POW with Gabie Tanjutco

Gabie Tanjutco is a tech and culture enthusiast with a knack for merging the two worlds. As one of the owners of Keepers Bar, a Web3 gastropub in Poblacion, she has found a way to blend her passions for food, culture, and technology.

With her experience as the former Head of Product at various companies, Gabie brings a wealth of knowledge to the table.

In this article, we’ll explore Gabie’s vision for Keepers Bar and her thoughts on the intersection of technology and culture in today’s world.

  What were you doing before Web3?

Though building Keepers takes up most of my time, I still have a few Web2 projects. I take on a variety of tech & product projects in a personal capacity if the projects interest me.

Directly before working on Keepers, I was Head of Product at Kaya Founders, where I still act as a consultant. In the last decade, I’ve largely worked in the technology and the development/non-profit sector.

Also, a few years ago most of my time was spent in e-commerce. I co-founded and served as Chief Tech and Product Officer at B.zaar Collective.

It is a company where we worked with Filipino brands and designers to bring them online and/or be their international partner too. We even carried the Neil Felipp bag that was used in Crazy Rich Asians, which was crazy to our team.

How did you get into Web3?

Well, I stumbled into Web3 before it was even called Web3. It was just Bitcoin and blockchain. Back in the early/mid-2010s, I was running a bunch of live journal and tumblr communities (lol). And playing a lot of games like World of Warcraft and Runescape.

Being chronically online, I took art & design commissions related to fandom and gaming where I got paid in online currencies, trades, etc. One day, someone asked me if they could pay me in Bitcoin, and that was the beginning of my descent into Web3. I had to learn how to make a wallet on Bitcoin Wallet client.

Did I totally lose access to most of my accounts? Yes lol.

What was your first crypto or NFT project?

Made a few teeny tiny projects for me and my friends for fun (all small & limited free mints), so I could test out hashlips for art and learning solidity.

For Keepers, we actually did a small stealth keepers launch collection back in September where if you gave us your ETH address within the first 2 weeks of opening, you’d be entitled to mint an NFT that would:

• 1) commemorate our opening, and,

• 2) entitle you to a free drink or dish depending on what you’ve minted!

Which creator or thought leader do you enjoy learning from?

Each culture, industry, and person has different views and diversifying your source of inspiration. Daily education allows us to take new thoughts, ideas, and perspectives into consideration when we build products and experiences.

Michiko Kakutani the writer & lit critic. Ashlee Vance the tech journalist and author. Emi Kusano from Shinsei Galverse. Danielle Fong from LightSail Energy. Carol J. Smith from Carnegie-Mellon’s HCI Institute. Teju Cole and Rhaina Cohen are some of my fave long form art & culture writers too.

What is the biggest highlight of your career so far?

Building Keepers is definitely one of the highlights of my career so far. This time last year, I would’ve never thought I’d own a bar– let alone a Web3 one!

It’s been great to experiment on creating a phygital space with a community of Web3 friends and beyond. This whole experience has been a highlight to my life in general.

What tech or crypto trend are you watching this year?

Like everyone else, I’m following the AI space. For context, I used to work on AI-enabled products in one of my old projects and the speed in which this space is developing– it’s really giving Moore’s Law. It’s going to be interesting how NLP will change the workplace and web3 space.

What advice would you give someone starting out in Web3?

Shoot your shot and reach out to people you look up to in the space and ask for their thoughts or advice. This applies to everything actually and not just Web3.

I’ve gotten interesting projects and jobs by cold emailing, calling, and DM-ing. It’s super nerve-wracking to reach out to someone you don’t personally know every single time, but it’s better to have done it than constantly thinking about what could’ve happened if you had reached out.

If you could do a TEDtalk on any topic, what would it be?

I’d want to say that it’d be Web3-related, but in reality I’d probably choose either The Invincibles Era of Arsenal FC or Sofia Coppola’s movies.

What is the one thing you would bring if you were stuck on a deserted Island?

The LifeStraw! Access to potable water is everything.

POW stands for “Proof of Work.” It is a new feature article series in The Mega Maxi to highlight the savviest builders in the Web3 space.