The Starknet Foundation has announced the launch of a $5 million Seed Grants Program to support emerging projects on the Starknet network, an Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution based on zero-knowledge rollup technology.
The program aims to provide at least 200 promising teams with $25,000 in USD Coin (USDC) per award recipient, offering a “final push” to help final-stage projects launch on Starknet and foster overall blockchain innovation.
TLDR
The Starknet Foundation has launched a $5 million Seed Grants Program to support at least 200 promising teams with $25,000 in USD Coin (USDC) per award recipient.
The grant program aims to help final-stage projects launch on Starknet, an Ethereum layer-2 scaling solution based on zero-knowledge rollup technology, by providing a “final push” and reducing barriers to innovation.
To be eligible, projects must have developed a minimum viable product (MVP) or proof-of-concept, be actively involved in the Starknet community or have participated in a hackathon, and plan to use or build upon the network’s existing tools and integrations.
The program does not fund projects that are already live on the mainnet for more than three months, have a group of users, or are involved in illegal activities such as drugs, gambling, money laundering, or criminal activity.
Web3 gaming remains a top use case for Starknet, with key projects like Realms, Influence, and Dojo leading the way in fully on-chain gaming and demonstrating the network’s capabilities and power.
According to Diego Oliva, the CEO of Starknet Foundation, the grant program was developed in response to the main challenges faced by current Starknet developers.
“We’ve been listening carefully to devs [developers] and hearing about the main challenges they face,” Oliva told Cointelegraph. “We are talking about people with amazing creativity and vision who need support with that ever-hard ‘last mile’ to get a project over the line and into production.”
The Seed Grants Program targets Starknet-related projects that have already developed a minimum viable product (MVP) or proof-of-concept.
To be eligible, projects must also be actively involved in the Starknet community or have participated in a hackathon, and plan to use or build upon the network’s existing tools and integrations.
Oliva emphasized that the main goal of the program is to reduce barriers and burdens faced by young teams, ultimately clearing the path to innovation.
Introducing the Starknet Seed Grant Program! ????
The Seed Grant Program is a new initiative designed to provide teams with grants up to $25,000 in USDC in non-dilutive funding to enhance the growth of the Starknet ecosystem.https://t.co/b1XuqgTfqD pic.twitter.com/8Ux9jTLHNP
— Starknet Foundation (@StarknetFndn) May 7, 2024
However, the program does not fund projects that are already live on the mainnet for more than three months, have a group of users, or are involved in illegal activities such as drugs, gambling, money laundering, firearms, or any criminal activity.
Applicants must submit a clear plan for using the grant within the next three months, and successful projects will be announced within two weeks of applying.
Starknet has been attracting an increasing number of developers to its ecosystem, with total monthly developers rising to over 22,400 in December 2023, up more than 113% from 10,500 in December 2020, according to Electric Capital’s 2023 Developer Report.
This growth demonstrates the growing interest in layer-2 scaling solutions and the potential for innovation within the Starknet ecosystem.
When asked about the most exciting projects and protocol categories building on Starknet, Oliva highlighted the importance of blockchain gaming as a top use case.
“Starknet is leading the way in fully on-chain gaming,” he said. “Key projects in this area include Realms, Influence, and Dojo. This sector is growing fast, with more teams building on Starknet using the Dojo standard. Gaming is important not just for gamers but for everyone because it’s demanding on the network, testing its capabilities and demonstrating its power.”
Blockchain gaming has been a significant driver of decentralized application activity, accounting for 35% of the total activity with over 2.2 million daily unique active wallets, according to DappRadar data.
The launch of the Seed Grants Program follows the Starknet Foundation’s announcement in March of the establishment of a Gaming Committee to further develop the ecosystem.
The committee will be responsible for shaping strategies and programs for expanding into the relevant entertainment industry sector, highlighting the Foundation’s commitment to fostering growth and innovation within the gaming space.
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