Once I adjusted the cloth wristband that gave me access to w3.hub, I took a long breath. I was getting ready, filled with anticipation, to walk up the imposing flights of stairs that’d get me to the fourth floor. Each level I reached provided a brief respite that made me wonder what kinds of vibes would fill the air, what kinds of people would I meet, and what kinds of projects would be born — on these three days at AwesomWasm Hackathon 2024.
The third floor was like the calm before a storm. That’s what I thought when I caught a glimpse of it on my way up. It was the place where the hacking would happen, but there wasn’t anyone there to be found yet. The way the tables were arranged, however, hinted at something inspiring: the challenges that would be faced there would be tackled with team effort.
If the third floor had been the hacking part of the AwesomWasm Hackathon, the fourth floor had to be the awesome. It was readily apparent that this was a place optimized for communication. The projector took the spotlight of the room as soon as you arrived, with dozens and dozens of chairs in front of it that would soon be filled with hackers, whereas the rest of the floor was comprised of stools and tall tables, refrigerators with drinks, comfy couches, and even some sleeping tents if you cared to look on the most isolated section.
Right when the room was boiling with people, and a few shy glass bottle clinks could be heard — interweaving with the continuous laughs and chatter — Simon Warta and Vicktoria Klich kickstarted the event. The applause they received segued into three more presentations: a look at the future of Wasm by Ethan Frey and the introduction of both Kujira and Neutron’s challenge tracks by Hans and Andrei Zavgorodnii, respectively. The first two workshops took place just after that, in which Serdar Turkmenafsar and Amit Prasad gave their all to spark that creativity the hackers would need to succeed. Serdar — from the Interchain Foundation — showcased the use of Interchaintest, which helps make the testing of IBC-Enabled CosmWasm apps more streamlined; whereas Amit — from Entropic Labs and himself a judge of the hackathon — provided a masterclass on building DeFI. As soon as the clock ticked past noon, the following 48 hours of non-stop innovation and fun started.
During the rest of the event you could definitely see a hurricane of ideas swarming the venue. Either if you went to grab a bite or have a drink; either if you had some pretzels for breakfast or some pizza for dinner; either if you went for a smoke, out on the balconies, or to play some foosball — you could really feel the gears turning. As ideas began to settle, tamed by passion and hard work, hackers were happy to share how their little projects were doing — on the little downtime they could afford — proud and giddy as parents witnessing their baby’s first footsteps.
Three more workshops took the spotlight on the fourth floor at later times. First, Ivan Gavran demoed the usage of Quint for practical formal methods, and it was as enlivening as the speaker’s own attitude. Then, while Adair and Robin — who ran their own bounty — showcased Abstract Money’s capabilities for building an interchain mail service, Gjermund Garaba shared some well-received awesome use cases for CosmWasm + IBC.
Fourteen projects were submitted to the DoraHacks platform for judging before the countdown ended on the third day and were then given a presentation. It became immediately obvious that each piece of work was an honest reflection of its builders. AutoKujira showed the ambition to look at what’s working and take it to the next level. An emotional and artsy way of living was unmistakable when checking out CosmonautJukeBox. The presentation of Telegram Connect CosmWasm conceptualized the determination of trusting well-known tools and integrating them together. And a witty and playful attitude was the whole raison d’être of Rugs and Candles.
All of the above are just some examples of what transpired during the two hours that were dedicated to the demos when also some exchanges were made between the speakers and the audience: “Thank you, that is so awesome!” or “This hackathon has made me a better person” were some of the compliments that could be heard among the crowd. The joy continued after the judges’ deliberation and well into the winners’ announcement, which was celebrated with faces of a job well done.
Simon Warta directed the closing ceremony by thanking the always helpful organizers and emphasizing the always welcoming Berlin, the city of CosmWasm, that saw it be born and has continued to nurture it with love and code.
All of the recordings will be shared here. You can see the winners here and do not hesitate to see the other projects here.
Now I know what kinds of projects could be born here, what kinds of people could be met, and what kinds of vibes filled the air.
If you want to know them, too, stay tuned for the next one!
