The Matty Tay Interview: Road To Solana Breakpoint 2023
Learn how to maximize your Solana Breakpoint experience in this exclusive interview with Solana’s Head of Growth, Matty Taylor.
Solana’s Breakpoint 2023 begins in two weeks, Matty Taylor joins us to talk about navigating the events and what you can do to maximize your experience at the conference.
Scroll to the end for Matty’s recommendations of museums and food in Amsterdam!
What is the biggest difference from last year’s event in Lisbon to this year’s Breakpoint in Amsterdam? Why Amsterdam?
Matty: I think the biggest difference is that all of the stages will be located on the same campus.
Matty: Lisbon was an awesome city to host the first two conferences, but Breakpoint grew to the point where transportation between venues became cumbersome.
Amsterdam has the infrastructure and layout to accommodate more attendees.
Matty: It’s also going to be a lot colder.
What should we plan for to get the most value out of workshops and panels?
Matty: There are a lot of different topics covered in this year, so I would scan through the agenda beforehand and choose what is of interest to you. I think it also depends on who you are.
Matty: For instance, if you’re a developer, there is an entire stage dedicated to more technical content.
What speakers are you looking forward to seeing the most? What workshops and panels?
Matty: I’m interested in DePIN right now, so I’ll try to catch all of the talks on that subject.
Matty: There are a few teams coming out of stealth in that category that will be making some announcements at Breakpoint, so that’s probably what I’m most looking forward to when it comes to Breakpoint content.
Do you have any advice for a first timer attending Breakpoint?
Matty: While I do encourage first timers to attend the panels and workshops, the best part about Breakpoint for me is just meeting people in the community.
Last Breakpoint, I purposefully didn’t attend any talks, and just spent my time either at side events or outside the stages connecting with as many folks as possible.
Matty: Generally, I think first timers should find a balance between attending talks and stepping out to chat with other attendees.
Breakpoint is notorious for the side events that are held by teams and communities outside of the core Solana team. Where can we find a schedule of side events?
Matty: For a list of side events, check out [the Side Events page].
Matty: Not all side events will be listed there, so be on the lookout for Google Sheet links flying around Crypto Twitter in the days leading up to Breakpoint.
How do you manage meeting and exchanging contact information with so many new people in such a short time?
Matty: Since all of Breakpoint will take place on one campus, it should make connecting with other attendees much easier.
Side events are also great because they are usually more intimate.
Matty: In terms of exchanging contact info, I use Telegram primarily. You can just show your contact QR code in the app and connect that way.
Have you been to Amsterdam before, what was your favorite part about the city?
Matty: Definitely check out the Van Gogh Museum and Rijksmuseum. Both are incredible and two of my favorites in Europe.
Matty: There is a large Indonesian community in Amsterdam, so if you like food from South East Asia, definitely eat at a few Indonesian restaurants.
Thank you for reading!
Make sure to find the Mad Lads booth at Breakpoint, we’ll be there all week!
