How to Find the Best Web3 Hackathon Ideas?

Hackathons are a great way to experiment with a new technology, build future unicorns, and meet fantastic people. Here are some tips on what you could build.

How does a hackathon work?

• Protocols set up prize pools for various categories.
• You include protocol X and something that does “what the bounty wants” in your product
• You have the full hackathon to BUIDL it
• At the end your project is evaluated based on how original and functional it currently is, and its future potential.
  Both the hackathon official team (EthGlobal, the Ethereum Foundation, …) and the protocol teams will look at projects that make sense to continue being built on and can be turned into a legit dApp, or at innovative demos of their tech.

Hack the hackathon… Some tips

Use the devrel teams

Check in early with the protocol devrel peep, and get them to support you in building out a solution. Not only does this help you build, but they will genuinely tell you what they think is a good prize winning contribution and what is not. The devrel teams exist for this purpose: use it!

Be open minded, ready to pivot after suggestions/if an opportunity arises

Use the power of blockchain

Protocols can be combined! Include as many protocols as you can into your solution to maximise the number of bounties you can receive. For example, you can deploy on a specific chain/L2 (let’s say Optimism), build on top of your desired protocol (Superfluid, Lens?), then allow a login/access with a specific wallet (WalletConnect, …) and then make it crosschain with Connext.

Keep it simple

Better to have a fully working MPV than the design of a super complex but intangible dApp.

Try to present a fully working frontend (it can be hacky in terms of code quality and UI, but it needs to get the job done), a fully working backend integration if you have one, and a fully working solidity smart contract if part of your solution.

Leverage existing code

Oftentimes protocols will have starter kits or other forkable code repositories that you can use to kickstart development. Use these to your advantage to save time and effort when you start building. Referencing other open source projects that have built on these protocols is another great way to familiarize find inspiration.

What’s your objective?

Establish early what you want to get out of the hackathon. Learn how to code on a specific stack, set the basis for a new project that you want to run in the long term, or earn some cash. This will help you identify your priorities.

Finding a team

There usually are “speed dating” or “team forming” moments at the beginning, sometimes as calls, other times just in dedicated discord channels (for EthGlobal they unlock after you’ve staked your eth and got accepted)

It’s better teaming up with people who’ve done one or two hackathons before, and that share a mix of skills across the whole stack.

Be sure you are all excited about the vision of what you want to build, as it will be a few intense days to work on.

About Connext

Connext is a network for fast, trustless communication between chains and rollups. It is the only interoperability system of its type that does this cheaply and quickly without introducing any new trust assumptions. Connext is aimed at developers who are looking to build bridges and other natively cross-chain applications. To date, over $1.5b in transactions have crossed the network.

Website | Documentation | Twitter | Discord | Github | Blog