About the Hackathon
# **Introduction**
Let's get ready to build! Buidl Battle is a competition designed to celebrate and strengthen innovative projects built on Bitcoin. This three-week virtual event invites builders to put their projects in the spotlight, connect with investors and accelerators, and engage with other builders in the Bitcoin builder community.
During Buidl Battle, projects and builders will gain the spotlight and momentum to level up their work, while fresh talent will be welcomed into the ecosystem. Much more than a competition, Buidl Battle is a celebration and a launching point for the next wave of Bitcoin builders 🚀🚀
Questions? Get in touch through our [Skool group.](https://www.skool.com/stackers/about)
# **Submission Requirements**
- Submit your project via **DoraHacks** and ensure it is listed in the **BUIDL Gallery**.
- Projects must include a GitHub repo, a working demo, and a pitch video (< 5 mins)
- **Buidl Battle will have a single judging round**, with evaluation structured as follows:
- **All Buidls:** Projects will be reviewed by **Stacks Labs**, alongside a selected group of **investors, grant funds, and accelerator leads**.
- **Bounties:** Bounty prizes will be judged independently by the **relevant bounty leads** from participating projects.
# **Timeline**

# **Competition Structure**
There are two components to Build Battle: the main hackathon and bounties.
The main hackathon is open submission, meaning you can build whatever you want as long as it uses Stacks.
For the main hackathon, we’ll have a panel of judges with varying expertise to get a well-rounded vie of your project. There is one round of judging and judges will select first, second, and third place.
In addition to to the main hackathon, there are three bounties of $3,000 each up for grabs.
Anyone is eligible for a bounty, including if you win one of the top three spots in the main hackathon. Bounties will be centered around specific themes and an expert in that particular theme will select one winner per bounty.
Specific bounty themes will be announced soon.
All winners will be announced March 31st.
# **Prizes**
## **$20,000 in total prizes are available for this competition!**
Below is the breakdown of the prizing structure for the main hackathon and the bounties.
## Main Hackathon
- 1st Place - $6,000
- 2nd Place - $3,000
- 3rd Place - $ 2,000
## **Bounties**
$3,000 across 3 bounties, to be announced before hackathon start date.
## **Bonus Prizing**
In addition to any monetary rewards, the **top three projects** from Buidl Battle will receive continued ecosystem support designed to help turn their Buidl into a real, production-ready product.
This includes:
- An **introduction to the Stacks Endowment**, providing guidance on potential funding pathways and long-term ecosystem support.
- A **1:1 working session with Stacks Labs**, focused on project progress, technical direction, and next steps for continuing to build within the Stacks ecosystem.
These sessions are intended to be practical and forward-looking — helping teams refine their roadmap, identify gaps, and understand how to move from hackathon project to real-world deployment.
This bonus support is designed to accelerate serious teams beyond the hackathon and deeper into the Stacks ecosystem.
# **Judging Criteria**
The panel of judges will evaluate and select the best project 3 projects. Each Bounty will have a dedicated judge that is an expert in that field to choose a single winner.
Projects will be evaluated based on:
1. **Innovation**: Uniqueness of approach and creative problem-solving
2. **Technical Implementation**: Code quality, security considerations, and technical depth
3. **Stacks Alignment**: How well the solution leverages Stacks’ unique properties and utilizes components of Stacks technology, such as Clarity, sBTC, Proof of Transfer, stacks.js, or any dev tooling. Projects can also utilize other protocols within the Stacks ecosystem, such as Bitflow, USDCx, etc.
4. **User Experience**: Accessibility for both crypto-native and mainstream users
5. **Impact Potential**: Projected contribution to the Stacks ecosystem
# **Who can apply?**
- This competition is for all builders! We warmly invite community members, developers, researchers, and scientists to collaborate and contribute to these exciting initiatives.
- Whether you have your own idea you want to build, want to pursue some of the sponsored challenges, or both! This competition is intended to be a launching point for anyone looking to get started building on Bitcoin.
# **Contact us**
If you have questions before or during the competition, we encourage you to join the [Skool](https://www.skool.com/stackers/about).