Steve Wozniak at the Malta GiG

Some would say when Apple's co-founder speaks at an annual industry event, that country's industry has reached a significant level in the tech world. Well, this is the case for Malta's iGaming industry after it played host to none other than Steve Wozniak. Yes, the "Woz" was in town earlier in March for the Gaming Innovation Group's annual GiGster Connect event where he spoke to over 1,000 company employees and many local students.

The world-famous entrepreneur was interviewed by GiG's CEO Robin Reed in the Eden Arena, and the crowd went wild as Woz approached the stage. He covered a wide range of topics from his early days as an entrepreneur, his views on how to behave in business (honesty and ethics being top of his list), his dreams about colorized computer screens during his time working for Atari and how the new generation of tech entrepreneurs "need talent - but also inspiration." Of most interest to the assembled iGaming industry insiders, however, were his opinions on blockchain technology.

For years now, Malta has established itself as a leading player in the iGaming industry. The Malta Gaming Authority has taken several steps to regulate and stabilize the remote gaming sectors, and Maltese development companies like GiG have played an active global role in this thriving industry. Malta has also become something of a mecca for the industry with its annual SiGMA (Summit of iGaming Malta), which is always a hit with the world's top iGaming brands like Scandinavian software developers NetEnt and leading online casino platform PokerStars. Now the Maltese government is taking a step further with its stance on blockchain tech.

At the Unlock Blockchain conference held in Dubai in January, Parliamentary Secretary Silvio Schembri announced that Malta would be developing and launching "the world's first legal framework" to create a body that would regulate blockchain tech, artificial intelligence (AI) and the latest hot topic the internet of things (IoT). Steve Wozniak being Steve Wozniak, he wasn't afraid to tell the conference crowd what he thought of blockchain and Bitcoin.

Although he agreed that Malta's actions were "very smart" and that blockchain was indeed "the future" of many tech industries, he also pointed out that such advances wouldn't happen overnight. Comparing the exponential rise of blockchain tech with "the early internet days, where investors were putting their money in the internet and our lives were all about the internet," the Woz admitted that "a lot of people are coming up with things that I've never even thought of" in the industry. But as a tech guru of his stature knows only too well, it takes time for new innovations to be adopted globally.

When asked about Bitcoin, Woz explained that its main rival Ethereum was "more interesting because it's a platform" like Apple II. Having previously admitted that as far as Bitcoin goes he doesn't want to be "one of those people that watches it, watches it and cares about the number" (he sold his Bitcoin when the price hit record high last autumn), his interest is piqued by Ethereum due to similarities he sees between its current state and the early days of internet innovation.

Tech talk aside, everyone's favorite "Dancing with the Stars" alumni had plenty of "Wozisms" to impart to the adoring crowd! Reminding everyone that a change in perspective can make all the difference - there's no point getting mad if your car gets scratched because "it has character now" - he also shared his secret formula for happiness: H = S-F. Happiness, according to Woz, equals smiles minus frowns! (Dare you not to smile as you read that.)