So ETHGlobal just concluded another insane hacking session a few days ago with its Waterloo 🇨🇦 chapter & it seems Ethereum developers are hyped irrespective of the market conditions & FUD going around.
These developers wear their hoodies & just code!
In this recap article, we will take note of all the notable numbers, judges, mentors, speakers & 11 outstanding projects that created magic in the land of Maple syrup!
Witness the birth of the next big DApp within the Ethereum ecosystem as the brightest developers on the planet gather at ETHGlobal. Here’s a glimpse into what went down this time.
What is the ETH Global event all about?
Ethereum leads the way in attracting Web3 developers and embracing all those eager to join the expanding blockchain universe. Meanwhile, ETH Global’s visionary concept of a “Hackathon” has become a breeding ground for developers to unite and create remarkable success stories. Don’t underestimate the power of these seemingly fun projects—they have the potential to shape the future.
As we can see from the numbers above, ETH Global has had a massive impact on the community. The value of insights and industry backing is absolutely priceless if you ask us.
Brief history: The core team of ETH Global is behind the entire madness of these events and it all began with ETHWaterloo in 2017, the World’s largest Ethereum hackathon with over 400 hackers and 32 countries in participation.
Everything that happened at ETHGlobal Waterloo, 2023 🇨🇦
The event was a huge success and the participation numbers speak for themselves:
650 hackers from over 29 countries, out of which 47% were new to web3.
No. of project submissions: 168. If you want to dive deep into all the info about the projects that participated, click here
ETHGlobal Waterloo Sponsors:
There was a total prize pool of $250,000 for projects to take home. These were distributed across different sponsors, verticals, and sample problem statement solving using protocols at various levels for the developers.
A total of 27 hackathon sponsors which included the likes of Polygon, MetaMask, Hyperlane, Worldcoin, Sismo, and UMA amongst others
Each sponsor partner had their own hackathon track to challenge developers to come up with the best use case according to their protocol-level technology. To put things into perspective and detail:
- The prize pool of $3,000 Best Public Good with Account Abstraction or Gasless transactions on Polygon
- The other $3,000 was designated to the Best, most innovative hacks deployed on Polygon zkEVM
- Another $2,000 was allocated to the Best use of Polygon ID’s Verifiable Credentials
MetaMask:
- $2,500 prize-pool split up amongst 2 teams for building the best DApp on Linea
- $2,500 prize-pool split amongst 2 teams under Mobile Fun with the MetaMask SDK
Gnosis Chain:
The project sponsored tracks for the following use cases under the 1st prize, 2nd prize & 3rd prize categories with a total prize pool of $20,000
- Most innovative dApps on Gnosis Chain with a prize pool of $13,000
The remaining $7,000 was split into:
- Best AI project on Gnosis Chain — $3,000
- Best project on Hashi — $2,000
- Best project on Safe — $2,000
Hyperlane:
Their track was split up into 4 categories for developers
- $4,000 – Best use of Permissionless Interoperability
- $2,000 – Best Interchain Application
- $2,000 – Best use of Hyperlane Warp Routes
- $2,000 – Write new Interchain Security Modules (ISMs)
ETHGlobal Waterloo Judges, Speakers & Mentors
Consistent with previous ETHGlobal events, the judge’s panel at the ETH Waterloo was led by the biggest names in the web3 space who decided on the champions that emerged from the Hackathon. They included:
Nima Vaziri (Polychain Capital), Scott Moore (Gitcoin), Jerry Shi (Synergis), Brantly Millegan (Independent), Peyman Momeni (FairBlock), James Waugh (🔥_🔥), Herdien Charlanes, Maaria Bajwa (ApeCoin), Charles St. Lousi (DELV), Julien Genestoux (Unlock Protocol), Min Teo (Ethereal Ventures), Jon Kol (Hyperlane), Jeremy Musighi (Balancer), Aqeel Mohammad (Ethereum Foundations), Franky Nines (Megavolt Corp), Evan Van Ness (Starbloom Ventures), Benny Gian (Future Primitive), Zehua Wang (UBC), Ross Robinson (Velocity Fund), Jeffrey Doyle (Flow), Illia Polosukhin (NEAR Protocol), Aidan Hyman (ChainSafe)
The ETHGlobal Waterloo Finalists
Standing out amongst the 168 project submissions were the top 11. These projects made an impact on the judges and proved that their build was suitable for real-world use as well as making an impact with the available protocol technology at hand
Take a look at them:
1. Aquanet: An AI-powered NFT social network fostering vibrant personalities and dynamic interactions
2. Smarter Contract: Real-time optimization of smart contract performance by delegating functions to the most cost-efficient blockchain.
3. Fukuro: Revolutionize the auction marketplace by bundling curations with EIP 6551 supported tokens. Explore a cutting-edge platform for trading and showcasing EIP 6551 tokens.
4. Roll a Mate: Effortlessly send money on Ethereum Mainnet with ultra-low transfer costs ranging from zero to a mere 4 cents.
5. Piggybank 6551 NFT: Unlock the power of EIP 6551 with ETH savings accounts. Create your own Piggybank NFT, deposit ETH & watch your balance grow with on-chain rendered SVG metadata. Withdraw your ETH = burn the Piggybank NFT.
6. Smile DAO: Leveraging ZK+ML, they validate smiles and foster a DAO community focused on positivity.
7. a(i)udit: Securely develop smart contracts with ease using their all-in-one platform. Add early security best practices, write contracts in natural language to author, audit & deploy
8. Tokenbound Titans: Combine the power of ERC-6551 with dynamic generative NFTs for NPC gaming. Enhancing the gaming experience with interactive non-playable characters and ever-evolving NFTs.
9. zBay: Revolutionize online marketplaces with zBay, bringing decentralized powers to eBay. Empowering merchants and buyers alike with a platform.
10. Token Rescue Buddy: Eliminate the risk of receiving tokens on the wrong chain once and for all. Discover the safest and easiest solution to prevent costly mistakes like the $20M Wintermute/Optimism incident.
11. Copix: Unleash collaborative creativity on a public canvas where real humans can collectively create art, one pixel at a time.
Conclusion:
ETHGlobal Waterloo 2023: A Resounding Success, Embracing a Thriving Ethereum Developer Community. Witnessing Intense Competition and Revolutionary DApps that Will Shape the Future of Blockchain.
See you with the coverage of the next ETHGlobal event which we will be covering from the ground as an Official Media Partner: ETHGlobal Paris 2023.