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Web3 Development Platform Alchemy Adds Polkadot's Parachain Astar Network

Alchemy, a pioneer in the blockchain developer platform, announced that it would partner with Astar Network to accelerate Web3 development on Polkadot.

The collaboration will allow developers to use Alchemy’s powerful API to create complex applications that implement functionality not available on the Polkadot blockchain.

Alchemy also said that web3 developers could earn basic income through staking rewards, a native feature of Astar.

Rob Boyle, Head of Product at Alchemy, said: “Alchemy infrastructure makes it easier for developers to build any dApp with infinite scalability, accuracy and reliability. We’re thrilled to combine forces with Astar to foster an era of better Web3 building that will power the decentralized applications of tomorrow.”

Astar allows developers to interoperate with the Polkadot ecosystem, building dApps using EVM and WASM smart contracts via the Polkadot blockchain’s Cross Consensus Messages (XCM).

Alchemy, which runs 70% of its applications on the Ethereum blockchain, provides a new business model that revolves around decentralized finance (DeFi).

The blockchain startup has also been backed by big-name investors such as Jay-Z, Will Smith, and John Schwab, among others. Founded in 2017 by two Stanford University classmates, Nikil Viswanathan and Joe Lau, Alchemy has come a long way since.

Alchemy Snaps Up ChainShot as its First Acquisition

Blockchain infrastructure service provider, Alchemy has announced the acquisition of ChainShot, a crypto education platform to help complement its plethora of crypto-focused offerings.

Positioned to serve as a boost to Alchemy’s Web3.0 University offshoot, ChainShot, which currently offers live and instructor-led Ethereum developer boot camps, will take up a vital role in the broader Alchemy ecosystem.

As an infrastructure service provider, Alchemy has carved out a niche for itself and currently powers platforms like OpenSea, Maker, and Polygon with its Application Programming Interfaces (APIs). Alchemy’s APIs offer various functions ranging from node infrastructure, transaction history, and NFT functionality.

“As for the next steps, our goal is to make the integration of ChainShot’s programs and ours as smooth and seamless for students as possible,” said the statement. “We’re still ironing out how the pieces will come together, but one thing is certain: all of ChainShot’s course content that previously cost upwards of $3,000 will be 100% free.”

The Alchemy solution can be attributed to two innovators, Nikil Viswanathan and Joe Lau. The strength and value Alchemy offer have recently helped the startup onboard traditional companies, including Meta Platforms Inc, Shopify, and Adobe, in their Web3.0 pursuits.

ChainShot is the first acquisition that will be made by Alchemy thus far despite its robust and deep liquidity. In a funding round in April of this year, the company received $200 million from investors that Lightspeed Ventures and Silverlake led. The funding round earned Alchemy over $10 billion in valuation.

Alchemy’s acquisition is yet another show of the impressive use of funds in the digital currency ecosystem.

The acquisition of ChainShot will further solidify its divestment strategies, which generally complements its push to integrate as many blockchain protocols as possible. As reported earlier by Blockchain.News, Alchemy has been integrating Solana and Polkadot-based protocols, the latest of which is Astar Network.

Blockchain Startup Contribution Labs Raises $3M through Equity Sale

Web3-focused startup Contribution Labs has raised $3 million through an equity sale.

Alchemy-backed Contribution Labs is a California-based technology company in stealth mode. The company was founded in January 2022 by Catherine Chang, a former product manager at software company Atlassian, and Kei Yoshikoshi, a former engineer at Microsoft’s Azure blockchain.

Contribution Labs has raised $2,425,000 from two investors since the offering began on Aug 15, according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Unlike traditional financing methods, this fundraising involved a simple future equity agreement, or SAFE, where investors pay cash now for future equity in the company.

On its official website, entrepreneur Elad Gil, who has worked at Twitter and Google, is also listed as a major investor. Web3 infrastructure giant Alchemy’s venture capital is also on the list, while Mint Kudos appears in the investing section of Alchemy’s website.

However, the corresponding time and amount were not disclosed.

Alchemy is a pioneer in the blockchain developer platform.

The company also builds Kudos, a token platform based on the Polygon blockchain for appreciating other people’s work and living on the blockchain as a uniquely generated NFT through unique, peer-verified non-transferable token (NTT) Reward contributions.

The NTT token standard defines a set of standard APIs allowing the identification of statements (called badges) attributed to a public key, such that different dapps and smart contracts can use to filter users or to provide users with different badges and different experiences.

Alchemy has also recently announced the acquisition of ChainShot, a crypto education platform, to help complement its vast portfolio of crypto products.

The company’s near-term plans may include connecting the Kudos token to other blockchains, such as the Ethereum mainnet.

Web3 Hackathon on Astar sponsored by Toyota Motor Corporation

Tokyo, Japan, 1st February, 2023, Chainwire

Toyota Motor Corporation, Japan’s largest conglomerate with over 330,000 employees worldwide, is sponsoring its first ever global Web3 hackathon. It has chosen Astar Network, the smart contract platform for multichain, to make Web3 use cases for Toyota’s employees.

Toyota is looking to Web3 to support its vision of improving the company’s operations, and this online hackathon is an initial step in the process. Developers from around the world are invited to build an intra-company DAO support tool on the Astar Network that allows anyone to create teams, issue governance tokens, and vote without needing to understand the details of Web3.

Toyota could use the tools created during the hackathon to improve operational transparency and efficiency. Astar Network will provide the environment for developers and will also be responsible for product development support.

In recent years, managers in various companies have been burdened with workload due to an increase in business decision-making and team management. Both Astar Network and Toyota believe that we could manage projects as a DAO where the decision-making is distributed among participants. It will not only reduce the managers’ workload but also help team members have a greater impact on the company’s growth. That’s why the theme of this hackathon is developing a DAO support tool for companies.

Sota Watanabe, the Founder of Astar Network, said, “Needless to say, Toyota is the largest company in Japan and one of the world’s leading international companies. We are very excited to be hosting the Web3 Hackathon on Astar with Toyota. During the event, we aim to develop the first Proof-of-Concept DAO tool for Toyota’s employees. If a good tool is produced, Toyota employees will interact daily with Astar Network. Sometime in the future, I think we will see blockchain integrations in cars. Today, we are still in the exploratory stage, but very excited about the various possibilities.”

Individuals as well as teams of up to four developers have until Tuesday, February 14th to sign up for the Web3 Hackathon by Toyota. They will attend a kick-off event on February 25th and then have until March 18th to build their products. The first round of judging will take place on March 23rd, and groups that pass the first round will be able to participate in the pitch event on March 25th.

The hackathon is set to take place in the COSMIZE Event Hall, the first metaverse on the Astar Network. While Toyota Motor Corporation is the main sponsor, Astar Network and Web3 Foundation will be Sub-sponsors. HAKUHODO KEY3, a joint venture co-founded by Sota Watanabe and Japan’s 2nd largest advertising company HAKUHODO, is also a sponsor. HAKUHODO KEY3 develops Web3 services with clients while planning and managing Web3 hackathons.

Takumi Sano, the Board member of HAKUHODO KEY3, said, “We are very excited to see what new web3 services will be built under the sponsorship of Toyota Motor Corporation. This could be an important hackathon that will change the course of history. We look forward to your participation.”

Astar Foundation will provide $75,000 in the form of ASTR token for this hackathon while Web3 Foundation will sponsor it with $25,000. The combined $100,000 will be used to reward the winning projects chosen by Toyota, Astar Foundation, Web3 Foundation, Alchemy, and HAKUHODO KEY3.

Astar Network is the go-to Layer-1 blockchain for developers and companies building for the Japanese market. The government, enterprises, and Web3 solutions in Japan are actively working with Astar to bring together a global platform originating from Japan.

Over 70 decentralized applications have been built on Astar’s reliable blockchain since its mainnet launch in January 2022. Astar’s native token, ASTR, is already listed on Bitbank, one of the largest Japanese exchanges. This accessibility makes it easy for Japanese enterprises and startups to grow a Web3 business by developing applications and use cases on Astar Network.

About Astar Network

Astar Network supports the building of dApps with EVM and WASM smart contracts and offers developers true interoperability with cross-consensus messaging (XCM) and a cross-virtual machine (XVM). Astar’s unique Build2Earn model empowers developers to get paid through a dApp staking mechanism for their code and the dApps they build.

One of the first parachains to come to the Polkadot ecosystem, Astar is a vibrant network that is supported by all major exchanges and tier 1 VCs. Astar offers the flexibility of all Ethereum and WASM toolings for developers to start building their dApps. To accelerate growth on Polkadot and Kusama Networks, Astar SpaceLabs offers an Incubation Hub for top TVL dApps.For more information, visit: Website | Twitter | Discord | Telegram | GitHub | Reddit

Contact

Maarten Henskenspress@astar.network