Overview
The Stylus Build-a-thon was a comprehensive initiative designed to educate developers about Arbitrum Stylus, culminating in a hands-on hackathon. Spanning over 3 months, the initiative empowered participants with technical knowledge, mentorship, and practical application opportunities.
The initiative successfully combined codejam sessions, educational workshops, and a 3-day hackathon, fostering innovation and skill development within the blockchain community. This report highlights the journey, key outcomes, and impact of the Stylus Build-a-thon.
Milestone 1: Codejam and Community Engagement
Dates: July 27 - August 23, 2024
Activities:
Conducted 4 virtual sessions and 4 in-person workshops.
Topics covered: Introduction to Stylus, Getting Started with Smart Contracts, Advanced Features, and Building dApps.
Venues: ALX Centre, Jenga Leo, and virtual platforms.
Key Metrics:
Total Participants: 150+
Average Attendance Per Session: 75%
Deliverables:
Foundational knowledge of Arbitrum Stylus imparted to participants.
Increased engagement within the Arbitrum developer community.
Milestone 1 Report
Milestone 2: Workshops and Educational Resources
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Dates: August 11 - September 8, 2024
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Activities:
- Conducted 8 sessions (4 virtual and 4 physical) focusing on advanced topics like Optimizing Performance and Case Studies.
- Developed comprehensive resources, including tutorial videos and documentation.
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Deliverables:
- Educational Materials:
- Community Engagement:
- 120+ participants engaged actively through interactive sessions.
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Photo Highlights:
Milestone 3: Hackathon Execution
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Dates: October 10 - October 12, 2024
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Activities:
- A 3-day hackathon at the Nairobi Game Development Center.
- Teams developed projects using Arbitrum Stylus and showcased their solutions to judges.
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Key Metrics:
- Total Participants: 120+
- Teams Registered: 20+
- Projects Submitted: 22
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Winning Projects:
- Bitsave
- Description: A SaveFi protocol facilitating savings in the crypto market using Stylus and Wasm for scalability and efficiency.
- GitHub Link
- Rust-based Chess Game
- Description: A fully on-chain chess game showcasing complex logic handled by Stylus and Wasm for performance and scalability.
- Content Consumption Tracker
- Description: A contract for tracking content consumption, enhancing security by porting a Web2 anti-cheat mechanism to the blockchain using Stylus.
- GitHub Link
Key Outcomes
- Knowledge Transfer:
- Over 150 developers gained practical skills in Arbitrum Stylus, empowering them to create high-performance smart contracts.
- Community Growth:
- Strengthened the Arbitrum developer ecosystem with active engagement and collaboration.
- Innovative Solutions:
- 22 projects addressing challenges in savings, gaming, and content security were developed.
Participant Feedback
- 95% of participants found the mentorship valuable in advancing their projects.
- 90% expressed interest in participating in future Arbitrum-related events.
- Overall Feedback Score: 4.7/5
Lessons Learned
- Enhanced Pre-Hackathon Preparation:
- Early team formation and brainstorming could help participants maximize productivity during the hackathon.
- Increased Mentorship Support:
- Expanding the mentor-to-team ratio would provide more personalized guidance.
- Broader Marketing:
- Wider outreach can increase participation, particularly from underrepresented groups.
Conclusion
The Stylus Build-a-thon successfully achieved its goals of educating developers, fostering innovation, and strengthening the Arbitrum ecosystem. From workshops to the final hackathon, participants showcased creativity and skill, building impactful solutions with Arbitrum Stylus.
We look forward to building on this momentum and continuing to engage and grow the Web3 developer community.
Thank you to the Arbitrum community, participants, and partners for making this initiative a success.
For additional details, please refer to the full report: Full Report
Victor Gunga
Organizer