony, Mr. Lu Weiding, the leader of Wanxiang Group, expressed his optimism about the prospects of Web3 in Hong Kong, noting that a pivotal moment similar to 1995 for blockchain applications is approaching. He predicted that the coming years would be a golden era for Hong Kong’s economic development.
The Deputy Secretary for Financial Services and the Treasury of Hong Kong, Mr. Huang Weilun, stated in his opening speech that over 220 Web3-related companies from more than 20 countries and regions, including mainland China and Europe and America, have established offices in Hong Kong. These companies span various sectors such as virtual asset exchanges, blockchain infrastructure services, network security, cryptocurrency wallets, and payment services.
In a speech titled “Unleashing the Power of Web3 with Technology,” Hong Kong Legislative Council member Qiu Dageng mentioned the imminent trading of Bitcoin spot ETFs in Hong Kong. He highlighted that we are currently in the “ETH2 era,” characterized by competition between Optimistic and zkRollup technologies, and he anticipates seeing crypto’s impact on consumerism, finance and investment, the traditional economy, and central banking in the future.
Deputy Director of the Financial Services and the Treasury, Mr. Chen Haolian, delivered a keynote speech on “The Latest Developments in Virtual Assets in Hong Kong.” He declared that Hong Kong is poised to become Asia’s largest hub for cross-border asset development and a leader in fintech. He noted the maturing virtual banking sector, led by the government, which is set to open up even more in the future.
Cathie Wood, CEO and Chief Investment Officer of ARK Invest, discussed how blockchain and gaming are being empowered by AI. She predicted an increase in AI + Web3 games, with more investment flowing into the sector. Cathie praised Hong Kong’s regulatory authorities for their leading and exemplary role in global crypto regulation, suggesting they set a standard worthy of emulation by the United States.
On April 9th, Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin gave a keynote speech titled “Reaching the Limits of Protocol Design.” He outlined the evolution of cryptographic protocols from basic cryptography, such as hashes and signatures in the 2010s, to advanced cryptographic protocols like ZK-SNARKs, aggregation, and sophisticated P2P networks in the 2020s. He emphasized the main challenges today in efficiency and security, such as slow block verification, low-efficiency signature aggregation, and various bugs and P2P security issues. Vitalik concluded by stating the need for protocols that push the limits of cryptography, emphasizing both efficiency and security.
On April 9th, Xiao Feng, Chairman and CEO of HashKey Group, delivered the closing speech entitled “Welcoming the ‘1995 Moment’ of Web3.” Xiao Feng stated that blockchain has transitioned from a phase of inception to one of significant growth, indicating that the 2020s will see blockchain evolve from an emerging technology to widespread application. He highlighted the period from 1995 to 2005 as the golden decade for internet applications and posited that, similarly, the years 2024 to 2034 will be a transformative decade for Web3, driven by the twin pillars of blockchain and AI.
After establishing a solid foundation with blockchain’s solutions for the “impossible trinity” through layering and sharding, and AI’s development of “general multi-modal models,” the stage is set for explosive innovation in applications.
Web3 Security and Compliance Breakout Session Recap
On the afternoon of April 8th, the “Hacking Time: Web3 Security and Compliance” session, hosted by SlowMist, commenced at Breakout Room Three.
Firstly, a partner and CISO at SlowMist, known as PDS, delivered an enthusiastic opening speech, welcoming and thanking all guests and attendees.
Following this, SlowMist’s founder, Yuxin, made brief remarks emphasizing the importance of Web3 security.
Then, the head of SlowMist’s Security Audit Team, Thinking, launched the “Security Afternoon” with his presentation on “Web3 Security: Full Lifecycle Protection.” Starting with the application and necessity of cryptocurrency compliance licenses in Hong Kong, he extended to the importance of security audits and AML/CFT, ultimately proposing a comprehensive threat defense solution covering before, during, and after potential security breaches.
Dr. Jiazhi Wu, partner and head of Web3 security at Amber Group, discussed the challenges of tracing and analyzing vulnerabilities in smart contracts and demonstrated a real-time, early detection system for smart contract vulnerabilities called TraceInsight using the Fei/Rari Capital Hack as a case study.
Max He, co-founder and chief scientist at Safeheron, delivered an in-depth lecture on the application and attack cases of MPC in Web3, which was praised by the audience as of academic conference quality.
The session concluded with a meaningful roundtable discussion initiated by SlowMist’s Operation Lead, Lisa, who welcomed four experts from diverse fields to address questions on security and compliance. The guests included SlowMist’s partner and CPO Keywolf, Tony Chen, co-founder and CTO of TokenPocket, lawyer Wu from Mualana handling legal compliance, and Professor Feida Zhu, associate dean and lifetime associate professor at Singapore Management University (SMU). The roundtable addressed the main security challenges in blockchain, anti-money laundering processes, common security issues in wallet projects, and insights into formal verification and AI technologies for newcomers in Web3.
Following a lively panel discussion, SunSec, CISO at XREX and founder of DeFiHackLabs, presented “Web3 DevSecOps: Methodologies and Best Practices.” SunSec discussed the key distinctions between Web2 and Web3 security, and shared DeFiHackLabs’ resources on Web3 security, highlighting the pivotal aspects of implementing Web3 DevSecOps.
Lastly, Zoe, chief security advisor at Akamai, tackled business challenges in Web3 like DDOS attacks and API vulnerability, presenting Akamai’s advanced security solutions and services designed to empower Web3 innovation.
The event “Hacking Time: Web3 Security and Compliance” concluded perfectly, reflecting the growing concern for security among participants. We extend heartfelt thanks to every attendee, believing this event provided unique insights and new ways of thinking about Web3 security and compliance issues.
Final Thoughts
The 2024 Hong Kong Web3 Carnival has been a pivotal gathering for blockchain industry leaders worldwide, offering an immersive exploration of the Web3 world in a comprehensive and multidimensional manner. It allowed participants to experience the latest in technology and insights, forecasting the future trajectories and development strategies of Web3. We sincerely thank every participant for their enthusiastic involvement and support, and look forward to reconvening next year to further promote the thriving and secure development of the Web3 domain.
About SlowMist
At SlowMist, we pride ourselves on being a frontrunner in blockchain security, dedicating years to mastering threat intelligence. Our expertise is grounded in providing comprehensive security audits and advanced anti-money laundering tracking to a diverse clientele. We’ve established a robust network for threat intelligence collaboration, positioning ourselves as a key player in the global blockchain security landscape. We offer tailor-made security solutions that span from identifying threats to implementing effective defense mechanisms. This holistic approach has garnered the trust of numerous leading and recognized projects worldwide, including names like Huobi, OKX, Binance, imToken, Crypto.com, Amber Group, Klaytn, EOS, 1inch, PancakeSwap, TUSD, Alpaca Finance, MultiChain, and Cheers UP. Our mission is to ensure the blockchain ecosystem is not only innovative but also secure and reliable.
We offers a variety of services that include but are not limited to security audits, threat intelligence, defense deployment, security consultants, and other security-related services. We also offer AML (Anti-money laundering) solutions, Vulpush (Vulnerability monitoring) , SlowMist Hacked (Crypto hack archives), FireWall.x (Smart contract firewall) , Safe Staking and other SaaS products. We have partnerships with domestic and international firms such as Akamai, BitDefender, FireEye, RC², TianJi Partners, IPIP, etc.
By delivering a comprehensive security solution customized to individual projects, we can identify risks and prevent them from occurring. Our team was able to find and publish several high-risk blockchain security flaws. By doing so, we wish to help spread awareness and raise the security standards in the blockchain ecosystem.
