The Polkadot Hackathons – Going Global, starting in Asia Pacific

The Polkadot Hackathon Global series will bring the cutting edge of blockchain to your region, kicking off in Asia Pacific (APAC) on October 22nd. In association with Polkadot, this eight-week hackathon is your chance to build a blockchain or hack to your heart’s content. And for lovers of words and order, we’ve included a Docathon where you can illustrate your tech writing talent. Sharpen your skills and be in with a chance to win from a prize pool of $30,000 USD.

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Created by Ethereum co-founder and former CTO Gavin Wood, Polkadot is a next-generation network that is on track to deliver the most robust blockchain platform for security, scalability and innovation. Like its wild and fast-moving “cousin” Kusama, Polkadot is built with Substrate, a modular blockchain-building framework that makes it easy to build a blockchain optimized for your needs.

Enter the Polkadot universe

This APAC hackathon will be the first of a series, building on the great success of our former events such as Hello World! and Polkadot Buildathon: India. Aiming to reach developers in all corners of the globe, it will be followed by Polkadot Hackathons in North America, Europe, Latin America (LATAM), and Middle East and North Africa (MENA). These will be announced individually, so keep an eye on Polkadot’s Twitter and blog!

Focusing on Substrate, Polkadot, and Kusama, the hackathons are open to both individuals and teams anywhere in the world. Whether you are learning the basics and want to build your first blockchain, or already have extensive experience, the networking opportunities, mentor hours, resources and tech workshops will support you in developing your skills in blockchain technology.

How to participate

Follow the three steps outlined below and you will be off to a great start:

  1. Register for the hackathon
  2. Join the Hackathon Discord
  3. Attend the pre-hackathon events

The hackathon officially begins on October 22nd and is open for submissions until December 12th, 2021. During the hackathon, you can participate in office hours to get your questions answered as well as attend weekly workshops that will cover specific topics.

Categories and prizes

Submissions for the Polkadot Hackathon APAC are invited in three categories.

Category 1: Build a blockchain

Substrate is created for building blockchains, so get going! Whether your goal is to add color to the world with an NFT chain or decentralize with a DAO, Substrate’s modular framework has everything you need. The sky’s the limit!

First prize:

  • US$8,000
  • Four (4) Polkadot engraved Ledger devices
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • Expedited pitch session for Substrate Builders Program (if applicable)
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Second prize: 

  • US$5,000
  • Two (2) Polkadot engraved Ledger devices
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • Expedited pitch session for Substrate Builders Program (if applicable)
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Third prize: 

  • US$2,000
  • One (1) Polkadot engraved Ledger device
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • Expedited pitch session for Substrate Builders Program (if applicable)
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Public’s choice: 

  • US$1,000
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Category 2: Open hack

Thinking about tooling? Wild about wallets? Got governance on the brain? Let your imagination go wild and bring your ideas to reality.

First prize:

  • US$4,000
  • Four (4) Polkadot engraved Ledger devices
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • Expedited pitch session for Substrate Builders Program (if applicable)
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Public’s choice:

  • US$1,000
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Category 3: Docathon

You know how to do it, now make it easier for others! Submissions can include any kind of documentation, tutorials, explainers or guides in video or text format for your submission, any other current Hackathon submission, or any Polkadot-related project.

Prize: 

  • US$2,000 each for the top five submissions
  • One (1) Polkadot engraved Ledger device each for the top five submissions
  • Feature in Polkadot social media
  • 50% discount for the Substrate Runtime Developer Academy for the whole team
  • Polkadot Swag

Check out the submission requirements and judging criteria for each category in the official Participation Agreement.

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FAQ

What is Polkadot?

Polkadot is a sharded, multichain network that allows multiple different blockchains to run in parallel (as parachains),  connected to its Relay Chain. Polkadot’s infrastructure enables the transactions from the blockchains to be processed in parallel, also allowing the parachains to communicate and exchange assets between each other via cross-chain messaging, and with external blockchains through bridges.

What is Substrate?

Substrate  is a fast, easy, and future-proof modular framework to build a blockchain optimized for your use case.

What is Kusama?

Kusama is a fast-moving, risk-taking scalable blockchain network built using almost the same codebase as its “cousin”, Polkadot Network.

Where do I start?

You can start by registering here to participate in the hackathon and join the Polkadot Discord to get connected to others. You will receive all necessary information about resources, guides and important events after registering via email.

I need help building:

No worries, we are here to help! The best starting point for understanding Polkadot is the Wiki. On the Substrate side we recommend diving into the Substrate Developer Hub, where you can explore the Documentation, Tutorials, How-to-Guides and other valuable resources. Make sure to register for the hackathon, participate in the upcoming office hours and workshops, and take advantage of having access to some of the most knowledgeable Substrate mentors out there. We also prepared special learning and development challenges that will help you get started as well as win some swag!

Credit: Polkadot Medium

AngelHack is a global innovation organization, founded on the idea of bringing creators together. Companies from all over the world have chosen them as their partner to engage developers with their technologies through hackathons and events. AngelHack has created an incredibly diverse and global community of change makers and developers. Follow us on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram & Facebook.

Polkadot is a next-generation blockchain protocol that is designed to support multiple specialized blockchains with security and interoperability. Polkadot is designed as part of a broad vision for the next generation of the internet that returns control to individuals over internet monopolies. Keep up to date with developments in the Polkadot ecosystem by following us on Twitter or joining in the conversation on Reddit.

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