Wait & Hope FOundation
Our Story
Three bicultural university students found each other through the kinds of conversations that happen when people who care about the same things end up in the same place. They came from Latin America, built lives across the US and Europe, and kept returning to the same question: who gets to shape how new technologies develop and how do we make sure that group is larger and more varied than it currently is?
They were working in spaces where blockchain and AI were being discussed and built, and kept noticing that the people in those spaces looked and thought a lot like each other. Not because others lacked interest or capacity. The entry points were built for a specific kind of person with a specific kind of background.
That once someone has made something and felt the connection between creative practice and technological possibility, the distance between them and these tools became shorter. We had seen it firsthand, artists using blockchain because it gave them permanence and a way to exist outside systems that would otherwise erase their work.
Wait & Hope was built by people who met at the right moment, recognized the same patterns, and believed that education rooted in community and creativity was how you start to change who participates in building what comes next.
wait & hope Name
We are more connected than ever, and that should mean more people shaping what these technologies become. That is the tension we are working in, and our name says everything about the ideals we are upholding.
Wait & Hope comes from Alexandre Dumas. In The Count of Monte Cristo, after years of vengeance, Dantès arrives at a simple conclusion: "All human wisdom is contained in these two words, wait and hope." These words are a forward-facing choice to build toward something better, without fear, hate, anger, or impulsiveness, and it is a different approach than what we had been watching the world take.
Wait & Hope comes from Alexandre Dumas. In The Count of Monte Cristo, after years of vengeance, Dantès arrives at a simple conclusion: "All human wisdom is contained in these two words, wait and hope." These words are a forward-facing choice to build toward something better, without fear, hate, anger, or impulsiveness, and it is a different approach than what we had been watching the world take.
Our impact
Geographic Footprint
- Since 2024 the foundation has run public programs across five continents in:
- New York —First public exhibition, Fall 2024
- Florence — Primavera Digitale residency and festival, Spring 2025
- Madrid — Residency exhibition and collector events, 2024–2025
- Mexico City — Sincretismo Digital residency and festival, Fall 2025
- Paris — Expo with 30 Campos Elíseos and Mallow, February 2026
- Upcoming: Lisbon · Rome · Medellín · Vegas
Residencies
50+ countries
300+ applications, 45 spots
AUDIENCE
50,000+ in-person events attendees
1,000,000+ impressions online