Announcing: Filecoin Ignite and HackFS!
Filecoin Ignite - Learn 📚 Build 🛠 Launch 🚀
Filecoin is getting closer to mainnet launch, and the ecosystem is moving at blazing speed. Filecoin Miners are building out infrastructure at small, medium and large scales. The testnet just passed 9 PiB. Developers are making apps, dapps, dev tools, and more. There are thousands of people building around Filecoin, but so far they have been doing it mostly by themselves. It is time to get together and cross-pollinate.
We are thrilled to announce Filecoin Ignite, a series of events gathering the community, to learn, show, and build together. This is a unique opportunity to dive deep into the tech and share knowledge with other pioneers. It is a chance to hack on ideas and build amazing things. It is a spotlight to show the world what you’ve been working on. And you can do so in one of several events tailored to different audiences.
We currently have 6 main events lined up. We’ve already announced one: SpaceRace, a world-wide competition for Filecoin Miners. Today, we’re announcing the second: HackFS. This is a collaboration with one of our favorite groups in web3: the fantastic ETHGlobal team.
Many Ignite events will have sizable prizes, for intrepid developers and miners. We expect the total prize pools to be over 4 Million FIL and 250K USD, spread out across events.
HackFS - a 30 day virtual hackathon
HackFS is a 30 day virtual hackathon aimed at building the foundation of the decentralized web. Developers will build dapps, games, dev tools, DeFi integrations, and other hacks that utilize decentralized storage. HackFS will be hosted by ETHGlobal and Protocol Labs, and will have all the hackathon staples: workshops, mentorship, inspiring talks, AMAs, and prizes!
Come learn all about IPFS, Filecoin, Ethereum, Textile, libp2p, and so much more in web3. Join the community, meet other hackers around the world, and hang out with the core developers of these technologies. Attend workshops, learn best practices, and get your questions answered. Brainstorm ideas, hack on prototypes, build out your project, and launch it. The ETHGlobal team will bring their characteristic “white glove” approach to developer support to the event, and the Protocol Labs team will ensure that even developers new to decentralized storage will be set up for success. At the end of the hackathon: watch the live demo day with all the submissions, win prizes, and keep building your awesome projects.
Lots of amazing projects and companies start out as hackathon hacks, including things like CryptoKitties, Pinata, Set Protocol, 1inch exchange, InstaDapp, Authereum, and even sharding solutions for blockchains. Many amazing teams meet initially through hackathons. These are amazing opportunities to learn and try new things, to build cool things, to form long-lasting relationships, and to form teams of builders.
ETHGlobal is famous for organizing ETHWaterloo, ETHSanFrancisco, ETHBuenosAires, and more, which have come to be seen as some of the best hackathons in the world. ETHGlobal recently organized HackMoney, a 30-day virtual hackathon for DeFi, with hundreds of participants, 100+ hacks, and more. You can explore activity via #HackMoney on twitter, check out the full project showcase, and watch the Finale here. HackFS is their next act in making amazing virtual hackathon experiences. We are stoked to see this excellent team bring their magic to the Filecoin and IPFS communities.
Hosting a Filecoin Ignite event
We originally conceived of Ignite as a single hackathon event. But as we discussed the possibilities with friends, we realized we needed to think bigger. The community around Filecoin, IPFS, and broader web3 is quite large. Filecoin alone has many different subgroups. Miners, developers, clients, businesses, researchers, and token holders are all interested in diving into many different areas. Filecoin and IPFS have many intersections with other projects, networks, and communities. Many people around the globe prefer events tuned to their regions, languages, and timezones. And there are many talented groups in the community who want to create their own events.
So recognizing all of this potential, we decided to decentralize Ignite: we turned it into a whole series of events, so that groups could gather and form events to suit their interests. We currently have 6 main events lined up, and we think more will emerge. We also hope that a lot of the smaller meetups and communities might gravitate together and cross-pollinate through this series.
If you had been wanting to hold an event centered on or featuring Filecoin or IPFS – now is the time! We are gathering the community through common channels, and providing some support. Reach out and let us know what you are interested in doing. We are specially interested in seeing more developer conferences, and learning workshops for builders.
We can’t wait for HackFS and the Space Race to start! We look forward to everything you’ll build.
