BlinkAid

The BlinkAid is a disaster‑resilient aid and payments platform designed to keep help flowing when the internet doesn’t. Centered on Yellow Network state channels and simple SMS commands, it enables relief agencies to instantly allocate and move value between beneficiaries and local merchants with low cost, near‑instant settlement, and offline‑friendly operation. Administrators use a web dashboard to register participants, create distribution channels, set token amounts, and monitor delivery in real time, while every beneficiary and merchant receives a custodial wallet linked to their phone number—no apps, keys, or complex onboarding required.

In practice, that means an admin can rapidly spin up a channel for a crisis zone, bulk distribute tokens (for example, 200 per family), and the system automatically notifies recipients via SMS with balances and how to use them. Beneficiaries can then pay a nearby merchant by texting a straightforward command like “PAY 50 TO MERCHANT123,” with the Yellow Network handling the transaction off‑chain for instant settlement, and the system returns confirmations to both parties via SMS.

The architecture is built for resilience and speed: state channels deliver high throughput with minimal fees, SMS provides universal reach even with intermittent connectivity, and the dashboard offers live visibility into sessions, balances, and channel status. It’s built NGOs, humanitarian agencies, and local authorities who need fast, accountable distribution; for merchants who require reliable payments to keep essential goods flowing; and for affected communities who need an immediate, simple way to receive and spend aid with dignity.

In short, it blends the practicality of SMS with the performance of Yellow Network state channels to deliver a secure, transparent, and instantly usable aid rail—one that works in the harshest conditions, turns phone numbers into spendable wallets, and gives responders the tools to allocate, track, and adapt support in real time.

BlinkAid is a disaster-resilient token distribution system designed to provide instant, SMS-based aid distribution during humanitarian crises when traditional internet infrastructure fails. The project combines cutting-edge blockchain technology with practical disaster response needs.

BlinkAid is built on a modern, disaster-resilient architecture that combines Next.js 16 with TypeScript for the frontend, Yellow Network state channels for instant off-chain transactions, and a custodial wallet system for user-friendly disaster response. The system consists of three core components: an SMS simulator built with Next.js for mobile-first disaster communication, an admin dashboard for channel and token management, and a WebSocket-based integration with Yellow Network using the Nitrolite library for state channel operations. The architecture leverages Ethers.js for wallet management. The custodial wallet system maps phone numbers directly to wallet addresses, enabling SMS-based transactions without requiring users to manage private keys. This technology stack was specifically chosen for its ability to provide instant settlement through state channels, work with minimal internet connectivity, and scale to handle thousands of transactions per second during humanitarian crises.

The Nitrolite library integration handles state channel creation through MetaMask message signing, with automated session management and token allocation across beneficiaries. The custodial wallet system leverages Ethers.js to automatically generate wallets for merchants and beneficiaries, mapping phone numbers directly to wallet addresses while securely storing private keys on the backend. The SMS simulator component, built with Next.js and mobile-first design principles, currently provides a demonstration interface for SMS-based transactions using mock data and real-time UI updates. While the SMS simulator serves as a proof-of-concept for the user experience, the production system is designed to integrate with real SMS gateways, enabling actual text message-based transactions during disasters when internet connectivity is limited. The entire implementation features reactive state management with custom service classes, comprehensive error handling, and offline synchronization capabilities that ensure the system remains functional even in the most challenging disaster scenarios.