2-30 June 2024
Healdsburg, CA
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501(c)(3)

A month-long gathering for people building the future

Join us for a popup village to live in a healthy and productive community focused on incubating novel technologies and ways of living.

This gathering is the first step toward a permanent new town, Esmeralda. The lessons we learn together this June will be carried forward to build this long-term vision.

Save the date for Edge Esmeralda 2025! Mark your calendars for May 24 - June 21. Read more here!

Themes

Each theme will have planned talks & self-organized sessions throughout the month

Human organization

Evolution of education & parenting • New towns & cities • Collective intelligence • Governance • Culture

Artificial intelligence

Compute & geopolitics • AI & identity • Alignment • Decentralized AI • Practical applications • Art

Real-world crypto

Practical, real-life applications • Zero-Knowledge tech • Protocol research • Scalability

Health, longevity, & bio

Neurotech • Nutritional science & tech • Biohacking • Practical & philosophical aspects of well-being

Hard tech

Geoengineering • Nanotech • Space exploration • Materials science • Transportation • Renewable energy

Speakers & Attendees

Laura Deming
The Longevity Fund
Juan Benet
Protocol Labs
Devon Zuegel
Esmeralda
Wynne
Allison and Ryan's daughter
Tamara Winter
Stripe Press
Primavera De Filippi
Harvard, CNRS
Zaven
Liz & Edgar's son
Tim Beiko
Summer of Protocols
Venkatesh Rao
Summer of Protocols
Joscha Bach
LiquidAI
Justin Mares
TrueMed
Eli Dourado
Abundance Institute
Vaughn McKenzie-Landell
Butter
Serene
Katherine & Oz's daughter
Julia Lipton
Awesome People Ventures
Grace
Katherine & Oz's daughter
Molly Mackinlay
Protocol Labs
Mike Johnson
Symmetry Institute
Nadia Asparouhova
Author
Philip Rosedale
Second Life
Eric Dawson
Nvidia
Cyan Banister
Long Journey Ventures
Frankie
Aleksandra and Antoni's daughter
Ore Ogundipe
NeuroFusion
Allison Duettmann
Foresight Institute
Sophia Jade Mewn
Yalor's daughter
Toby Shorin
Other Internet, Care Culture
Milan Cvitkovic
Integral Neurotechnologies
Kenneth Ng
Uniswap Foundation
Mark Tyneway
Optimism
Janine Leger
Edge City
Meltem Demirors
Investor
Sina Habibian
Into the Bytecode
Matt Prewitt
RadicalxChange
Jun Axup
E11
Erik Torenberg
Turpentine
David Perell
Write of Passage
Aleksandra Smilek
Foresight Institute
Lou de Kerhuelvez
Foresight Institute
Deger Turan
Metaculus
Dean Tribble
Agoric
Evan Miyazono
Atlas Computing
Colleen McKenzie
AI Objectives Institute
Danielle Andrzejewski
Protocol Labs
Adam Marbelstone
Convergent Research
Sumner L Norman
Forest Neurotech
Xochitl Cazador
Celo Foundation
David Vorick
Glow Labs
Martin Borch-Jensen
Gordian Biotech
Jean Hebert
BE Therapeutics
Yuri Degin
YouthBio Therapeutics
Wes Louis
PropheticAI
Keolu Fox
UCSD, Indigenous Futures Institute
Eva You
AuraSci, Paramita
Jeffrey Koury
ResearchHub Foundation
Michael Heinrich
0G
Timour Kosters
Edge City
And many more!
Regularly updated as we get closer to the event

FAQ

Where can I access the latest information for attendees? 

The best place is our blog, which we update regularly!

You will find information about transport, hackathons, programming, and more.

What is included in the ticket?
  • Access to all sessions, seminars, events, conferences, hackathons, and workshops. There are at least 3-4 expert-organized tracks each week.
  • Access to co-working with high-speed internet and drip coffee
  • Community dinners Sunday-Thursday with local, organic food
  • Sauna, cold plunge, & daily workouts
  • Priority access to our special hotel rate
  • Adventure days on weekends!
What is Edge Esmeralda?

Edge Esmeralda is a "popup village" for people who believe the future can be better and are actively working to make it happen. It is taking place in Healdsburg, California, June 2-30.

We aim for this to be the healthiest and most productive time of your year — a place to go deep in your work and learn from fellow experts in other fields while incubating novel technology and ways of living.

This gathering is also a prototype for a permanent new town, Esmeralda. The lessons we learn will be carried forward to build this long-term vision.

You can learn more about Edge Esmeralda in this letter from the organizers ->

Who is Edge Esmeralda for?

The village will be filled with high-agency people who are building towards a better future: founders, scientists, urban planners, researchers, engineers, philosophers, storytellers, and beyond. We look for thoughtful people who are brilliant, curious, and kind.

Families with kids are welcome. We will have childcare and fun activities for the whole family throughout the month. One of our major goals is to integrate family life with creative life.

If you’re a Sonoma County local, you can skip the application process altogether. Click here to purchase an access pass for Edge Esmeralda.

How do I participate?

If you're coming from out of town, please fill out the application here to join us in June.

If you are a Sonoma County local, you can purchase a pass here. This will grant you access to the programming, including workshops and guest lectures.

Do I need to come for the whole month?

It's not required, though we encourage you to stay as long as you can. You can come for all of June or just a week or even just a few days.

Those who come for all of June will have the most immersive experience, because a large part of what we are testing is different ways of living and working together. However you'll still have a great experience if you come for a shorter period of time!

How do I recommend other participants?

Awesome, thank you! We would love recommendations for the awesome builders you know. You can refer potential participants here.

Can I bring my kids?

Absolutely! We meant it when we said that we intend for this to be multigenerational. One of our major goals is to integrate family life with creative life.

There will be programming for kids of all ages MTWThF + 1 evening a week so parents can go out together, and we will include fun things for kids during the weekly Sunday family-style dinner.

You can read more on a dedicated post on our blog.

What will the programming be like? 

You can see the programming calendar here and read about our programming philosophy in more depth in a dedicated post on our blog.

In summary: 

  • We are focusing on emergence instead of centrally planning everything. We will create the minimum necessary structure for this to be an excellent event, and then we'll encourage the attendees to participate, engage, and build awesome things on top of the structure we provide.
  • The fact that the event is a month long means that you'll have plenty of opportunity to go deep on various topics of your choice, and to meaningfully connect with other attendees.

If you can't make it for the whole time and you aren't sure when to come, the short answer is: come when you can! You'll be certain to have an engaging time.

We will also publish a live calendar of major programming events by mid-April.

How much will it cost?

We are not making a profit on this event, and we are a registered 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization. However creating a memorable experience involves significant costs, and it is important that this gathering is self-sustaining.

To learn about tickets, click here. Tickets cover the costs of running the event, but not accommodation.

You can book accommodation through us once you have bought your ticket (we have reserved some hotel inventory) or through any service like Airbnb or Booking.

Please note, we are not able to accept refunds on tickets or lodging.

If cost is a barrier, email us at [email protected].

How does lodging work?

Read more about housing for Edge Esmeralda on a dedicated post on our blog.

As a summary, you have two options:

  1. You can coordinate your own lodging.
  2. As an add-on to your ticket, we'll coordinate lodging for you.
    • We have reserved a hotel block at a discounted rate to make lodging more affordable, & we're working with a great local accommodation partner to hold homes as well.
    • There is limited space, so we recommend signing up for lodging as soon as we release tickets. If you sign up for updates, we'll let you know as soon as we open up ticket sales & lodging sign ups.
Who are the organizers?
  • Edge City: We convene people working at the frontier of tech, science, and society in popup villages across the globe. We aspire to be a ‘society incubator’— a lab of experimentation for new ideas, tech, culture, and organizations, all dedicated to accelerating human flourishing.
  • Esmeralda Institute: We are building a new town for multigenerational families who are looking for lifelong learning, a car-light lifestyle, neighborly connections, and a healthy lifestyle in touch with nature. Esmeralda will be a cross between Chautauqua, Las Catalinas, and a college campus.

Why locate this in Healdsburg?

Healdsburg is a beautiful town in Northern California with a rich history and reputation as a center of healthy living. It has a number of great characteristics that make it the perfect place to host Edge Esmeralda: 

  • Infectious enthusiasm from local leaders, including the mayor & small businesses
  • Proximity to SF, the tech capital of the world
  • Walkable streets centered around a charming town square
  • Embedded in nature, surrounded by the Russian River & the Mayacama Mountains
  • Sonoma County is a hub for agriculture, healthy living, & sustainability

How are we collaborating with locals?

We like to build trusted, integrated relationships with our host partners, so we are excited to work together with the North Sonoma community to understand how this event can be most beneficial for all involved. Some ways that we would be excited to participate directly: 

  • Volunteering at local farms that give to food banks 
  • Exploring the implementation of new technology and city concepts 
  • Encouraging participation for local students and offering mentorship

We're actively seeking local partners who share our passion for making this concept a reality. We’re actively looking to collaborate in these ways:

  • Attend: Join our events and workshops.
  • Housing: Offer scholars a place to stay in June.
  • Event Space: Share your venue for our activities.
  • Speak: Share your expertise on a topic.
  • Donate: Support us with a grant (we're a registered non-profit)
  • We’re open to other ideas as well!

We want to create an unforgettable month for locals and visitors alike, that leaves a lasting positive impression and impact! 

Fill out this form or contact us at [email protected] to get involved as a local. 

Thank you to our Patrons

Hiroshi Nakamura
Fatima Al-Hussaini
Rajesh Patel
Xiuying Chen
Hiroshi Nakamura
Fatima Al-Hussaini
Rajesh Patel
Xiuying Chen
Hiroshi Nakamura
Fatima Al-Hussaini
Rajesh Patel
Xiuying Chen