Grant supports arts blockchain research at UF

The Digital Worlds Institute’s Blockchain Lab in the College of the Arts has received more than $2 million to advance their work developing blockchain solutions for entertainment and the arts.

The award comes from the Algorand Foundation, which promotes the use of the environmentally sustainable blockchain Algorand. Ten winners from around the world were chosen from 77 proposals. The foundation awarded a total of $50 million over five years to advance research and education on the Algorand ecosystem.

The UF Blockchain Lab was established earlier this year by funds from the Algorand: Education and Community grant. Led by College of the Arts professors Marko Suvajdzic and Amelia Winger-Bearskin and director of business development Tim Difato, the lab will use Algorand technology to conduct research in arts and entertainment Web3 and NFT applications and sustainable blockchain use in collaboration with the UF Climate Justice Studio.

The team will also prepare educational opportunities for students, including launching new courses focusing on blockchain technology. The Blockchain Lab will also support the growth Algorand ecosystem community on campus by running Algorand infrastructure and hosting a series of events focused on educating about opportunities in the technology.

Suvajdzic and Winger-Bearskin will also collaborate with the Warrington College of Business and the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering and conduct international outreach to the University of Belgrade in Serbia.