Edge City Newsletter — June 2025
Announcing Edge City Patagonia, updates on Edge City Bhutan & vibes from Edge Esmeralda
June 5, 2025
Hello friends! Timour here. I hope you’re having a flourishing week so far! ☀️
Here are the most important things in this update:
- Week 1 at Edge Esmeralda has been a blast with AI sessions, consciousness talks, sunny park hangs, and mountain hikes. We’re here in Healdsburg, CA until June 21, and you can still join us for a week or weekend!
- Edge Expedition: Bhutan (Sept 14–21) is your chance to explore consciousness, sustainability, tech, and ancient wisdom with 30 incredible people. Apply here - early bird pricing ends soon!
- We’re heading to Argentina for our next flagship popup village, Edge Patagonia (Oct 18–Nov 15), with residencies led by frontier technologists, artists, and researchers. Apply now to join us!
Let me show you what Edge Esmeralda is all about, in 30 seconds 👇
JOIN US IN HEALDSBURG, CA →
Remind me, what is Edge City?
Edge City creates popup villages around the world that convene people working at the frontiers of science, technology, and culture.
Our mission is to act as a ‘society incubator’ – a living lab to experiment with new ideas, technologies, cultures, and organizations. All with the goal of advancing human flourishing.
We’re building towards a global network of temporary and permanent innovation hubs. Check out our roadmap on how we plan to scale into a network city.
Collaboration is essential to achieve our vision. That’s why we aim to partner with folks who are interested in hosting residencies for builders, scientists and artists at our popup villages. Please reach out here.
Calls to action
- Apply to join or share Edge Patagonia with friends!
- Twitter and Telegram: Follow us on Twitter and join our Telegram updates channel to stay in the loop :)
- Subscribe to our YouTube channel for the latest talks and content from Edge City events (we have a number of updates since Edge City Austin).
- Donate: Edge Institute Inc. is a registered 501c3 non-profit. Your contribution helps us continue our mission. Every donation makes a significant impact!
Edge Esmeralda (ongoing until June 21)
We kicked off Edge Esmeralda last week in Healdsburg, CA, gathering 1,000+ people at the forefront of tech, science, culture, and policy to prototype a brighter future. This month-long village is grounded in four core principles: multidisciplinary, multigenerational, co-created, and healthy by default.
It’s been a joy to welcome back familiar faces and bring new ones into the Edge community. Want a glimpse of the energy? Check out photos from Week 1 →
Week 2 has already brought humanoid robots, neuroscience experiments, 3D-printed motorcycles, and various outdoor activities. We’ve had sessions from Danielle Fong, Joscha Bach, and are looking forward to Robert Scoble’s deep dive on AR, VR, and AI this Friday.
EXPLORE THE PROGRAMMING →
If this sounds fun, you can still join us!
There are a limited amount of passes available to attend Edge Esmeralda in Week 3 or Week 4, so reserve your spot now!
☀️ Week 3 (June 8 – 15) focuses on Environments of Tomorrow, with tracks covering neurotech, education, agritech, and the future of cities.
☀️ Week 4 (June 15 – 21) centers around Decentralized Technologies such as crypto, onchain governance, and decentralized AI.
Week 4 kicks off with the Cybernetic Society Summit, a free event exploring the impact of AI on society, with speakers from Gensyn, OpenMind, cyber•Fund, and other frontier organizations. A great opportunity to visit Edge Esmeralda for the day (only 90 minutes from San Francisco).
To help you prepare, we’ve put together a full programming guide, community calendar, and a central Wiki with everything you need to know. If you have any questions prior to joining or during your time in the village, please don’t hesitate to reach out at info@edgeesmeralda.com.
See you in the village!
ATTEND EDGE ESMERALDA →
Edge City Bhutan (Sept. 14 — 21)
This fall, we’re taking 30 community members to Bhutan for an 8-day trip.
During this Edge Expedition, we’ll explore topics like consciousness, sustainability, governance, and frontier technologies through conversations with monks, policymakers, and local innovators.
Bhutan offers a rare lens into social development grounded in meaning and long-term flourishing.
Want to come with us? Learn more here and apply below.
APPLY HERE →
Edge Patagonia (Oct 18 – Nov 15)
We’re excited to announce Edge Patagonia, our next flagship popup village, taking place in San Martín de los Andes, Argentina (Oct 18 – Nov 15, 2025).
Set between snow-capped peaks and the shores of Lake Lacar, this month-long gathering will bring together 1,000 participants, including 250 full-month residents, to explore the edges of tech, science, culture, and nature.
Why here?
San Martín is emerging as the “Silicon Valley of Patagonia,” home to a thriving innovation ecosystem, education hubs like BIT Cotesma, and real-world blockchain adoption. With its walkability, safety, own airport, and stunning surroundings, it’s the ideal place to build and prototype together.
Edge Patagonia will be anchored by 10-15 residencies, which will lead workshops, activations, and collaborative builds throughout the month.
This gathering is the perfect runway into Devconnect Argentina, happening right after in Buenos Aires.
APPLY TO JOIN →
Watch & Listen
Edge City South Africa Video
Earlier this year, we traveled with 30 community members to explore the emerging innovation ecosystem in Cape Town and Stellenbosch. This short film, created by expedition partner Lisk, captures the spirit of the trip.
Network Societies, Civic Tech & Democracy - Glen Weyl at Edge City Austin
Glen Weyl builds new social technologies for collective decision-making, plural coordination, and democratic innovation.
In this salon, he shares his views on the intersection of technology, democracy, and civic infrastructure. From Taiwan’s civic tech to new models of money and collective decision-making, this chat covers the intellectual foundations of the Plurality movement.
Links: Spotify | Apple Podcasts | YouTube
What We’re Reading
Seeding the Second Foundation, Vol. I: The Edge and the Ember - Patrick Awater
After a week at Edge Esmeralda, Patrick Atwater reflected on his experience in this blog. He captures the essence of the village as a space where systems thinking meets soul, and where new civic prototypes are taking root. Explore his thoughtful take on the popup village experience.
Thinking of building a new city with your friends? Devon Zuegel, co-organizer of Edge Esmeralda, is doing just that. Business Insider took notice and wrote a piece on how our popup village is reimagining what a city can be.
Quotes and Reflections
“You have to experience it to really understand what makes it great. The coliving aspect of those events enables so many social situations that make you bond and form deep connections. Short format conference with everyone just bustling around can’t replicate that really.” - Marco
“1st day @JoinEdgeCity and I’m honestly blown away by the spaces and people here” - Dong Anh
“Wow! What an experience at Edge Esmeralda. That was a weird and wonderful week which words really won't adequately explain. That refactored my perception of what's possible in ways that I'm still grappling to absorb and integrate.” - Patrick Awater
As always, thank you so much for reading. We’re excited to hang out, build cool things, and chase big ideas together at Edge Esmeralda ☀️
Timour & the Edge City team