Case Study: How TAIKAI scaled Starkware’s hackathon to 390 builders

Wonder what it takes to successfully organize a hackathon? In this case study, we're cutting through the noise to show you how TAIKAI made organizing the Starknet Winter Hackathon a breeze.

Starkware partnered with TAIKAI to host the Starknet Winter Hackathon, streamlining the entire organizational process and simplifying the operational workload for Starkware. Here’s how TAIKAI was able to attract 390 participants, boost Starknet’s brand visibility, and foster innovation within the Starkware ecosystem.

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What is Starkware?

Starkware is a leading blockchain company specializing in zk-rollup technology and scaling the Ethereum blockchain. The company, founded in 2018 in Israel, provides scaling solutions that leverage STARK-based validity proofs designed to enhance the speed, security, and user experience of the Ethereum platform.

One of Starkware's scaling solutions is Starknet, a permissionless layer 2 network where any user or developer can deploy smart contracts developed in the Cairo language. This technology was the focal point of the recent Starknet Winter Hackathon, which challenged participants to build innovative applications leveraging Starknet's capabilities.

The Starknet Winter Hackathon

The Starknet Stack is quickly becoming the most decentralized L2 stack, leading Starkware to organize a hackathon to accelerate the development of decentralized applications utilizing their technology and engage the developer community.

The Starknet Winter Hackathon was a resounding success, drawing in an impressive number of participants from around the world who poured their creativity and skills into crafting innovative solutions using the Starknet stack.

The Starknet Winter Hackathon in numbers

🗓️ From 15th January to 22nd February

🏆 Prize pool of $50,000

🤝 10 sponsors

🏎️ 10 bounty tracks + Global track

🧑‍💻390 participants

💡43 projects

Why Starkware hosted a hackathon with TAIKAI

Starware and other blockchain companies are increasingly utilizing hackathons as a strategic tool to promote their tech stack. These intense, collaborative events provide a unique platform to showcase their technology to a pool of enthusiastic developers, offering them a firsthand demonstration of the real-world applicability, scalability, and robustness of their platforms.

Besides brand awareness and the possibility of attracting potential talent, hosting hackathons allows companies to gather valuable feedback to improve their technology based on developer experience and the applications built during the event, which otherwise would require significant time and resource investment through internal testing.

Recognizing the strategic value of hackathons, Starkware decided to host a hackathon to:

Create an opportunity for builders to build something meaningful and innovative for the Starkware ecosystem.
Attract developers to build solutions utilizing the tech stack of the multiple projects within the Starkware ecosystem: Pragma, JediSwap, Herodotus, Dojo, Braavos, Argent, AVNU, Giza, Madara, and Nimbora.

The Starknet Winter Hackathon counted 390 participants and ran online, from 15th January to 22nd February, kicking off with an onboarding week to give participants a taste of the hackathon and introduce them to the Starknet technology.

The hackathon featured 10 different sponsor tracks, each dedicated to the tech stack of the Starkware ecosystem project that sponsored the track. In total, the event awarded a prize pool of $36,000 from the initial pool of 50,000$, contributed jointly by Starkware and the sponsors of each track.

Acess the FREE guide to continue reading

In this Web3 Hackathon Case Study, you will have access to:

How this hackathon attracted 390 participants, received 66 project submissions, and how you can replicate this success.
A detailed roadmap on how to plan and execute each phase of the hackathon.
The proven strategies implemented to ensure maximum engagement and participation.
Key metrics and how to measure the success of a hackathon.
Exclusive insights into organizing a successful hackathon in the web3 space, with takeaways that can be applied to any hackathon.