Partners’ Introduction
ABCDE is a Singapore-based Crypto fund co-founded by Huobi cofounder Du Jun and former Internet & crypto founder BMAN.
They led the Pre-seed round of MegaETH, Merlin, Bitlayer, Particle network, and Cysic, and invested in Pre-seed rounds of Babylon, Botanix, Arch, Lorenzo, Polyhedra, Nubit, and Unisat, etc.
Before ABCDE, they have built multi-billion dollar companies in Crypto from the ground up, including HongKong listed companies with crypto licenses(01611.HK), exchanges(Huobi), SAAS companies(ChainUP.com), media(CoinTime.com), and developers platform & venture studio (BeWater.xyz).
BeWater is a tech-driven crypto venture studio and hackathon platform backed by ABCDE, OKX Ventures, and more.
BeWater Venture Studio accelerates the best potential in crypto. Its founding members have built multi-billion-dollar companies from the ground up and offer enhanced narratives, incentives, and global community growth. BeWater Venture Studio is dedicated to working with founders on the most impactful crypto solutions.
The BeWater hackathon platform was built by crypto OG builders for builders to spur technical innovations. The platform has hosted over 50 hackathons on more than 30 ecosystems, including Starknet, ZKSync, Solana, Arweave, and others. Impactful campaigns and discussions have been hosted, including ZK Hacker Camp, ETH Hong Kong Hackathon, and AI Crypto Hackathon. BeWater core developers are contributors to open-source codebases for infrastructure projects such as Scroll, Starkware, and the internal R&D is advancing key areas of AI, ZK, and more.
What is ICP x ABCDE x BeWater Accelerator?
The ICP x ABCDE x BeWater Accelerator is an ecosystem accelerator jointly launched by ABCDE and BeWater in collaboration with the DFINITY Foundation, the major contributor to the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP). We believe that 2024 marks a pinnacle year for the development and expansion of the ICP ecosystem. Our goal is to empower entrepreneurs to capitalize on opportunities and progress towards success.
During the three-month structured acceleration program, we will offer ICP ecosystem entrepreneurs official endorsement for startup funding, globally customized market resources tailored to the ecosystem, and systematic training curated by top founders.
- Guaranteed startup funding, Selected projects will be granted up to $50k ICP grants in initial funding support. Projects will also gain access to ABCDE & BeWater’s extensive network of venture capital connections for fundraising opportunities.
- Access to a tailored eco-resource network built by the DFINITY Foundation and top ICP ecosystem projects, efficiently exploring global markets such as North America, Southeast Asia, Western Europe, and South America.
- Offline and online closed-door workshops by mentors from DFINITY Foundation, a global network of ICP Hubs, industry experts and VC partners, aiming to provide founders with industry knowledge and facilitate accelerated growth.
Why Build on ICP in 2024?
ICP is a decentralized cloud 3.0 protocol that allows developers to build and run services and enterprise systems directly on a public blockchain with unprecedented scalability. Decentralized apps in the area of AI, DePIN as well as omni-chain interoperability protocols that run by the ICP canister smart contracts are tamperproof and can natively interact with the outside world in a trustless manner.
The native token of the Internet Computer Protocol has a current market cap of over $4 billion, ranks among the top 20 blockchain networks. In addition, ICP has also created the most innovative, and globally scalable ecosystem and community — the ICP Hub Network, where developers, project entrepreneurs, and community members can gain extensive support and resources locally from almost anywhere. The revolutionary tech stacks of ICP also enables Web3 entrepreneurs to build various disruptive blockchain-based products and applications, which would not be possible with current incumbents.
Here are the key reasons why you, as an entrepreneur, should focus on ICP in 2024:
- The revolutionary technologies offered by ICP enable you to build the most innovative Web3 products and apps in the most cutting-edge tech areas:
- Bitcoin ecosystem — the disruptive Chain Fusion technology enables the ICP smart contracts to natively communicate with Bitcoin mainnet, making it possible to build of the most trust-minimized Bitcoin L2 and other DeFi apps.
- Omni-chain / interoperability layer — similar to the above, Chain Fusion also enables ICP to connect with Ethereum mainnet, and soon with Solana and other L1/2s, at the protocol level, making ICP the most trust-minimized, omni-chain layer.
- DeAI — ICP enables the training and reasoning of AI apps 100% run by smart contract on-chain through a tamperproof, decentralized process, without centralized Web2 cloub service or data center providers involved.
- DePIN — with the cloud 3.0 capability, ICP is also considered one of the most suitable networks to host DePIN-based apps.
- Other unique tech features: reverse gas model (users pay zero gas fee); theoretically unlimited, subnet based scalability (current over 350,000 Ethereum-equivalent TPS); built-in oracles/direct HTTP communications; account abstraction through Internet Identity; the most advanced DAO mechanism.
- ICP Hub Network — the most extensive blockchain ecosystem network supporting founders, developers and community members, and running marketing for ICP. The ICP Hubs have achieved the following since early 2023:
- Nearly 30 countries covered
- 90+ million media coverage and impressions
- 8,000+ unique content/PR
- 800+ events hosted/participated
- 175 developer ideathons/hackathons
- 265,500 people engaged IRL events
- 18,578 builders/developers engaged
- 5,000+ developers trained
- 300+ new prototypes/early-stage projects initiated
- Solid ecosystem support also from DFINITY Foundation
- $20 million grant support for the ICP Asia Alliance (the Asia cluster of the ICP Hub Network and ecosystem) — a strong focus on the Asia builders ecosystem
- Establishment of Olympus, a global decentralized acceleration platform to support ecosystem growth
- Establishment of a network of investors/VCs, institutional partners, top-notch entrepreneurs that will contribute to the ICP ecosystem growth and acceleration
- Pro-active marketing and event activities that support both the entire ICP ecosystem as well as individual ecosystem projects
- Strong government and institutional adoption cases that endorse the ICP technologies worldwide:
- UAE government and Roland Berger: building the world’s first decentralized exchange on ICP for waste recycling credits.
- Swiss Lugano municipal government: adopting ICP as the transaction network for Bitcoin payment in real life (using of “ckBTC” on ICP).
- UTOPIA: a revolutionary project initiated by a team at DFINITY Foundation for creating the world’s first enterprise-standard, private decentralized network of cloud, based on the Internet Computer standard.
What can you get from ICP x ABCDE x BeWater Accelerator?
- Startup funding and fundraising support
- Immediate funding support upon joining and deploying, including up to $50,000 Grants from the Olympus acceleration platform, initiated by DFINITY Foundation.
- Access to an investor network curated by ICP, BeWater and ABCDE
- Fully showcasing your project during the ICP Demo Day, with the opportunity to secure investment from VC partners.
2. Access to a global resource network, built by ICP + ABCDE + BeWater
- Connect with the DFINITY Foundation, ICP Hub Network, and top projects within the ecosystem, assisting entrepreneurs in efficiently expanding into global markets such as North America, Southeast Asia, Western Europe, and South America.
- Access to hundreds of tailored eco-partners, including cloud services, audit services, projects and protocols, exchanges, market makers, etc. Fostering efficient and cost-effective ecosystem collaborations.
- Gain continuous exposure by attending DFINITY’s and any one of the ICP Hubs’ official events and summits
3. Offline and online closed-door training, covering key insights into crypto entrepreneurship:
- A three-month specialized training program created by DFINITY Foundation and/or ICP Hubs, renowned entrepreneurs, and fund partners, covering essential topics for crypto startups:
- Product Design, Tokenomics, Marketing & Growth, Team Management, Listing, Market Value Management, etc.
- Access to a tailored mentor pool for the alumni, enabling direct 1-on-1 consultations with top projects in the ecosystem.
How to Apply
Application Requirements:
Apply If:
- A Web3 entrepreneur at the seed to Series A stage, or you have a compelling idea that you are preparing to put into action
- Regardless of direction, field, age, gender, or background
Apply Now:
- Official website: https://build.bewater.xyz/en/campaigns/dK6G-ICP-x-ABCDE-x-BeWater-Accelerator
- Apply link: https://build.bewater.xyz/en/campaigns/dK6G-ICP-x-ABCDE-x-BeWater-Accelerator/teams
Application Period:
- From now until August 12, 2024.
- The program starts on August 19, 2024, and will span for 3 months
Admission Capacity:
A select group around 5–10 startups will be chosen.
If you have any questions, contact us at Telegram: @jonpwc or via email: jon@abcde.com
