In 2021 Neo launched N3, the newest and most powerful version of the Neo blockchain development platform. Alongside the release, the Frontier Launchpad was initiated, calling on trailblazers to be the first to take advantage of Neo’s powerful features. Over 700 developers answered the call, sharing in over US $100,000 in prizes and $200,000 in post event funding.

With foundations firmly established, developers can now look towards the Polaris Launchpad for the next opportunity to join the growing Neo ecosystem. Just like the Northstar was a guide for travelers who would journey through the wilderness, the Polaris Launchpad can be seen as a guiding light for developers seeking a home on the Neo platform.

Polaris features five development categories representing the next wave of applications we would like to see come to life on N3. Neo is upping the ante, with a $442,500 prize pool and opportunities to receive further funding through Neo’s $200 million EcoBoost program.

These categories are:

• DeFi

• Metaverse & NFT

• DAO

• Middleware Incorporating NeoFS/Oracle

• General

As always, developers can expect to receive hands-on support from Neo’s global development community to help them bring their projects to life. Neo’s multi-language support provides a range of options, offering a choice between C#, Python, Go, or Java smart contacts. Developers can also take advantage of Neo N3’s full stack of native features, including the NeoFS distributed storage platform and oracles, along with best-in-class tooling.  

Learn about Neo’s features here.

Competition details

Highlights:

• Multiple phases: Planathon (optional), Hackathon

• $442,500 prize pool

• 5 x major prizes of $35,000 each + prize multipliers

• 15 x excellence awards of $8,000 each + prize multipliers

• Entry into a quadratic funding round

• Incubation opportunities to the best teams

Planathon 

March 7th - April 5th

Thomas Edison once said, “Good fortune is what happens when opportunity meets with planning.” Building on the fantastic response from Frontier Launchpad, we are once again kicking off our launchpad with a Planathon.

Before you get stuck into development, we want you to take some time to really flesh out your Polaris project. This includes evaluating the suitability of your ideas for blockchain, organizing a team, drafting a business plan, identifying delivery milestones, and so forth. We understand that what you develop during Polaris may only be just the beginning of something fantastic.

The teams with the best plans will win “multipliers” between 1.1x and 1.5x that will be applied to any prizes won at the conclusion of the Hackathon phase. For example, if your team wins a 1.5x multiplier and you win a grand prize of $35,000, you will actually receive $52,500.

Not only does crafting a project plan put you way ahead of your competition, it also increases your opportunity to earn! The average prize money won during the Frontier Launchpad was increased by over 42% for Planathon participants!

Further, Neo is actively looking for promising projects to incubate, so this is also a chance to put us on notice and show that you mean business. Short written feedback will be provided to all submissions.

Participants are not required to compete in the Planathon to make a submission in the Hackathon. However, teams that take part in the Planathon will also have the advantage of having their final submission judged against the background of their original plan. This may help judges evaluate the quality of your submission within the bigger picture of your project, and not just the features you were able to deliver within the competition time frame.

Finally, even if you do not win a multiplier in the Planathon, getting feedback on your ideas could be critical to adjusting your project concepts so you’re better positioned to win a Hackathon prize. 

Multipliers will be awarded to teams on April 11th.

So what are you waiting for? Get planning!

The Planathon submission form can be found here.

Hackathon 

April 12th - May 9th

Submissions for the Hackathon phase of the Polaris Launchpad open after the results of the Planathon have been announced. This is when you put your skills to the test and start building your project. 

If you need help getting started, visit Neo’s Developer Portal to find documentation, tutorials, and tooling options. If you haven’t already, please join the Neo Discord, where the Neo community (who is responsible for many of the tools you will be using) will be ready and waiting to provide support, advice, and encouragement. 

Submissions for the development phase close on May 9th. Our esteemed Polaris Launchpad judges will review all entries and announce the winners on May 30th.

$442,504 in prizes

• Concept & Feasibility
  What is your project’s concept and how is it designed to succeed or differentiate itself in the market? What is your project’s value proposition? If your project is revenue generating, what is the proposed revenue model?
• Project Design
  Does your project make good use of the Neo N3 blockchain and its features? Will your project architecture scale? Are interfaces well defined and thought through? How is your project designed to succeed?
• Project Implementation
  Is the project well implemented? Is it clean and effective in its goal? What level of functionality has been delivered? As submitted, how easy to use is the project? How well does the submitted project align with the concept and design?