Update on Matching Fund Pool for AEZ Quadratic Grant Program

Following the recent announcement by Atom Accelerator DAO(AADAO) regarding its planned sunset (see official announcement), there may be unforeseen impacts on the matching fund pool for MACI Voting results in the upcoming rounds (Rounds 5–11) of the AEZ Quadratic Grant program.

The matching fund pool, which was previously committed by AADAO, could be affected in terms of the promised funding amount or the timing of disbursements. Please note that DoraHacks, as the infrastructure provider and operator of the Grant Program, holds no liability for any potential decrease in the total funding amount for each round. We appreciate your understanding and will continue to provide updates as more information becomes available.

Intro

AEZ Quadratic Grant is a long-term program that aims to support the sustainable development of public goods and Appchains in the ATOM Economic Zone. We firmly believe that even small contributions can help shape the future of the vast ATOM ecosystem, and ultimately give rise to new cornerstone applications within Cosmos.

Following the passing of Cosmos Proposal #917, a substantial allocation of 80,000 ATOM has been secured for funding public good and appchain builders in the ATOM Economic Zone. Additionally, with robust backing from Atom Accelerator (AADAO), an extra $200,000 will also be committed to the prize pool, distributing $20,000 for each round to further empower the public good builders. This funding is set to support 10 successive rounds of quadratic funding at AEZ Quadratic Grant, starting from Round 2 to Round 11 in 24 months.

All types of public goods/appchain projects contributing to the Cosmos ecosystem are welcome to apply for a grant. Continue reading below for more information about rules and quadratic governance.

In Round 5, 8,000 ATOM + 31,111 USDC will be provided for the matching fund pool (Round 5 contribution is open until February 3rd, 3 PM UTC). The funds are composed of:

1. Funds secured from Cosmos Proposal#917 (80,000 ATOM for 10 consecutive funding rounds);
2. Donation from AADAO (200,000 USDC for 10 consecutive funding rounds)
3. Donation from DoraHacks (100,000 USDC for 9 consecutive funding rounds, from Round 3 to Round 11).

For any questions, join our Discord or Telegram chat to find support.

Round 5 Timeline

Round 5 BUIDL Submission: By January 15th, 2025

BUIDL Review Period: January 15th - January 22nd, 2025

Project Demo & Campaign: January 22nd - February 3rd, 2025

Round 5 Contribution Period: November 15th, 2024 - February 3rd, 2025, at 3 PM UTC

Round 5 Cutoff time: February 3rd, 2025, at 3 PM UTC

Anti-sybil Attack Check & Result Announcement: February 3rd - February 10th

Round 6 kickoff time: February 3rd, 2025

During the community review period in each round, the grantee candidates will be announced and the community is invited to give feedback on them via the AEZ Quadratic Grant Community Review Portal. If any of the candidates is found ineligible for the grant during this period, it will be excluded, while feedback after this period will not be discussed for this round.

Notes:

1. Contributions made before the Round 5 Cutoff time (February 3rd, 2025, at 3 PM UTC) will impact the distribution of Round 5 matching fund pool; if made after the cutoff time, they will be counted for the next round and impact the distribution of Round 5 matching fund pool. The contribution portal for active grantees is permanently open.
2. All the approved BUIDLs in the previous round will still enter this round to be funded, as long as they’re Active BUIDLs. When a BUIDL stops updating or has received a major funding externally, it’ll be Archived.

Tracks

There will be no specific tracks given for hackers, instead, this Grant is all-embracing for every kind of solid project idea.

However, you still need to specify your project type in the project description section, such as what problem it solves, and what kind of users it serves.

How to Apply

Submit Your Application

Click the “Submit BUIDL” button above on the page to submit your project for application. You’ll be asked to connect your Keplr wallet before filling out a submission form. Please make sure the wallet you’re using is valid and available for receiving grant prizes and community contributions after the grant round.

Requirements for Applications

Must-haves

1. Active Github repos. (If your repo cannot be open source at the moment, please contact us via Telegram @dorahackofficial)
2. A video demo of your project, in no less than 1 minute.
3. Identification of the use of Cosmos Interchain ecosystem or infrastructure.

Nice-to-haves

1. More information of your team members.
2. Actual usable demo with frontend, if applicable
3. Smart contract address if this project has been deployed on any chain.

Grantee eligibility

1. Funding Threshold: Applicants must have received less than $1.5 million in total from venture capitals and previous grants.
2. Commercialization: Projects must not be commercialized or have tokens listed.
3. Ecosystem Focus: Projects must specifically contribute to the AEZ ecosystem.
4. Project Categories: There are no restrictions on project categories. Applications can be from either technical or non-technical projects.

Exit/Disqualification

1. Failure to Accomplish Commitment: Grantees who do not complete most tasks in their commitment may be unlisted from the grant program.
2. Community Review Failure: Candidates reported as ineligible during the Community Review Period and verified as true will be disqualified.
3. Major Fundraising: Grantees receiving additional funding that brings their total past $1.5 million must exit the AEZ Quadratic Grant.
4. Commercialization: Grantees that commercialize their project or list a token must exit and will be deemed no longer eligible for the program.

Community review

To keep the community informed about disputes and project progress, community members can submit and review disputes, and stay updated on project developments. During the BUIDL Community Review Period (Round 5: February 3rd, 2025, at 3 PM UTC), grantee candidates will be displayed, and the community is invited to provide feedback via the AEZ Quadratic Grant Community Review Portal.

Community should review from following aspects:

• Entry eligibility
• Project quality
• Project’s current/potential contribution to the ATOM ecosystem
• Feasibility of the commitment proposal

If any candidates are found ineligible during this period, they may be excluded. Feedback after this period will not be considered for this round.

Pioneer of QF Practice for Cosmos Ecosystem

What’s QF? Quadratic funding is an on-chain funding distribution mechanism based on the result of quadratic governance, an innovative governance scheme that is often considered an improvement of the traditional 1-person-1-vote or 1-dollar-1-vote model. With a quadratic voting algorithm, the power of each vote to a single project from a single contributor will decrease, which would prevent funding distribution from extreme preferences of whale voters.

For more details, please read Quadratic Funding&Voting Guide

As pioneers of QF implementation, Dora Factory and DoraHacks are the first (and maybe the only in a lot of senses) practitioners to support QF on both EVM and non-EVM compatible blockchains. In 2023, Dora Factory and DoraHacks brought the first QF round to the Cosmos by an Archway-native Quadratic Funding Round.

For more detailed information about QF, please check out this article, Building Effective On-Chain Governance Mechanisms: Examples of Quadratic Governance and Innovations from DoraHacks.

Contribute to Make an Impact on Important AEZ Public Goods!

Contribution portal for active grantees is always open. How to contribute>>

You can always make contributions (votes), whether there are upcoming quadratic funding rounds or not. Quadratic funding rounds will happen periodically. Your contributions will have an impact on the distribution of the next latest QF matching fund pool (and your contributions will be sent to the project you vote for directly). Here's how your contributions can make a difference:

1. Contribute before a Round Due Date: By contributing prior to the Round Due Date, your contributions will directly influence the distribution of the current Grant round.<br>

2. Contribute after a Round Due Date: If you contribute after a Round Due Date, your contributions will be recorded and will have an impact on the fund distribution in the subsequent funding round.

By actively participating in the Quadratic Funding Grant, you can play a vital role in shaping the future of the Cosmos community. Your contributions, regardless of their size, have the power to make a tangible impact on important AEZ public goods. Join us in building a brighter and more sustainable future for the Cosmos ecosystem.

Please check out Contribution Guide to learn how to support your favorite projects.

Dora Vota tokens may be asked for gas fees/tx fees when contributing. Please check out token details at CoinGecko . (You can always ask @dorahacksofficial via Telegram for gas fee support.)

Contact Us

1. How to contact DoraHacks team?

• Discord: https://discord.gg/gKT5DsWwQ5
• Telegram: https://t.me/dorahacksofficial

2. How do I get information about the progress of an event/BUIDL?

• Join DoraHacks Discord
• Subscribe to DoraHacks Twitter, Binance Live, Youtube