Project Update September 24: Expanding Our Ecosystem Through Hackathons and DeCC

From hackathons and workshops to new opportunities for developers to engage with our tools, and a focus on driving innovation in DePIN, AI, and Decentralized Confidential Computing (DeCC) - September has been a busy and action-packed month. Here’s a look at what’s been happening, and what’s coming next for our ecosystem.

A note on Events and Developer Acquisition

At iExec, we believe that the foundation of a thriving ecosystem lies in the developer community. That’s why our developer acquisition strategy focuses on empowering builders; we want to give developers the tools, knowledge, and involvement they need to shape the future of Web3. Through this strategy, we aim to strengthen our community, enhance our tools, and lead the charge in decentralized technologies like DeCC.

Growing Our Builder Communities & Enhancing Tools with Their Feedback

We want developers to feel like they are a part of something bigger, and that their contributions have a tangible impact. By listening to developer feedback, we can continuously refine our developer tools, making them more accessible and efficient. This collaborative relationship ensures that iExec evolves in alignment with the needs of its users.

Our strategy doesn’t just stop at providing developers with cutting-edge tools — we also want developers to help define the future of our ecosystem. Whether it’s submitting feedback, building apps, or sharing new ideas, developers are central to how iExec evolves. By making them an integral part of the roadmap process, we seek partnerships where both sides win.

Education: Empowering Builders with Knowledge

To ensure our developers succeed, we’re committed to offering a robust educational framework. This includes a variety of learning opportunities:

• Product Updates/Releases: We keep developers in the loop with regular announcements on new features, product roadmaps, and updates to ensure they’re aware of the latest tools and functionalities.
• R&D Insights: Our research and development team is always pushing the boundaries of what’s possible. We share updates and findings so developers understand where we’re heading and how they can be part of the journey.
• Technical Tutorials and Guides: Whether it’s a step-by-step guide, template applications, sandboxes or we provide developers with the resources they need to integrate our tools seamlessly into their projects.
• Success Stories: We highlight real-world use cases to show how developers are building successful projects on iExec. This inspires others to innovate.
• Community Spotlights, Events and funding: We feature and reward developer community contributions, host workshops, and conduct webinars to foster a sense of belonging and shared learning within our ecosystem.

Driving Innovation and Education through Decentralized Confidential Computing (DeCC)

DeCC is a growing trend focused on privacy in Web3, enabling secure data processing without exposure to third parties. Built on trusted hardware like TEEs, DeCC ensures that data remains protected during use. iExec is a leading player in this space, having been combining blockchain for decentralized governance with TEEs for hardware-based encryption since 2018. As a founding member of the DeCC Alliance, we’re advancing this narrative and empowering developers to build privacy-focused Web3 solutions. In case you missed it, iExec was quoted in a press release from the DeCC Alliance. You can also watch back our “Demystifying DeCC” keynote from ETHCC 2024 here.

Workshops & Bootcamps: Hands-On Learning for Web3 Developers

Workshops and bootcamps are key to our strategy. Recently, we partnered with Encode Club, hosting hands-on workshops focused on iExec developer tools. In September, we held an EVM Bootcamp with 56 students and an Advanced Solidity Bootcamp with 49 students, focusing on DeCC and Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs). Both sessions received positive feedback, with 10 and 20 responses, respectively.

In addition, we are supporting 4 more boot camps and are exploring the idea of a hackathon. December, offering developers ongoing opportunities to deepen their Web3 skills with iExec. Through these efforts, we aim to foster a thriving learning environment where developers can innovate and push the boundaries of decentralized technologies.

iExec’s Event Engagement Highlights

One of the cornerstones of our developer acquisition strategy is to actively participate in key industry events. These events allow us to engage directly with the developer community, showcase our technology, and build meaningful partnerships.

ETHNaples

At ETH Naples, iExec hosted a successful workshop on monetizing and protecting data with our developer tools. We met with 20+ builders eager to explore how iExec’s technology can enhance decentralized applications. The workshop sparked 3 follow-up meetings with attendees showing genuine interest in further collaboration. We’re also expanding our incubation collaborations with local developer communities such as the ETHGlobal communities.

Token2049

At Token2049, Tom, Ecosystem Manager and Nelly, Head of Adoption had the opportunity to meet face-to-face with both new and ongoing projects building within our ecosystem such as QSTN. These meetings allowed us to see how projects were progressing, offer support, and discuss their integrations.

Given that a significant portion of the attendees were crypto investors and traders, our focus was on promoting the narrative of Decentralized Confidential Computing (#DeCC). We’re soon releasing an article that will go more in-depth into how iExec is leading this trend. The event was abuzz with other emerging trends like AI in Web3, with considerable emphasis on improving user experience and integrating AI use cases. iExec’s technology, with its real-world practical applications for AI, resonated well with this trend. We had timely discussions on this front, given we’re currently working on some AI use cases addressed by iExec, which we’ll be sharing more about soon.

Token2049 underscored the industry’s growing interest in projects with tangible, real-world applications — aligning perfectly with iExec’s user-friendly dev tools, which remove the complexity of integrating confidential computing and TEEs into blockchain, as well as our actionable vision for AI integration

ETHRome

iExec is excited to be sponsoring the ETH Rome Hackathon. This event offers developers the opportunity to create cutting-edge dApps while leveraging iExec’s powerful developer tools. On October 4th, Martin from iExec will host a workshop to introduce participants to our tech stack, focusing on how builders can monetize and protect data using iExec’s dev tools like DataProtector and Web3Mail.

This hackathon will provide a platform for developers to experiment, innovate, and create impactful applications. Our Bounty Guide outlines the specific tools and challenges we’ve set for this event, encouraging hackers to integrate features like confidential data management, secure off-chain computations, and decentralized communication. The most innovative projects stand a chance to win up to $8,000 in RLC across various categories.

To encourage innovation, we crafted a list of potential project ideas to help spark that creativity. These include building a Decentralized Password Manager using DataProtector for secure storage, a Private Data Marketplace where users can safely share and monetize their data, or a Blockchain-based Email Service leveraging Web3Mail to ensure privacy in communication. Other ideas include developing NFT-gated content platforms, privacy-preserving credit scoring systems, and even blockchain games with secure in-game assets.

In addition to the competition, we’re using this opportunity to gather valuable feedback from the developer community, helping us improve our tools and shape future innovations.

ETHLisbon — A Change of plans

We were excited to sponsor the ETH Lisbon Hackathon for the third time; however, on September 21, ETHLisbon organizers announced the cancellation of this year’s event. Organizers cited the need for more time to meet their high standards and ensure full community participation, including long-time builders and sponsors. They plan to share updates soon on their new event concept. We’re confident the hackathon will come back bigger and better

As September closes out, we’re energized by the progress we’ve made and the continued support from our community of developers, partners, and innovators. The future of iExec is brighter than ever. But the best is yet to come — next month, we’ll be sharing the update you’ve all been waiting for: worker pools. Stay tuned for this exciting release!

ETHSofia

While ETHLisbon was canceled, iExec has an alternative plan to have a strong presence at ETHSofia during the same period (October 17–19). This event combines a conference and a hackathon. We’re taking a similar approach to ETHSofia as we have with previous events — engaging with developers through workshops and hackathons, with a focus on integrating our developer tools We’re excited to connect with the vibrant Ethereum community in Bulgaria and showcase how iExec’s tech can drive innovation in privacy, data protection, and decentralized applications.

Devcon Bangkok

Looking ahead, Devcon Bangkok in November is another major event on our radar. iExec will have a strong team presence there, with plans to make a big impact. This event will give us an opportunity to join the global Ethereum developer community and engage with new projects. Stay tuned for more details — this is definitely an event to keep an eye on!