The Hashgraph Association is backing 35 projects with grant funding and expert coaching in the first cohort of its innovation programme.
Headquartered in Switzerland, the non-profit association aims to accelerate the adoption of the Hedera network worldwide. It launched a professional training and innovation programme in April 2022, in close collaboration with Swiss Digital Assets Institute (SDAI).
Under the programme, it will provide grant funding of up to $250,000 for startups, $750,000 for enterprises, and up to $1,500,000 as co-investment in government initiatives, including funding of strategic projects and initiatives that encourage adoption of the Hedera network.
Participating projects will develop solutions in areas including fintech, insurtech, greentech, DeFi, stablecoins, Web3, gaming, metaverse, NFTs, DAOs and tokenisation.
So far, three cohorts of 12 projects have completed the qualification stage. They will develop enterprise-grade solutions and decentralised applications on the Hedera network. Ranging from Europe to the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Americas, the grant funding also promotes projects on a global scale.
Participating projects include 88i, AgNext, Capturiant, Deca4, Decimal Point Analytics, Friddy, Metacourt, Nazara, NFT For a Better World, One Global, Rivia, Scenic Swisscoast, The M.O. as well as Twigital.
Building on Hedera
Kamal Youssefi, president of The Hashgraph Association, says: “The grant funding through the Hashgraph Innovation Program will enable us to fuel the further expansion of the DLT industry by actively supporting new innovation and cutting-edge projects powered by Hedera. We’re proud to play this part in the journey of promising projects and look forward to building future applications through the Hashgraph Innovation Program.”
The project involves developing decentralised applications on Hedera’s energy-efficient public DLT network. It is also designed to ensure that the long-term strategic objectives of the projects are achieved in terms of product development, technology implementation, utilization, and economic impact.
Stefan Deiss, director of SDAI, said: “We’ve onboarded an initial group of very promising and innovative projects with high-growth potential from around the world, operating across multiple industry verticals, which we now look forward to empowering through the Hashgraph Innovation Program to develop enterprise-grade solutions on Hedera network.”
In addition, The Hashgraph Association collaborates with some of the world’s largest technology firms and system integrators, which it will be officially announcing in the coming weeks, including leading academic institutions such as University of Zurich (UZH) to further promote mainstream use and accessibility of DLT, while attracting the next generation of talented Hedera engineers.
Youssefi adds: “Right now, the DLT space is evolving and quickly maturing. It might be easy to downplay the levels of adoption of this technology across the sectors, but what we’re seeing is a steady cadence of interest and innovation that reassures us of DLT’s strong future.”
Applications are open for participation in future cohorts of the Hashgraph Innovation Program.
