ETHWaterloo announces Ethereum-focused hackathon aimed at building “the future of the decentralized Internet”

ETHWaterloo is hosting a three-day Ethereum-focused hackathon from October 13 to 15, according to a report from Communitech.

Taking place at the Centre for International Governance Innovation in Waterloo, the ETHWaterloo hackathon aims to give tech enthusiasts and developers the chance to be mentored by leaders working in blockchain technology, including Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin.

Liam Horne, the co-founder of ETHWaterloo, said the hackathon aims to push the boundaries of blockchain technology and “build the future of decentralized Internet.”

“There’s an enormous amount of attraction…in this space, and Ethereum itself has received a great amount of attention.”

“There’s just an enormous amount of attraction and interest in this space in general and Ethereum itself has received a great amount of attention, which is phenomenal,” said Horne, who also co-founded the Hack the North event at University of Waterloo in 2014. “More people now realize the potential of the technology, but what has not really been moving at the same pace…is just more developer interest.”

ETHWaterloo said it will invite over 60 teams to compete during the weekend. Participants at the hackathon will hear from speakers and present to judges including Buterin; Joseph Lubin, ‎founder at Consensus Systems; Jeff Coleman, ‎head of technology at Ledger Labs; William Mougayar, an author of The Business Blockchain, and others.

“My hope is that by running an event that directly attracts talented developers, and connects them with people like Vitalik and other key developers in the area, we can kind of convert, if you will, people to the technology and [encourage them to build] applications on top of it,” said Horne. “I think it’s one of the most interesting technologies I’ve ever stumbled across [and] I’ve been enthralled by it from day one. If I can do a small part in helping grow the ecosystem then that’s very exciting for me.”

In recent months, Canada’s tech ecosystem has seen a rise in interest in blockchain research and startups, with the launch of the Blockchain Research Institute and NextBlock Global. In May, Ted Livingston, CEO of Waterloo-based messaging company Kik also announced plans to roll out a cryptocurrency based on Ethereum, called Kin.

Applications for ETHWaterloo will open later this summer, but interested developers can sign up now here.