Announcing Encode Hackathon Bounty Winners

In July, we kicked off our sponsorship in the Encode Future of Blockchain University Hackathon, a 4-week online hackathon dedicated to supporting innovative projects led by students.

This challenge invited students from all over the globe to build apps integrating decentralized identity, with the purpose of giving their app users greater control over their digital identities and personal data using SpruceKit. Students integrated SpruceKit into their apps to power applications to accept digital credentials from users on their terms, originate trusted information, and interact with user data vaults.

Teamwork & Creativity

It has been inspiring to see all university student participants create incredible apps and lend a helping hand to one another in the Encode Discord channel. We are amazed by the collaboration among individuals and teams and the creativity of your app submissions.

We also loved having the opportunity to connect with participants in a virtual workshop where SpruceID Senior Software Engineer, Sam Gbafa got to walk students through how to use open-source software to power your app with decentralized identity. Here, he broke down important concepts in the decentralized identity and the components that make up SpruceKit.

Thank you to all who participated! Join us in congratulating all of the Encode Future of Blockchain University Hackathon participants for their hard work.

Drum Roll, Please!

The winners of Encode Future of Blockchain University Hackathon represent the best across multiple categories. Please join us in congratulating our winners for the following bounties:

🏆 Bounty #1: Let users bring their own identity and data to your app

The first bounty was focused on letting users bring their own identity and data to their app. Hackathon participants tied together SpruceKit libraries and used the SpruceKit Credential Faucet to let app users prove who they are in their application. The following participants did a great job of pulling in credentials in a meaningful way, such as using them to enhance profile information or use them as part of a core workflow. Our first bounty winners are…

Most innovative app use case: EcoMatch

EcoMatch is an app that matches people with volunteer opportunities. It allows its users to find climate organizations that match their preferences while also giving them full control over their data and how it’s stored. The app has two panels, the questions panel which asks you a series of questions about your preferences for which climate organizations you'd like to volunteer at, and the recommendations panel which shows a list of climate organizations that match your preferences. The app uses SpruceKit’s Kepler to store your preferences and recommendations.

We loved how this team combined giving back to the community with SpruceKit capabilities. See a demo of their app below!

Best technical implementation of the libraries: BuildIt

BuildIt is a Metaverse project that provides app users with the ability to own virtual land within a map, place items on the land they own, and sell the land to other users. The land is represented as ERC721 tokens, while the items are represented as ERC1155 tokens and all interactions within the metaverse are secured by smart contracts.

We thought this app showcased a great example use case of combining on and off-chain technologies to tie a game to a cryptographic identity.

Implementation with the best user experience: LoveChain

The LoveChain app redefines online dating leveraging decentralized technologies and SpruceKit. LoveChain offers its users a comprehensive dating journey that prioritizes privacy, security, and authenticity. The platform also hosts an NFT marketplace for creativity. With LoveChain, users enjoy enhanced control over their data and interactions, propelled by innovative blockchain solutions, and the app integrates ENS to ensure verified profiles, fostering trust.

LoveChain had an excellent, engaging user interface that would be easy to navigate for any potential new user!

🏆 Bounty #2: Allow users to log in without a username/password by authenticating with their Ethereum accounts

In our second bounty, we looked for hackathon participants to incorporate SpruceKit libraries to enable their app users to Sign in with Ethereum and use our SSX library to resolve ENS names. Sign-in with Ethereum is a decentralized authentication mechanism that lets you log into websites or applications using your Ethereum wallet address to store and access your data. It eliminates the need for usernames and passwords, using your Ethereum address as a unique identifier — adding security and transparency to the authentication process.

The following apps rose to the challenge and were awarded part of our pool prize!

EcoMatch: video demo | github repo

Recommend Me: video demo | github repo

DACA: video demo | github repo

LoveChain: video demo | hosted demo | github repo

BuildIt: video demo | hosted demo | github repo

Journify: video demo | github repo

Vent: video demo | github repo

Lexar: video demo | hosted demo | github repo

Join the SpruceID developer community!

Thank you to everyone who participated in the hackathon, and congratulations to the above participants for winning prizes!

Although the hackathon may have ended last week, there are still many ways that you can get involved in building apps. Visit our SpruceKit developer docs to start kicking the tires, and explore the different ways that you can join our community!