The Internet Computer’s Global Townhall was less a tech event and more a marathon of ideas. Over 18 hours, more than 90 Web3 projects pitched their visions to a panel of 50+ judges, all streamed live to a global audience of 20,000. Think rapid-fire innovation meets reality check, with each team laying out their solution in a race against the clock. From Asia to Africa, Europe to India, the event gathered the kind of energy only developers under pressure can generate. The focus? Building the next chapter of decentralised internet—on ICP.
The event wasn’t just one long livestream. It was split into six regional blocks, each bringing its own flavour to the pitch-off. These regional clusters gave structure to the chaos, offering a clearer view of how different parts of the world are using Web3 tech to tackle local problems—and some universal ones too.
First up, Asia brought numbers and variety. South Korea led the charge with Piggycell’s user-device revenue model, Save The Life’s decentralised health data system, and Marina Protocol’s “Learn & Earn” model. BeatSwap wanted to help musicians earn directly from their beats. Dmail brought secure, decentralised email to the table, and SubHub had tools for targeted creator communication. Judges like Aaron Ting and Bruno Calabretta sifted through it all.
From the Philippines and Singapore came projects tackling recycling, ticketing, agri-finance, esports, and restaurant management. Waste2Earn gamified recycling. Happ3n reimagined event ticketing. DAFI tried to modernise farming finance. Hawk Portal gave community gaming a Web3 upgrade, and Ryori streamlined restaurants using QR and SaaS. A separate five-minute pitch sprint added extra flair—projects like StudySidekick, CollectAIHub, and 0xScam took that challenge head-on.
Then came Vietnam, Indonesia, and Taiwan. Projects like DFinance aimed to reset DeFi lending, Bridge23 focused on AI-driven team management, and OfficeX promised full data sovereignty via private cloud. UniDrop was all about airdrops and gamers, while CharClub AI introduced interactive virtual personalities. Judges included Grace Sabandar and Brendt Fuller, who had to parse through projects bringing together decentralised finance, AI, and entertainment.
China capped off the Asia segment with bold bets. DexFans linked creators and communities through tradable fan tokens. aZen turned computing resources into fractional NFTs. zkBTC layered in privacy-focused BTC scaling. CLP Finance rolled out a liquidity and lending protocol. MemeBulls and Captur followed with fresh pitches, rounding out a segment that felt like a startup firehose.
India took the stage next, offering four diverse ideas. Lyfelynk aimed to give individuals ownership of their medical data. SipnPlay promised to reward gamers who hang out at Web3 cafes. Stringly put forward a secure alternative to dating apps. And Akaispace showed off its GenAI data hub. Judges like Milind Kumar and Ahan Rajgor assessed the range, from personal privacy to social networking.
Africa came through in two waves. Ghana and Kenya led with Investa Farm, linking agriculture with investment. PlutoFloww worked on fixing cross-border payments. Fries Coin rewarded foodies with crypto. Transakt tried to make remittances less painful. Then South Africa and Nigeria followed up with Streamlivr’s direct-to-fan livestreaming, Sweatstake’s data traceability, Big Water’s onchain water tracking, and BigAds, which applied decentralised AI to gaming ads. Konnadex simplified invoicing, while Funti3r helped companies find talent. There was a blend of ambition and pragmatism in these pitches that felt grounded in day-to-day needs.
Europe arrived with a suitcase full of polished pitches. Portugal started things off with Appic DAO’s multichain token swap tool and TruMarket’s smart contracts for agriculture. IC Toolkit aimed to centralise governance tools, while FAI3 worked on AI certification, and Onicai focused on decentralised AI infrastructure. Subvisual and ICVC led the panel of judges, giving feedback that was part critique, part coaching.
Poland and Bulgaria picked up from there. Tergo pitched carbon neutrality support. DeAI Chat offered users their own chat AI. DataPond.ai promised transparency around AI data use. Trendlens tried to make sense of volatile markets with machine learning models. Judges included Niklas Jabs and Emilio Canessa, navigating a segment where AI met ethics.
Germany’s block brought in Pionext’s community funding system, Lost Club Toys’ NFT take on rave culture, Wavv’s offline-first social app, and SEEK’s attempt to rethink travel with blockchain and AI. Italy followed with AELIG’s low-energy NFT displays, TradeOnChain’s digitised trade tools, and Shootify’s fashion image transformation powered by AI. Judges like Tim Haldorsson had to decide which projects were stylish pitches and which had staying power.
To close out the European session, the UK’s projects added more energy. Skor pitched smart gaming agents, Canistore wanted to transform music licensing, Agriidao focused on sustainable food systems, GlobaChain rolled out a business-focused payment network, and Bonded aimed to make immigration documents more manageable. Allusion and Hello Labs gave feedback across categories—finance, gaming, music, and mobility.
The judging process for each segment was structured but intense. Projects were assessed on originality, real-world application, feasibility, and potential to go live. A winner was selected from each region, offering teams not just bragging rights but real traction and new visibility. Though the event was long, energy levels stayed high as each pitch tried to outdo the last, all compressed into rapid-fire presentations that kept audiences on their toes.
It wasn’t just startups showing off. The Townhall brought together community members, developers, investors, and technologists who all had a stake in where Web3 might be headed next. The sheer range of ideas—from local agriculture to global AI—showed how decentralised infrastructure can support more than just speculative tokens. It can power health systems, remittance networks, creative tools, and governance models.
For those who missed the live sessions, full replays and documentation are on the way. More importantly, the momentum from the Global Townhall doesn’t end here. Winning teams will continue to receive guidance, partnership opportunities, and exposure to funding networks. But even beyond the winners, many of the teams left with useful feedback, visibility, and new collaborators.
ICP’s role in this event wasn’t just that of host. The protocol is positioning itself as the bedrock for a future where blockchain tech is practical, useful, and accessible—not just buzzword-heavy. If the Townhall was any indicator, 2025 is shaping up to be a year of less talk and more build.
And for those keeping score, this wasn’t your usual demo day. It was a global race to pitch, persuade, and maybe—just maybe—spark something bigger.
Credits: Source – DFINITY
