The AKINDO team reached new heights at EthCC Cannes. What started as a platform connecting builders and ecosystems has evolved into something far greater, a comprehensive ecosystem that unites VCs, investors, communities, and conferences under one unified vision.
Our journey in Cannes wasn't just about organizing the EthCC Builders Showcase. We collaborated with diverse ecosystems to create unprecedented opportunities for builders from around the world.
Let's dive into the highlights that made this event truly remarkable.
🤝EthCC Builders Showcase: Redefining What's Possible
Following our successful showcases at Devcon and ETHDenver, we partnered with EthCC to host our most ambitious builders showcase yet at the main venue in Cannes. This wasn't just another demo pitch event, it was the birthplace of our revolutionary new concept:
the Buildathon( buildathon.io ).
The showcase became a convergence point where top ecosystems, builders, VCs, investors, and communities united to forge the industry's next killer applications. This represented everything we believe the future of Web3 collaboration should be.
🛠️Introducing the Buildathon Manifesto
We believe that after 10 years since Ethereum's launch, the industry needs a fundamentally different approach to building the killer apps that will drive mass adoption. The traditional hackathon model, while valuable, isn't enough anymore.
AKINDO founder Kinjo unveiled our Buildathon Manifesto during his opening keynote, outlining a long-term, sustainable approach to building businesses that can truly transform the crypto landscape.
🏆World-Class Judges: Seven Top VCs Unite
The caliber of our judges reflected the significance of this showcase. Seven top-tier VCs from across the globe gathered to identify Web3's next unicorns:
✨ Melody He – Co-founder & Managing Partner, TheSpartanGroup
✨ Ciara Sun – Founder, C² Ventures
✨ Kenneth Shek – Founding team, Animoca Brands & Moca Network
✨ Joey Shin – Investor, IOSG Ventures
✨ Jacques Chee – Co-founder, SNZ Holdings
✨ Geng Kai – Head of Research, DFG
✨ Olivier Galaud – GP, Everstake Capital
With $10,000 in prizes at stake and the opportunity to pitch at EthCC's main venue, we received an overwhelming 59 team applications.
Through rigorous pre-screening and ecosystem partner recommendations, we selected 10 exceptional teams to compete.
Adding an innovative twist, Spartan Labs provided their AI evaluation tool, Supafund, to support the judging process.
This created a unique hybrid competition where AI insights complemented human expertise in evaluating each project's track record, technology, and achievement levels.
🚀The Competition: Four Powerhouse Ecosystems
0G( @0G_labs ): The Future of Decentralized AI
Strategic Partnership Lead & Investor George Varghese opened with 0G's compelling vision, followed by demo pitches from three leading teams in their ecosystem:
Scott Dernley from Zia TradeGPT
Julia Muszynski from Tingz
Christian Pusateri from Mind Network
Kaia(@kaiachain) + LINE NEXT: Mass Adoption Through Messaging
Asia's leading blockchain Kaia showcased their brilliant strategy for crypto mass adoption through LINE, Asia's most popular messaging app. Head of Technology Neo delivered insights that left the audience inspired, supported by:
Benji from LINE NEXT
Alex Seo from Larva
IoTeX(@iotex_io): DePIN Innovation at Scale
The IoTeX stage featured winners from their "Crypto's Got Talent" competition, led by Dev Rel Lead Giuseppe, the DePIN Jesus himself. The momentum from IoTeX was palpable, with every team earning high praise from judges:
Ash Ahmed from Axal
Amanda Elizabeth Simeon from Gen-Pulse
Base(@base): Building the Onchain Economy
Base closed our showcase with finalists from their Base Batches buildathon. Country Lead UK & EU Clemens delivered a keynote that demonstrated the undeniable strength of the Base ecosystem:
Carl Schmidt & Yanis Berkani from Alphix
Goldie from RogerAI
0xrzochling from Pool Party
🏆The Winners: Excellence Rewarded
After intense deliberation, our judges selected the top 5 teams to share the $10K prize pool:
🥇 Axal @getaxal
🥈 Alphix @AlphixFi
🥉 Mind Network @mindnetwork_xyz
🏅 Tingz @play_tingz
🏅 RogerAI @XAlphaAI_Team
Congratulations to all winners! But our commitment extends far beyond this event, AKINDO will continue supporting the growth of every team that participated in this showcase.
Community Partners: The Foundation of Success
Special recognition goes to Self( @selfprotocol ) and Sortes.fun(@sortesfun) for their crucial support in making this showcase possible. Their presence was felt throughout EthCC, and we encourage everyone to stay updated on their latest developments.
Our Buildathon Manifesto received endorsements from industry leaders:
✅ 1inch @1inch
✅ Nethermind @NethermindEth
✅ Avail @AvailProject
✅ NIBIRU @NibiruChain
We extend deep gratitude to Cointelegraph Japan( @JpCointelegraph ) for amplifying our buildathon vision and helping us take the first step toward this new building standard.
The incredible community that rallied behind our mission made this event possible: 🌟
🌟MPOST @mpost_io
🌟 EpicWeb3 @epicweb3
🌟 Dabl Club @DablClub
🌟 AngelHack @AngelHack
🌟 HackQuest @HackQuest_
🌟 Immunefi @immunefi
Special thanks to Coineasy(@Coiniseasy) for their outstanding operational support throughout the event. Check out their EASYCON Cannes Recap here! It was an amazing event!
Most importantly, none of this would have been possible without the dedicated support of the EthCC team. Thank you to Jerome, Bettina, and Marianne for believing in our vision. Merci beaucoup🫶🏻
🌏 Beyond the Showcase: Expanding Our Impact
Watch the full showcase on YouTube
🦄 Next Stage: Global Expansion
This is just the beginning. After Bangkok, Denver, and Cannes, we're taking this movement worldwide.
Upcoming Builders Showcase Locations:
🇯🇵 Tokyo (AI Edition)
🇰🇷 Seoul
🇸🇬 Singapore
🇦🇷 Buenos Aires
Our impact at EthCC extended far beyond our main showcase. As part of our evolution into a comprehensive ecosystem platform, we actively supported multiple initiatives that aligned with our Buildathon vision:
⚡ The Open Hack Partnership
As TON partners, we successfully onboarded builders to The Open Hack, culminating in a massive program with 2,000 participants. The kickoff in Cannes set the stage for what promises to be an incredible journey.
⚡ AI Summit @ EthCC Cannes
Supporting 0G's AI Summit as partners, we witnessed incredible energy and engagement. The event's success strengthens our commitment to deepening collaboration through future Buildathon initiatives.
⚡ Hack Seasons Conference
Our CSO Moz served as moderator for the AI session at MPOST's Hack Seasons Conference. We're proud to continue our partnership with MPOST, one of our most valued collaborators.
Looking Forward: The Buildathon Era Begins
Cannes marked a pivotal moment for AKINDO. We had just redefined ourselves as a Buildathon platform and announced our manifesto. The conversations, connections, and experiences in Cannes confirmed that the Buildathon concept addresses a critical industry need.
Through every interaction, we gained conviction that this approach—focusing on long-term, sustainable building rather than quick sprints—is exactly what the crypto ecosystem needs to achieve mass adoption.
Our Commitment: Keep Building
We won't stop here. As we continue building the ecosystem platform for Buildathons, our mission remains clear: create the killer applications that will bring crypto to the masses.
Join us in taking a long-term approach to building killer apps and expanding the ecosystem.
✉️This is our invitation: If you’re building, if you’re investing, if you believe in Web3’s potential—join us. Let’s create the infrastructure, tools, and collaborations that will define the next decade.
AKINDO : https://akindo.io/
Buildathon: https://buildathon.io/
Keep Building.
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