Announcing The Winners of Bitcoin Scaling Hackathon
The winners of Rootstock’s Bitcoin scaling hackathon have been unveiled — with some of the industry’s brightest minds battling it out to build the next generation of dApps and infrastructure for Everyday DeFi.
Over 800 people registered for the Bitcoin Scaling Hackathon, which was a part of the first wave of the Rootstock Grants Program. Now, a second wave has commenced that will allow talented developers to create compelling products — and potentially receive a share of a $2.5 million grants fund dedicated to 100 projects.
The next Hackathon opportunity is now live with BTC Startup Lab where participants can win a share of $100,000 by competing to create exciting and innovative products and protocols built on Bitcoin.
Apply to the Bitcoin Olympics Hackathon now.
Winners Crowned
Ideathon Winners
The Bitcoin Scaling Hackathon began with an ideathon, where entrants put together their proposals for innovative products and protocols. This was followed by a hackathon where fully functioning prototypes were created. Prizes were awarded at both stages.
The ideathon brought light to many interesting projects that can establish grounds for Everyday DeFl:
- First Place ($3,000): Tuki
- Second Place ($2,000): Sousta
- Third Place ($1,000): Doiim
- Fourth Place ($650): TickIt
- Fifth Place ($500): Rooted
- Sixth Place ($450): NFT Pawn
- Seventh Place ($400): Ordinal Dao
Tuki — a self-custodial debit card — came first in the ideathon and won a $3,000 reward. The peer-to-peer payment application is designed to bridge the gap between crypto and traditional financial systems, allowing consumers across Latin America to shield themselves from inflation. Users are given the opportunity to save in digital dollars but spend in their local currency.
Sousta, a marketplace for real-world assets, was in second place with a $2,000 prize — with the payments-focused Doiim project given $1,000 for coming in third. Solutions for NFT ticketing, privacy and ordinals went on to share $2,000 between them.
Hackathon Winners
To the hackathon — and securing a top $10,000 prize in the first place was RSK-NFT, a dApp that unlocks and amplifies the intrinsic value of non-fungible tokens. The project’s main goal is to alleviate concerns around scams and dropping floor prices, all while giving users a chance to increase the value of their collectibles and generate additional yield.
In second place with a $4,000 prize was Asami, formerly known as Nostr Ads, an app running on top of the popular decentralized social network backed by Jack Dorsey. One of the platform’s stated goals has been to eliminate intrusive advertising.
And in third place winning $1,000 was Wooy. This project aims to empower businesses, non-governmental organizations, and streamers with a way of driving meaningful social and environmental change. It offers Proof of Donation NFTs, known as PODs for short, that would be created through Rootstock — attracting users and boosting innovation.
“The traditional fundraising model is outdated and inefficient — hindering nonprofits’ scalability,” Wooy said in their submission. “Limited investments in marketing, technology, and talent restrict their fundraising potential.”
Notable Mentions
Six submissions were also given notable mentions at the conclusion of the hackathon, with each receiving $333.33. They included the crowdfunding-focused BitFundr, the remittance project Easymittance, and Tenjin, which specializes in crypto education.
This hackathon had three key goals for applicants to choose from: unlocking greater interoperability between Rootstock and other ecosystems built on or with Bitcoin; building projects that promote Rootstock’s adoption in innovative and meaningful ways; and enhancing DeFi liquidity by seamlessly integrating DEXs and aggregators into the platform.
The Next Wave
As the Bitcoin Scaling Hackathon winners are being considered for a slice of the Grants Program award, Wave ll of the Grants Program is now well and truly underway, with competitors given a fresh range of challenges to consider.
Wave ll Themes
The first involves creating user-centric utility—building killer dApps that offer advantages to everyday consumers. This could be in the form of applications delivering the tokenization of real-world assets, or projects focused on making remittances fairer. Equitable lending is another theme put forward by the hackathon’s organizers. Intuitive design is crucial here, along with plug-and-play interfaces that drive end-user acquisition and ultimately increase retention within the Rootstock ecosystem.
Building on this theme, community-driven adoption is another priority. This theme rewards projects that bring together developers, builders, and entrepreneurs. Via their inherent network effects, these projects facilitate the development and monetization within the ecosystem.
Last but not least, developers in wave ll of the hackathon are being encouraged to conjure up ways of enhancing Web2 solutions with a sprinkling of Web3 magic. Not only can this immeasurably boost the functionality of existing platforms, but it can be a gentler way of introducing new users and businesses to the space.
Growing the Rootstock Ecosystem
The partnerships achieved through these hackathons, and in Rootstock’s grant program, are crucial in moving crypto along the adoption curve — and taking the sector closer to an era where DeFi permeates everything we do. It’s about attracting everyday users and giving consumers in developing markets access to financial instruments currently unavailable to underbanked and underserved communities. This will pave the way for “Invisible DeFi,” a world where we don’t even realize that this technology is underpinning our everyday transactions.
EVM compatible and bringing smart contract functionality to the Bitcoin network, Rootstock provides developers with the familiarity of building on Ethereum — all while offering more powerful infrastructure. This ongoing hackathon gives curious innovators a chance to put this platform through its spaces, be rewarded for their hard work, and potentially play a starring role in the future of finance.
With workshops, mentorships, ask-me-anything sessions, and 24/7 technical support, competitors have all the tools they need to make a success of it.
Participate in the Bitcoin Olympics Hackathon here,
Or sign up directly for the Grants Program here to get a slice of the $2.5M awards.