Venom Hackathon Winners Spotlight: An Interview With BioVenomSDK

From May 8 to June 17, 2023, more than 800 hackers from all over the globe joined Venom’s virtual Hackathon. They learned about the Venom blockchain and built projects based on three tracks to claim their share of the $225,000 prize pool.

It was certainly no easy feat, and we take our hats off to each team’s sheer grit and innovation. We received 481 submissions — an impressive number for our first hackathon — and our panel of judges sifted through countless lines of coding. Eventually, the winners from each track were crowned, with honorary mentions increased across the board.

We had a quick chat with the winner of the Tools & Infrastructure track, Kumar Nilay, and his project, BioVenomSDK.

Nice to meet you, Kumar! Can you Introduce your team and tell us how you started your Web3 journey?

Hi, I’m Kumar Nilay. Currently, I work as a Smart Contract Auditor at Oak Security, and I’m the sole team member in the project BioVenomSDK.

My Web3 journey began in the summer of 2021. I was very curious about this intriguing technology, so I started to explore by diving deep into articles, attending Secureum Bootcamp Epoch 0, and grasping the concepts of smart contract security.

I gained a solid understanding of solidity development through DappCamp Cohort 2, which fueled my interest and commitment to this field. Eventually, I also served as a Technical Coach for the students of Cohort 3. Shortly after, I joined prePO as a full-time smart contract developer in March 2022, and I’m also an EthIndia Fellow for the Gwei Track(i.e. the senior track).

Apart from these, I’ve also won multiple prestigious hackathons organized by EthGlobal. As part of a team, our projects won multiple prizes at ETHIndia22 for Banana Smart Wallet and RoadToWeb3 for CryptoBaskets.

How did you come up with your project concept?

The concept for my project was largely inspired by the evolving landscape of Web3 and its new possibilities through account abstraction. This significant technological advancement, which separates the signer from the fund holder, created a whole new realm of possibilities for enhancing the functionality of wallets, which are now smart contracts themselves.

My past projects and experience with account abstraction and Solidity devs provided me with a strong foundation. In the past, I explored the possibilities of utilizing Zero-Knowledge proofs and unique ways to onboard users using the signature generated from their devices. These experiences sparked my interest in finding new ways to simplify user onboarding to the Web3 ecosystem — it was a challenge that I found both intriguing and impactful.

Due to Venom’s native account abstraction capabilities, the process becomes significantly smoother. This realization led me to envision a product that could streamline this procedure, making it much easier and quicker for the onboarding of new Web3 users.

Moreover, the frequent issues that users encounter with browser and hardware wallets demonstrated a gap in the market for a more reliable and user-friendly alternative. I saw this as an opportunity to create a solution that could cater to the needs of both current and potential users of the Web3 ecosystem, hence driving my idea into reality.

Can you tell us more about how your project works?

BioVenomSDK is an innovative Software Development Kit (SDK) that brings together biometrics and account abstraction across devices. It transforms how users engage with the Venom Network through web-based DApps, and in the future, we aim to expand its functions to mobile applications too!

Overall, BioVenomSDK simplifies onboarding by using the Secure Enclave or Trusted Execution Environment(TEE) in devices, effectively making them hardware-based signers. The private key never leaves the Secure Enclave/TEE whereas the public key is stored inside the smart contract to verify the transactions signed by the hardware signer.

One of the main reasons to write a custom signature verification logic is because the native signature scheme that Venom supports is ED25519 whereas the signature scheme most commonly used by devices is Secp256R1, the entire verification takes place in the contract and only upon successful verification, is the transaction executed.

Key components include the WebAuthn module for managing credentials and getting the transactions signed by the hardware signer in the devices. It enhances security by storing keys in the secure enclave/TEE, eliminating the need for a seed phrase.

Moreover, a current WIP feature is to establish a recovery mechanism using MPC(Multi-Party Compute) and Shamir Secret Sharing.

How does your project meet business needs or solve real-world problems?

Here are some of the benefits that BioVenomSDK can provide:

1. Streamlined Onboarding: Traditional browser wallets can deter potential users due to their complex setup. BioVenomSDK simplifies this process by utilizing the secure enclave within users’ devices, providing a user-friendly interface to interact with the Venom Network.
2. Enhanced Security: Browser wallets carry inherent risks with seed phrases, which if lost or exposed, can result in losing funds. BioVenomSDK mitigates this risk by storing keys securely in the device’s secure enclave/TEE, eliminating the need for seed phrases.
3. Ease of Integration: The versatile SDK can be seamlessly integrated into any web-based dApp, making it a beneficial tool for developers seeking to improve the user experience and security of their applications.
4. Recovery Options: With the upcoming integration of Multi-Party Computation (MPC) based recovery, BioVenomSDK provides a robust solution for key recovery, further enhancing user trust in the system.

Overall, BioVenomSDK enables dApps to implement these features from the ground up. It has the potential to drive the growth and popularity of the Venom Network, leading to broader adoption of blockchain technology.

How is Venom’s blockchain integrated into your project and what role does it play?

BioVenomSDK operates within the Venom Network, serving as the underlying blockchain for transactions and smart contract interactions. The SDK takes full advantage of Venom’s unique features, particularly its native support for account abstraction. This facilitates the management of signatures and sending of transactions in a more secure and user-friendly manner.

Furthermore, Venom’s architecture allows us to attach signatures as function arguments, thus bypassing the need for traditional signing with an ED25519-based Signature. This capability demonstrates Venom’s flexibility and adaptability, which is integral to the smooth operation of our project.

How did you find the Venom Hackathon experience?

Personally, the Venom Hackathon was a great experience as it provided an excellent platform for innovation and collaboration.

Despite the inherent differences between Venom and Ethereum that posed new challenges, the support I received from the developers at Venom and the Discord community of hackers taking part in the hackathon was instrumental. They helped me navigate through the technical complexities, enhancing my understanding of Venom’s unique aspects.

On one hand, the Venom Hackathon enabled me to improve my technical skills. On the other, it also provided a great opportunity to connect with like-minded individuals, making it an incredibly fulfilling journey!

Did you encounter any challenges during the hackathon? If so, how did you overcome them?

Yes, indeed, during the development of BioVenomSDK, I encountered several challenges that tested my skills and adaptability.

One primary challenge was adjusting to the asynchronous nature of the Venom Network. Although its smart contract language is similar to Ethereum’s, the distinct architecture and operational mechanism demanded a unique approach. This was something I had to learn and adapt to, which took considerable effort and time.

The second major challenge was working alone on this project. As the sole team member, I had to manage everything from the core blockchain coding to the design and implementation of the front end. Given that I’m not an expert front-end developer, creating a working demo with a user-friendly interface was a daunting task.

To overcome these challenges, I relied heavily on self-learning and sought help from the Venom team developers, who provided invaluable support and guidance. They assisted me in understanding and tackling the technical complexities involved in interacting with Venom contracts and how the TVM works, enhancing my understanding and capability to work with this unique platform.

In conclusion, despite the difficulties, the process was incredibly rewarding, and these challenges served as valuable learning experiences.

What was your biggest takeaway from the hackathon?

My biggest takeaway from the hackathon was the realization of the immense potential of the Venom Network and the possibilities it opens up for secure, user-friendly blockchain applications.

Overcoming challenges to develop BioVenomSDK underscored the importance of continuous learning and adaptability in this rapidly evolving field. The event also highlighted the power of collaboration and community support in overcoming technical complexities and creating innovative solutions. The assistance from the Venom team developers and the help from hackathon participants significantly enriched the experience.

Moving ahead, what are your next steps?

I have several key steps planned to further enhance and expand the BioVenomSDK project:

1. Contract Optimization and Security: As the contracts were built in a short span, the first priority is to optimize them, enhance their efficiency, and ensure their security is foolproof.
2. SDK Architecture Improvement: The architecture surrounding the SDK will be refined to improve its robustness and versatility, making it more adaptable and user-friendly.
3. Implement Recovery: The implementation of the Multi-Party Computation (MPC) based recovery feature is on the horizon to provide users with secure and reliable recovery options.
4. Integration with Applications: The plan is to integrate BioVenomSDK with potential applications where the Venom community can find it beneficial.
5. Team Building: To speed up the development process and divide responsibilities more effectively, I plan on building a team of dedicated professionals who share the same passion for blockchain technology.

Overall, I aim to bring BioVenomSDK closer to its goal of simplifying and securing the user experience on the Venom Network.

Any final thoughts?

My journey through the blockchain space has been rewarding and full of learning. It’s inspiring to see how BioVenomSDK can significantly impact the user experience in the Venom Network.

As we move forward, collaborations and open-source development are essential in propelling blockchain technology. The collective effort of the global blockchain community will drive innovation and push boundaries.

Lastly, I’d like to extend my gratitude for the support I received throughout this project. The Venom developers’ guidance and the opportunities provided by events like the Venom Hackathon have been invaluable. Here’s to the exciting future of Web3!

Check out BioVenomSDK via these links:

Website: https://biovenom-sdk-demo.netlify.app/

GitHub: https://github.com/Nilay27/bio-venom-sdk

Twitter: https://twitter.com/bioVenomSDK

Demo Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kGIq1FQuf4s&ab_channel=KumarNilay

To find out more about Venom, check out the links below:

Website: https://venom.foundation/

Whitepaper: https://venom.foundation/Venom_Whitepaper.pdf

Documentation: https://docs.venom.foundation/

Medium: https://medium.com/@venom.foundation

Twitter: https://twitter.com/venomfoundation