Protocol Labs logo

Protocol Labs

$20,000

protocol.ai
protocollabs

About

Welcome, builder. Protocol Labs is here to fund the bold and the ambitious, the “this shouldn’t work but what if it does?” experiments across the open internet. We’re putting up 20,000 USDC across four challenge tracks. You get one shot per track, winner-takes-all. Bring your best.

Prizes

🌎 Secure, Sovereign Systems ⸺ $5,000
What we’re looking for: Tools that make the internet harder to kill, censor, or compromise. If it makes Big Brother sweat even a little, you’re on the right track. Examples (but don’t limit yourself): P2P networking magic Zero-knowledge usage protecting PII Auth systems without a single point of trust Privacy-preserving messaging Post-quantum experiments for the future dystopia we might get stuck in Judges want: Clever architecture Clean implementation A real contribution to a sovereign internet

Qualification Requirements

👉 Submission requirements Use any tech stack you want Submit to the ETH Global portal and here: https://pl-genesis-frontiers-of-collaboration-hackathon.devspot.app

🤖 AI & Autonomous Infrastructure ⸺ $5,000
What we’re looking for: Infra for agents, AI systems, and verifiable pipelines that don’t rely on black boxes or centralized gatekeepers. Examples: Agents powered by open data Verifiable inference pipelines IPFS-native model storage Evaluation tools with provenance baked in Multi-agent sandboxing Judges want: Something useful A clear link between AI and open infra Strong technical decisions

Qualification Requirements

👉 Submission requirements Use any tech stack you want Submit here to the ETH Global portal and here: https://pl-genesis-frontiers-of-collaboration-hackathon.devspot.app

🧑‍🤝‍🧑 Decentralized Economies, Incentives & Governance ⸺ $5,000
What we’re looking for: Coordination, incentives, governance, and economic toys that rewire how groups make decisions on the internet. Think: “If a DAO and a Nash equilibrium had a baby.” Examples: Reputation systems that don’t rug you Incentive engines, e.g. using hypercerts Sustainable public goods funding mechanisms Governance dashboards that don’t suck Impact monitoring and prediction at scale A rigorous mechanism evaluation benchmark Judges want: A clever mechanism Something real people (or bots) would use A design backed with evidence

Qualification Requirements

Use any tech stack you want Submit to the ETH Global portal and here: https://pl-genesis-frontiers-of-collaboration-hackathon.devspot.app

📈 Open Data, Knowledge Graphs & Research Infra ⸺ $5,000
What we’re looking for: Anything that lets researchers, builders, and weirdos collaborate with open data instead of hiding it behind walled gardens. Examples: Tools for scientific collaboration Knowledge graph builders Research indexing / visualization IPFS-linked data workflows DeSci-friendly infra Hypercerts for research artifacts Judges want: A real “oh, this could be huge” moment Strong use of open storage or distributed infra A clean UX for researchers

Qualification Requirements

👉 Submission requirements Use any tech stack you want Submit to the ETH Global portal and here: https://pl-genesis-frontiers-of-collaboration-hackathon.devspot.app

Workshop

Protocol Labs Challenges Q&A

Ask us Anything as about building the future. Informal session to get idea feedback and learn about what we're look...

This workshop is happening in-person

05:30 PM UTC-03 — Friday, Nov 21, 2025 in Workshop Room 3