Grants for voting neurons

Governance NNS Governance
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69

Thanks @lara. These are some nice improvements to the grant program. Thank you for considering the impact to larger teams.

Would you mind clarifying two details:

  1. Does the larger team need to be approved for all 4 topics in order to qualify for the team grant? Or can the team apply for fewer topics?

  2. If a larger team is selected for one of the topics, does that team take up one of the two open slots for that topic? Or is there still an opportunity to have a larger team selected plus 2 individual/smaller team grantees. (I hope it the latter so we have more people involved).

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70

Thanks for the questions!

  1. The same as for the smaller grants: Any applicant (no matter if individual / small team or larger team) should apply for individual topics and the community will decide for each topic the top 2. This means that any application can state all or just a few of the topics and can be chosen for just a subset of the topics they applied to. In the case this is an application for a team grant, the grant will just mean something else (be larger). Does this make sense?

  2. Yes, for now the idea is that a team grant is treated like another grant and takes one of the two open spots.

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71

Thanks @lara. This makes sense. I do wish that more than 2 positions were offered for each topic, but at least this is a starting point.

Iā€™m sure that CodeGov will apply as a team for IC-OS Version Election and for Protocol Canister Management since those are topics where we have experience. I think we are capable of Participant Management & Node Admin as well as Subnet Management, but we need to discuss internally if our team members will be willing to review those topics. It might also be an opportunity to seek additional people to join the CodeGov team in order to cover these topics according to the requirements of the grant program. We will apply soon. Thank you for extending the deadline.

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I havenā€™t had much time in the last two weeks, but I finally had the opportunity to sit down and properly evaluate this proposal. Iā€™d like to share my feedback from two perspectives: as a non-tech team member and as a neuron holder.

Team Member Perspective:

As a non-technical team member, Iā€™ve developed a basic understanding to navigate this space. After months working on the communication side for CodeGov, Iā€™ve come to appreciate the significant effort required to review proposals like this. This task demands deep knowledge and experience, which is essential for maximizing voting rewards for everyone involved.

Beyond technical reviews, effective branding and community engagement are crucial. Keeping the community informed about behind-the-scenes activities and the impact of proposals on user experience is a full-time job. This involves reading through forums, preparing content calendars, responding to inquiries, and more. Many developers may not have the time or interest to handle these tasks, especially as most do this as a side hustle in addition to their day jobs.

To build a reliable named neuron and shift away from Dfinity, a structured organization is needed where developers focus on development and communicators handle community engagement. I discuss this in more detail in my article on Nuance.

Neuron Holder Perspective:

I joined this ecosystem in May 2021 after seeing ICPā€™s vision and long-term roadmap. I hold an 8-year non-dissolving neuron since mid-July 2021. Over the years, Iā€™ve adjusted my following parameters to balance maximizing rewards and ensuring my voting power aligns with my values, while also aiming to decentralize away from Dfinity.

However, with the proposed structure, a concern arises: if the community votes for teams/reviewers Iā€™m unfamiliar with, Iā€™ll need to research them. What if they donā€™t meet my standards or share my values? In such cases, Iā€™d likely revert to following Dfinity, which defeats the proposalā€™s purpose.

Even if I find a team I agree with, thereā€™s no guarantee they will continue long-term if they lose funding. This instability means Iā€™d constantly need to research new teams, leading me to default back to Dfinity for consistency. As a neuron holder, I seek stability, and this proposal doesnā€™t ensure that from my understanding.

While the proposed structure encourages more people to take on review tasks, it doesnā€™t guarantee long-term performance for these new teams. For neuron holders, stability and reliability are key. If I need to spend a week researching applicants every six months, I might as well stick with Dfinity, which is counterproductive to the proposalā€™s goal.

I donā€™t have a clear solution, as balancing decentralization and long-term stability is challenging. As mentioned in my Nuance article, I advocate for more structured organizations like CodeGov, which excels in detailed technical reviews and, hopefully, in community engagement as well.

I hope this feedback helps those working on this proposal find the right balance, ensuring teams can perform long-term with each member focusing on their strengths. This would bring stability and reliability for neuron holders, without overburdening individuals with tasks outside their interests.

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This feedback is very sincere and insightful, respect!

Regular payment may result in hiding learning resources and unfair competition, I have recommendation 3 as below.

Adopting an individual/team milestone-based incentive mechanism:

Instead of fixed monthly compensation, one-time rewards would be provided based on the completion of milestone tasks. The milestone tasks could include the number of review tasks completed, the number of consecutive review tasks completed (to ensure the continuity of contributions), the number of serious issues identified, and Dfinity developer satisfaction levels.

This approach can effectively incentivize the review personnelā€™s enthusiasm, while not affecting the openness of the shared training resources and fairness between collaboration.

74

Yeah, it doesnā€™t add any incentive to follow anyone except DFINITY.

75

Hey everyone,

I wanted to chime in and leave some additional information about this initiative.

After the deadline to apply for this program (July 31st), we will need some time to collect the applications and submit them for voting to the NNS. We plan on submitting the proposals during the week of August 12-16.

The terms and conditions outlined here apply to the grants for voting neurons. Please familiarize yourself with them and ensure you are eligible before applying.

Have a great day :slight_smile:

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Hey @lara and ICP community,

I would like Aviate Labs to be considered for the Participant Management & Node Admin Team grant. In the past year, Iā€™ve engaged with many of you mainly within the community of ICP Node Providers, but for those of you who I havenā€™t met yet:

My name is Louise Velayo, and I am applying on behalf of Aviate Labs.

About Aviate Labs and Our Team

Aviate Labs: Website | Twitter | Linkedin | Github

Louise Velayo: Twitter | LinkedIn | GitHub

Quint Daenen: Twitter | LinkedIn | GitHub

Roald Parmentier: Twitter | Linkedin

Relevant Experience

  • Aviate Labs has over 3 years of experience managing nodes for one of the largest node providers on the IC since its genesis.
  • Aviate Labs developed and open-sourced a notification service for node providers, which we also host for free so all Node Providers can easily sign up and receive alerts.
  • Aviate Labs has collaborated with DFINITY to test initial runbooks/builds and troubleshoot bugs.
  • Aviate Labs has an ongoing grant for building a notification service based on public node metrics and plans to apply for future grants to further develop a platform for Node Providers.
  • I organized the first Node Provider ICP Lab, bringing together over 20 node providers to discuss process changes and future developments, and I serve as the community lead of the Node Provider Working Group.
  • Quint Daenen has over 6 years of professional software development experience and 3+ years developing on the IC, contributing various Motoko packages used by other IC projects.

Technical Knowledge

  • Aviate Labsā€™ Projects:
    • Autonomous Asset - A framework where digital assets can be fully sovereign on the IC. In the usecase developed in collaboration with Nodenaysteen (art gallery in gent), the file of the digital artwork, frontend and backend are hosted on a canister.
    • Node Monitor - A free hosted notification service that sends Node Providers dail status reports on their nodes as well as alerts as soon as their nodes go down.
  • Quint Daenen developed a Golang agent for the IC as part of a grant.

Motivation for Becoming a Voting Neuron

Our motivation stems from our early involvement in the IC since its genesis. We believe it is essential for Aviate Labs to play a more active role in governance, particularly in participant management, to ensure that node providers are properly onboarded, as they are crucial to the ICā€™s infrastructure. Given our track record of contributions and the insights weā€™ve gained from being deeply involved in this part of the ecosystem, we believe that the responsibility of being a voting neuron best leverages our expertise and experience.

Need for Grant Funding

Our team is fully dedicated to the IC, focusing on two primary activities: developing a support model and platform for node providers and collaborating with various clients to implement their projects on the IC. This commitment inevitably limits our time and resources for governance activities. Securing grant funding would enable us to allocate additional hours to actively vote and conduct necessary checks for node provider applications. Moreover, it would allow us to create an objective evaluation process for candidate NPs/DCs and other node administration-related proposals. This funding is crucial for us to ensure a robust and well-governed IC ecosystem, leveraging our expertise and dedication to its growth and stability.

Long-term Interest in ICP

Our business activities are deeply intertwined with ICP. Our mission, particularly with our node provider-focused initiative, is to streamline node management and facilitate scalability, positioning the ICP infrastructure to compete with web2 giants. Acting maliciously would undermine our efforts and jeopardize our future in the industry, as it would deter potential collaborators and partners from working with us.

Interest in Participant Management & Node Admin

Having engaged with numerous prospective and operational node providers, we have gained both the practical and technical understanding necessary for these types of proposals. Thus, our interest stems from the experience we have built in this domain. Additionally, our active participation in the Node Provider Working Group and other discussions provides us with valuable insights and the confidence to vote on these matters effectively.

Commitment to Long-term Voting

We will continue to serve as a voting neuron even after the grant period, as our support and tool development for node providers require a well-organized, decentralised, and growing community. By understanding the profiles of entities interested in becoming node providers and the common administrative tasks they need to perform through proposals, we can develop better tools to support them effectively.

Voting Principles

Our primary voting principle is to adhere strictly to decentralization principles. This currently involves voting in accordance with the community-agreed target topology. Future voting will align with the communityā€™s conclusions from ongoing discussions about adapting to the target topology, improving KYC for Node Providers and data centers, and decentralizing the onboarding process for node providers.

We are excited about the opportunity to contribute to the ICP community in a more structured and impactful way. Thank you for considering our application :pray:

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Hello, IC Community. I hope everyone had a restful and enjoyable weekend.

  • We want to apply for the Protocol Canister Management, Participant Management & Node Admin, and Subnet Management topics.

  • Not applying for a team grant.

  • My name is Zohaib from Aegis Finance. My accounts are GitHub, LinkedIn, and X.

  • Our team consists of two devs (me and Kashif).

  • I have done my Bachelors in Computer Science. I have 4 years of experience as a Software Engineer and 2 years of experience as a Blockchain Analyst.

  • To demonstrate our technical expertise in Internet Computer (IC) development, we present InheritX, an application built under the AegisFinance umbrella. Currently live on the IC Mainnet, InheritX serves as a testament to our capabilities. Our team is actively developing additional features for AegisFinance, including an Insurance Contract (anticipated mid-August), an Options Contract, and a ready-to-deploy Staking module. We are committed to expanding the platformā€™s functionality.

  • As a software developer with years of experience building on the Internet Computer, I am eager to contribute to governance discussions and initiatives. I aspire to become a Known Neuron named Aegis Finance.

  • Evaluation of governance proposals necessitates substantial time and resources to ensure informed decision-making. Securing the grant would enable us to allocate additional hours exclusively to governance matters.

  • Based on my experience as a Blockchain Analyst, ICP demonstrates significant potential to rival traditional infrastructures. As such, I advocate for the utilization of ICP as the foundational platform for developing decentralized, sustainable businesses and real-world applications.

  • I am keen to contribute to these topics due to their critical role in shaping the ICP ecosystemā€™s growth and security. My experience directly aligns with these areas, enabling me to make informed and responsible voting decisions.

  • I have expressed my intention to persist in governance-related activities post-grant. My decision to participate in the voting process is directly influenced by the interests of our followers.

  • My voting principles emphasize transparency where all governance processes and decision-making within the DAO are transparent and inclusivity by encouraging active participation from all members of the DAO, ensuring that every voice is heard and every vote counts.

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Hi @lara and ICP community,

My name is Wenzel Bartlett, founder of CodeGov. This is our formal application for the Grants for Voting Neurons program offered by DFINITY.

TL;DR

We have decided to apply for all four team grant opportunities, which includes IC-OS Version Election, Protocol Canister Management, Subnet Management, and Participant Management & Node Admin. The CodeGov team has been reviewing and voting independently on technical NNS proposals for over a year. We hope to continue making an impact on the decentralization of NNS governance through funding from this program. We are a larger team of developers from the ICP community who have the skills to provide an educated evaluation of proposal details, document their findings, and a willingness to vote reliably on every proposal. There are 8 reviewers on our team along with a marketing manager and a project manager.

CodeGov

Details about the CodeGov organization including our manifesto, team members, and known neuron configuration can always be found on our website at codegov.org. The configuration of the CodeGov known neuron is actively managed to ensure that Followees for each proposal topic are selected who are fully committed and available to perform detailed reviews within 48 hours proposal creation. The CodeGov known neuron vote is cast automatically by consensus of our reviewers who are configured as Followees for the topics in which we specialize. In the rare event that we cannot reach consensus automatically due to unforeseen circumstances, then vote for the CodeGov neuron is cast manually based on feedback from the reviewers who have been able to complete their review the proposal within this timeframe. Hence, we always strive to complete our reviews as soon as possible and well before DFINITY votes.

The CodeGov neuron owns the minimal amount of voting power required to participate in NNS governance, but we trigger 5-6% total voting power in the NNS for the topics that we cover. Hence, the voting power that we trigger is 100% provided by other neurons who have chosen to follow us on these topics. This is a great honor and a heavy responsibility that we take very seriously. It inspires us to perform our due diligence on every proposal and reminds us that our work has been making a difference to the NNS governance community.

In addition to participation in NNS voting, we also have a CodeGov WTN neuron that votes on WaterNeuron proposals. WaterNeuron is a liquid staking protocol built on ICP that owns very large 6 month and 8 year neurons and enables WTN token owners to cast the votes for these large NNS neurons. CodeGov participates in the WTN governance process because it is open to the community and has a growing influence on NNS governance. We have built a vote relay canister that automatically casts the same vote on WTN NNS proposals that CodeGov already casts on NNS proposals. The WaterNeuron team recently announced that it is following the CodeGov WTN neuron on the WTN proposal topic called ā€œVote on NNS Proposalsā€. This is another honor, privilege, and responsibility that demonstrates the positive impact that CodeGov has been making on the ICP community.

IC-OS Version Election

CodeGov reviewers have over a year of experience reviewing IC-OS Version Election proposals and we have 6 reviewers who are dedicated to continuing that effort if we are awarded the grant for this topic. These reviewers include @Lorimer @ZackDS @Zane @cyberowl @hpeebles @ilbert. There are many examples of prior reports that our reviewers have posted that can be found in our IC-OS Version Election channel in our CodeGov community on OpenChat, which is a strong demonstration of our qualifications on this topic.

Protocol Canister Management

We have 2 months of experience reviewing System Canister Management proposals, which includes all canisters that are included in the new topic titled Protocol Canister Management. We have 5 reviewers who are dedicated to continuing that effort if we are awarded the grant for this topic. These reviewers include @ZackDS @Zane @cyberowl @LaCosta @timk11. There are many examples of prior reports that our reviewers have posted that can be found in our System Canister Management channel in our CodeGov community on OpenChat, which is a strong demonstration of our qualifications on this topic.

Participant Management & Node Admin

We have decided to apply for the Participant Management & Node Admin grant because we have 4 reviewers who are willing to review these topics if we are awarded the grant. They are already gaining experience on these proposal topics by performing reviews on a few past proposals and all current proposals. Based on this experience and our evaluation of the difficulty / effort required to perform these reviews, we believe we have the skill and capacity required. Our reviewers will include @ZackDS @LaCosta @timk11 @Cris.MntYetti. You can see the reports of our reviewers in our Participant Management channel and our Node Admin channel in our CodeGov community on OpenChat, which we offer as evidence of our qualifications on this topic.

Subnet Management

We have decided to apply for the Subnet Management grant because we have 3 reviewers who are willing to review this topic if we are awarded the grant. They are already gaining experience on this proposal topic by performing reviews on a few past proposals and all current proposals. Based on this experience and our evaluation of the difficulty / effort required to perform these reviews, we believe we have the skill and capacity required. Our reviewers will include @ZackDS @LaCosta @timk11. You can see the reports of our reviewers in our Subnet Management channel in our CodeGov community on OpenChat, which we offer as evidence of our qualifications on this topic.

One of our team members and regular IC-OS Version Election reviewers, @Lorimer, is keen to maximize the funded time that he can allocate to Subnet Management proposals. Therefore, he is planning to submit a separate application for this topic as an individual reviewer. He will provide more context in his application, but please note that he has the full support of the CodeGov project to pursue the grant for this topic on his own. He is a very strong candidate for this grant.

Voting Principles

While the teams listed above is our current plan to staff these reviews for any proposal topic where we are awarded a grant, we reserve the right to change these teams and our known neuron Followee configuration as needed. We will actively manage our team membership in a way that ensures we have skilled reviewers dedicated to each topic who can make the time and resource commitment to these reviews for the duration of the grant program. Hence, if anyone needs to drop out for personal reasons or because they are not in compliance with the grant requirements or our CodeGov team standards, then we will recruit and train others to fill their spots. We also may add additional team members as needed to ensure that we are able to fulfill our commitment to these proposal topics in the most reliable way possible. Performing technical reviews of NNS proposals is real work that requires skilled developers who are dedicated to the task every week. It can only be accomplished reliably with adequate funding that developers are willing to accept. Our reviewers are asked to review each proposal for technical correctness and compliance with established work processes defined by the NNS community and/or DFINITY and to vote on each proposal with their own convictions. They are expected to explain and defend their vote, but to always remain diplomatic and civilized in how they make their case. The fact that we have a larger team provides a safety in numbers where individual reviewers can have an opinion that differs from the rest of the reviewers, which provides an opportunity to raise awareness of differing opinions. Having a larger team enables us to be flexible in our organizational structure and work processes to ensure we are a reliable known neuron to follow on any proposal topic. We have spent a lot of time trying to gain experience and credibility as reviewers of technical NNS proposals and one of our goals is continuous improvement.

Final Remarks

Thank you for the opportunity to apply for these grants. Whether or not we get some or all the grants, CodeGov will remain committed to supporting decentralization of the NNS through active participation in governance. Our neuron will always be configured to follow people and organizations in the ICP community who have publicly announced that they are committed to being reliable and educated Followees on any proposal topic. We will not follow anyone who pencil whips their vote or casts automatic yes or no votes without first making a concerted effort to review technical details and vote with an educated opinion. If we cannot find suitable Followees for a specific topic, then of course we will follow DFINITY on that topic. DFINITY is an appropriate Followee for any topic because they offer an educated and active voice on all NNS changes. However, if decentralization is our goal, then CodeGov is here as an option to help enable the ICP community to move in that direction.

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Greetings @lara and ICP community members.

We are interested in being considered for 1. Participant Management & Node Admin ii. Subnet Management neuron grants as ICP Hub South Africa.

We are NOT applying for a ā€œTeam Grantā€

ICP Hub South Africa Socials

Website | Twitter | LinkedIn | Telegram | Github

Team

Relevant Experience

Confidence Nyirenda is a dedicated software developer and entrepreneur who has been actively involved with the Internet Computer. As the founder of Tswaanda Africa, a project that has received a grant from Dfinity, he is committed to driving the adoption and understanding of Internet Computer technology in southern Africa. His role as an educator has been crucial in expanding the reach and impact of this innovative technology across the region. With more than six years of experience in the blockchain space, Confidence has developed a deep understanding of the technology and its applications. He has been instrumental in building and nurturing communities around blockchain, fostering collaboration and growth. In addition to his development work, Confidence also holds an active voting neuron on the NNS

Myself, Enoch Chirima, I am a Software Developer with four years of experience and 2 years of experience developing on the Internet Computer. Also a DevRel and Lead Bootcamp and Hackathons Instructor at ICP Hub South Africa and has experience in Motoko, Rust, TypeScript, Python, Solidity, and other languages. I have worked and consulted on multiple projects on the Internet Computer including Tswaanda Africa, agriiDao, and ICPuzzles . I also contributed to the IC WebSockets by creating the Motoko implementation examples.

Technical Knowledge

  1. Confidence and I are developers and have been deeply involved in ICP for about 2 years, we have built and contributed to multiple projects on the Internet Computer.

  2. We have run successful boot camps and hackathons in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Zambia. We are currently incubating six projects being built on the Internet Computer that originated from the hackathons we conducted.

Motivation for Becoming a Voting Neuron

  1. As an ICP Hub we feel itā€™s very important for us to contribute in as much as we can to the decentralization and progression of ICP, joining the governance process as a voting neuron enables us to achieve that.
  2. The goals of the ICP align closely with our mission as an ICP Hub. We are dedicated to supporting and initiating projects that bolster the ICP ecosystem, ensuring that our objectives and efforts contribute to the protocolā€™s strength and sustainability.

Why do we need the grant funding

  • Grant funding is essential for us to allocate more time and resources to the review process and voting. With this support, we can increase our teamā€™s capacity, dedicate more hours to these crucial tasks, and potentially expand our team by bringing in additional reviewers. This will enhance the quality and efficiency of our work.

Our Long-Term Interest in ICP:

  • As a hub, all our activities are deeply involved and align with ICPā€™s goals. We are dedicated to expanding ICP in Africa. Our long-term goals depend on the success of the ICP ecosystem because we help startups and companies build on ICP. The growth and success of ICP directly impact our mission and vision for the future.

Interest in Participant Management & Node Admin and Subnet Management:

  • We have decided to apply for the Participant Management & Node Admin and the Subnet Management grants because we have the relevant experience to review these topics effectively. This involvement will also help us gain more knowledge about the protocolā€™s architecture.
  • Since our team is not very large, we are looking to start with something that wonā€™t require too much time but still allows us to contribute meaningfully.

Long-term participation as a neuron

  • At ICP Hub South Africa, our long-term interest is rooted in our commitment to advancing ICP. Our activities, including boot camps, hackathons, start-up incubations and community building, are aligned with ICPā€™s goals. We believe that the growth and success of the ICP ecosystem directly impact our mission to support projects/startups and companies building on ICP, driving innovation and economic development in the region so we are certain our contributions as a hub will continue even after the grants.

Voting Principles for Our Hub

  • Our commitment includes voting on at least 90% of proposals, providing clear explanations for our decisions, and sharing detailed reports and evidence on the forum.
  • We ensure each team member has fully understood and is in sync with the final decisions and critically analyzing and addressing all different opinions.
  • We ensure that each proposal is reviewed for technical correctness and compliance by skilled team members who are committed to the task for when we consider adding additional reviewers.
    Thank you :pray:t5:
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Hello @lara and the whole ICP Community.

My name is Josip Vlah and I am a Hub Lead for ICP HUB BULGARIA. Together with Boyan Klisurov, Founder of ICP COMMUNITY Bulgaria we would like to be considered for the:

  1. Participant Management & Node Admin Grant

  2. Subnet Management Grant.

In the past year we as a Hub together with our partners within the Balkan region have been in charge of creating, establishing and incubating renowned projects within the ICP ecosystem as well as fostering numerous relationships with developer communities.

We are applying as a standalone grant (Not Team)

About us and the Team Behind it:

ICP HUB BULGARIA: Website | Twitter | LinkedIn

ICP COMMUNITY BULGARIA: Facebook

Josip Vlah (Hub Lead): Twitter | LinkedIn | GitHub
Boyan Klisurov: Twitter | LinkedIn | GitHub

Experience:

Technical Knowledge & References.

Our Vision & Why to be a Voting Neuron?

Our involvement in the ICP ecosystem has been both professional and personal since its early days. Through our work with ICP HUB BULGARIA and ICP COMMUNITY BULGARIA, we have established a significant presence in the region, which has emerged as a key Web3 hub and education community in the Balkans. Given this strong foundation, we are excited about the opportunity to become a voting neuron for ICP. This role would allow us to delve deeper into the governance of the Internet Computer, focusing on both participant and subnet management to further advance the protocol.

Why Participant Management, Node Admin & Subnet Management

With our extensive experience in the ICP ecosystem, we believe our well-crafted insights and feedback on proposals can significantly impact the IC ecosystem, particularly in the areas mentioned above.

Furthermore, as a HUB for the Bulgarian region, we have organically cultivated a vibrant community, led by Boyan, that includes both users and developers actively engaging with the network. This community, centered around Internet Computer Bulgaria, is eager to grow and develop within the ecosystem, embracing every aspect, including the technical ones. By becoming a voting neuron, we aim to strengthen this community and contribute to the transparent and democratic model that the Internet Computer network upholds.

Long Term Interest:

For the last year and a half we have successfully created and established a strong footing dedicated towards ICP within the balkan region and we will continue to do so through our accelerator cohorts, partnerships as well as governance voting.

We are dedicated to supporting the ecosystemā€™s growth and governance during the duration of the grant period and beyond.

Why the need of funding?

Our team has been dedicated to advancing the IC ecosystem, with a central focus on establishing ICP HUB Bulgaria as the premier Web3 hub in the Balkan region. This initiative requires significant effort and hours from our diverse team, encompassing marketing, event organization, incubation, and business development.

However, this dedication to our primary objectives has constrained our ability to engage actively in governance roles within the Network Nervous System (NNS). This funding would enable us to allocate resources towards key areas such as participant management, node administration, and subnet management. With this support, we can enhance our contributions to the NNS and actively participate in the community, ensuring a balanced and sustained growth for both ICP HUB Bulgaria and the broader IC ecosystem.

Voting Principle.

Our vision for voting principles centers on transparency, decentralization, and thorough elaboration. Each of our votes will be accompanied by detailed feedback and a clear explanation of the outcome, ensuring all stakeholders within the ecosystem are well-informed and everything is shared transparently across forums and designated channels.

Thank you for taking the time to read our proposal and consider our application. We would be honored to have the opportunity to further advance the ecosystem.

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Proposals, like governance in general, should be (a) going in a direction the community thinks is good and (b) should actually achieve their stated aims. Those are really different types of checks. ā€œDoes it do what it says on the tinā€ isnā€™t well served by a popular vote, itā€™s something for the mavens out there. But, yes, even that army of mavens needs to be decentralized somehow.

Case study: In Switzerland the governance system involves a lot of ā€œpoliticians need to make concrete proposals, then there is a long time of due diligenceā€ and I think it does a fairly good job of filtering out populist sound-bytes. Far from perfect, there are plenty of campaigns based on fear-mongering but I feel that this ā€œput your cards on the table and let us examine themā€ helps to keep it in check.

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Hi @lara and Everyone,

I am Manvick, founder of Zenith Code LLC, and my team are excited to apply for the ā€œIC OS Version Electionā€ grant. We have been actively involved in the IC community since mid 2022. We have in-depth knowledge of creating dapps on ICP including but not limited to writing smart contracts in Motoko and architecting/designing multi canister apps on ICP. We are also a node provider on the ICP network.

Node Provider: https://dashboard.internetcomputer.org/provider/pa5mu-yxsey-b4yrk-bodka-dhjnm-a3nx4-w2grw-3b766-ddr6e-nupu4-pqe

About Zenith Code and Our Team

Team Members and relevant experience:

  • Manvick

    • Software Engineer by background with over 8+ years of experience in large scale Distributed systems and applications with 5+ years of experience in blockchain technologies.
    • Actively worked on Nutanix distributed software defined storage and I was responsible for designing and developing the service which provided deduplication, data resilience, and fault tolerance in the node cluster.
    • Education: Masterā€™s in Computer Science from Texas State University, USA
    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/manvick-paliwal-67441676/

  • Ipsita Parida

  • Harsh Patni (Ex Microsoft Software Engineer)

  • Yuvika Khardenavis

  • Vishal Kumar

    • 8+ years of experience leading software development teams in agile frameworks over various technology stacks.
    • Education: Masterā€™s in Computer Science from Texas State University, USA
    • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vishalkumarmg/

  • Yamini K

Application Details

Topic(s) we Apply For:

  1. IC OS Version Election
  2. Protocol Canister Management

Team Grant:
Yes

Size of our Team:
6 members

Relevant Experience and Technical Knowledge

  • Operating nodes for several months on ICP (Zenith Code LLC).
  • Relevant experience in installing IC OS and monitoring nodes.
  • Strong understanding of the ICP infrastructure layer.
  • As a development shop in the ecosystem, we have assisted various projects in setting up their proof of concept and MVP.
  • Actively contributed to writing dapps in Motoko for in-house purposes.
  • Over 7 years of experience in web3 and large-scale distributed systems.
  • ICP enthusiast with a deep understanding of its core technology and architecture.
  • Experience in designing large-scale distributed systems for storing user data across multiple nodes in RF-2 and RF-3 production clusters.
  • Worked on the design and development of NDFS (Nutanix Distributed File Storage), similar to Google File System and blockchain data storage.

Why we Want to Be a Voting Neuron

  • By becoming a voting neuron we want to contribute towards decentralization of the ICP network.
  • We believe we have the right skill set to evaluate the proposals and vote on them.
  • We want to become a leading voting neuron with the capability of reviewing other governance proposals in the future.

Why We Need the Grant

We have been working full-time jobs and working part time on IC, and the grant will help us get one step closer to contributing full-time to the IC community. With Zenith Code, We plan to expand, add more nodes, develop large-scale distributed DAO products, and add significant value to the IC community.

Long-Term Interest in ICP

We are fascinated by ICP technology and its long-term goals of creating a community cloud infrastructure. This vision, if realized, will add immense value globally and reduce dependence on major cloud players like AWS and GCP in the market. Zenith Code is also a stakeholder and long term node provider in the IC ecosystem.

Interest in the Topics Applied For

We are interested in applying for

  1. IC OS Version Election.
  2. Protocol Canister Management.

We have expertise in large scale distributed systems, particularly distributed software-defined storage, cryptography, and web3.

Long-Term Commitment as a Voting Neuron

As an existing node provider in the IC ecosystem, we are committed to the long-term growth of the IC network. This commitment is driven by both personal interests and a broader vision of making the world a better place by contributing in the development of public cloud infrastructure.

Voting Principles

Core Principle: Decentralization

  • Definition and Relevance: The Nakamoto Coefficient measures the number of entities that must collude to control a system. A higher coefficient signifies greater decentralization and, consequently, a more secure and resilient network.
  • Application to Voting: Applying this principle to voting within the IC ecosystem, we emphasize the need for a diverse and decentralized set of voters to prevent centralization and ensure fair representation of the communityā€™s interests.

Ensuring Robust Decentralization

  • Diverse Voting Participation: By adhering to decentralization principles, our voting approach aligns with the IC community and foundation. This means advocating for broad participation across various stakeholders to avoid power concentration.

Evolving with Community Decisions

  • Adaptive Voting Strategy: Our commitment to evolving voting strategies based on community discussions reflects a dynamic approach to maintaining and enhancing decentralization. We plan to formalize a process in which we will actively listen to community inputs and adapt our voting accordingly.
  • Continuous Improvement: By aligning future voting with community conclusions on decentralization, our approach ensures that the network remains resilient to centralization risks, analogous to maintaining a high Nakamoto Coefficient.

We are eager to contribute to the ICP community in a structured and impactful way. Thank you for considering our application. :pray:

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Hi, my nameā€™s Alex Lorimer. Iā€™m an experienced full-stack Web2 developer who discovered the IC within the last year. Iā€™d like to formally register my application as a Subnet Management proposal reviewer. Iā€™m a member of Synapse and CodeGov, and also regularly review TAGGR releases (when I have the time).

This activity is evident by checking any one of the IC-OS releases over the last few months. My activity is also evident on TAGGR, and has involved identifying a Severity 1 bug among other contributions.

Why Iā€™m Applying As An Individual

Iā€™m applying for this topic as an individual reviewer (while Iā€™ll still be participating in IC-OS election propopsal reviews as part of CodeGov, as @wpb mentioned above). My motivation for applying as an individual is that I believe the funded time allocation for Subnet Management is too small to be able to make as significant an impact as Iā€™d like (when split multiple ways).

Subnet Management is an important topic that I believe currently suffers from a lack of easily accessible contextual information during the voting process. If Iā€™m selected as a reviewer Iā€™ll endeavour to make this job easier by building reporting tools that quickly highlight details that may not otherwise have been obvious. The long-term idea would be to make these tools publicly accessible (once refined) for the sake of greater governance decentralisation. Ideas that Iā€™m toying with areā€¦

  • Visualise added/removed nodes (e.g. fuqsr) and flag up scenarios that would result in reduced decentralisation (due to an over-represented country, node provider and/or data centre) and automatically verify the proposed nodes are currently unassigned.
    image

  • Display version deployments and config updates over time using a Gantt chart format, alongside timeseries data (subnet performance metrics and config values) in order to more easily verify claims made in proposal summaries, and spot potential for unintended consequences based on how other subnets have behaved.

  • Visually cluster subnets with similar config, illustrating when a config update proposal would cause a subnet to diverge and/or converge with another cluster of subnets.

I believe convenient visibility of the above sorts of information is half the picture. The other half requires a reviewer to keep up-to-date with IC-OS changes (something which I believe puts CodeGov in a very strong position for Subnet Management - few others have put themselves forward for the IC-OS topic). Note that recent downtime events resulted from unintended interactions between IC-OS changes and subnet config (e.g. System (II), System (NNS)). Oversight of both in unison is therefore invaluable.

Anyone whoā€™s followed my comments on IC-OS releases will know that I think proposal summaries are extremely important, and I reject proposals where these are inaccurate (as a matter of principle). I plan to carry this conviction into Subnet Management proposals. My belief is that the role of a reviewer isnā€™t just to provide a neuron to be followed, but also to facilitate others in making up their own mind. I expect many in the community will take proposal summaries at face value. Thereā€™s nothing wrong with that so long as others in the community take it upon themselves to validate the accuracy of these summaries, and reject when they are wrong or misleading.

:pray: Thanks for your time everyone! Iā€™d also like to say that Iā€™m super excited to see such a turn out for these grants. Iā€™m looking forward to seeing more governance activity on this forum for technical topics :raised_hands: Whatever the outcome regarding the grants, Iā€™ll be happy.

Iā€™ve recently been creating dedicated Subnet Management topics for each subnet on this forum, and I invite other Subnet Management candidates to engage in discussion on these and share your insights as new proposals emerge :slightly_smiling_face: (and create new topics if one doesnā€™t already exist for the relevant subnet). Good luck everyone!

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@lara @ld-dfn1 @Jan @chepreghy @cryptoschindler @jennifertran @radu and others on the growth team.

Iā€™d like to make a case for DFINITY to support all applicants to this grant program. There has been a decent turnout of people who are willing to roll up their sleeves and start performing the work of validating NNS technical proposals, which is something that has been sorely lacking. This grant program is intended to be temporary, which I think is appropriate, until a long term (hopefully NNS) based solution can be defined. However, now is the time to mobilize people who are willing to perform this work. It takes time to learn how to perform these reviews and to do it reliably week after week. It takes time to build a credible reputation as a reliable known neuron that people may some day be willing to follow with their NNS neuron Followee configurations.

There is no other logical source of funding other than DFINITY / ICA to support these teams until DFINITY has time to lead the ICP community to a long term strategy that can further advance decentralization of the NNS. Supporting only 2 teams for each proposal topic is too few and I think supporting all teams is not too far from what you have already been willing to fund. Since DFINITY committed to fund larger teams at 2x the proposed amounts for smaller teams, this implies that a max allocation could be $56k per month if all teams selected are large teams for each proposal topic. If you calculate the total cost for all teams that have applied, it amounts to $75.5k. This is only 35% higher than what has already been committed. Yet at this higher funding level it will support all 9 teams with a total of 29 participants who have applied for these grants. This extra expense seems well worth it to give everyone a shot at making a name for themselves as credible reviewers of these topics.

Iā€™m very excited about the fact that so many people have applied for these grants and would love to see max participation in technical proposal reviews. Please consider increasing the funding support. If an increased funding level would be a pain point for the distribution of DFINITY grant funds, then perhaps that would become a positive motivating factor for DFINITY to expedite moving past the grant program and into a long term solution.

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Grant Application for Protocol Canister Management Proposals

Applicant Information

  • Name: Behrad
  • Topic(s) Applying For: Protocol Canister Management proposals
  • Application Type: Individual

Presentation of Who We Are

B3Pay Team:

Team Size and Composition

Our team, ā€œB3Payā€:

  1. Behrad (Manager and Founder)

    • 12 years of web development experience
    • 4 years of Ethereum development
    • 2 years of ICP development
    • Role: Strategic direction, project management, and senior development

  2. Ali (AI and Machine Learning Developer)

    • Expert in Machine Learning and Deep Learning
    • Focus: Integrating AI-driven solutions into ICP projects

  3. Bahamin (Junior Motoko Developer)

    • Specializes in Motoko (the native language of the Internet Computer)
    • Focus: Decentralized application development on ICP

Team Vision

B3Pay is dedicated to advancing the Internet Computer ecosystem through innovative development, thoughtful governance, and community engagement. We aim to bridge the gap between cutting-edge technology and practical, user-centric applications on the ICP platform.

Relevant Experience

  1. B3Forge (Candid UI)

    • Description: An enhanced Candid UI for seamless interaction with ICP canisters
    • Key Features: Improved user interface, advanced debugging tools

  2. B3Wallet

    • Description: A secure and user-friendly wallet for ICP assets
    • Key Features: Multi-signature and Multi-chain support

  3. B3Note

    • Description: Decentralized note-taking application on ICP
    • Key Features: End-to-end encryption

  4. ic-reactor (Frontend Library)

    • Description: A frontend library for building ICP DApps
    • Key Features: Modular components, optimized for ICP integration

Technical Contributions

Educational Contributions

Motivation for Becoming a Voting Neuron

We want to be a voting neuron to:

  1. Actively shape the future of the ICP ecosystem.
  2. Ensure technical decisions align with community interests.
  3. Stay informed about protocol changes to keep our contributions relevant and impactful.

Need for the Grant

The grant will enable us to:

  1. Dedicate more resources to understanding and contributing to Protocol Canister Management.
  2. Offer our services at affordable rates, making quality decentralized solutions accessible.
  3. Invest time in research and development of innovative ICP-based solutions.

Long-Term Interest in ICP

We are committed to ICPā€™s long-term success because:

  1. We believe in ICPā€™s potential to revolutionize decentralized computing.
  2. Our team has invested significant time and resources in building on the ICP platform.
  3. We see ICP as the future of blockchain technology and want to be at the forefront of its development.

Interest in Protocol Canister Management

We are particularly interested in this topic because:

  1. Itā€™s critical for maintaining the security and functionality of ICP.
  2. Our technical expertise aligns well with the requirements of managing and reviewing protocol canisters.
  3. We see it as an opportunity to contribute significantly to the core infrastructure of ICP.

Long-Term Commitment as a Voting Neuron

We plan to remain a voting neuron in the long term because:

  1. Our business strategy is closely tied to the success of the ICP ecosystem.
  2. We are committed to ongoing learning and adaptation in the rapidly evolving blockchain space.
  3. We believe in the importance of consistent, informed governance for the long-term stability of ICP.

Voting Principles

Our voting will be guided by the following principles:

  1. Security: Prioritizing proposals that enhance overall ecosystem security.
  2. Scalability: Supporting initiatives that improve network capacity and efficiency.
  3. Innovation: Favoring proposals that drive technological advancements on ICP.
  4. Community Benefit: Backing ideas that bring tangible benefits to developers and users.
  5. Transparency: Committing to clear communication of our voting rationale.

We believe our teamā€™s diverse skills, proven track record, and unwavering commitment to the ICP ecosystem make us ideal candidates for this grant and role as voting neurons. Thank you for considering our application.

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Greetings ALL community members!

We are interested in being considered for Subnet Management, and Participant Management & Node Admin neuron grants as ICP Hub Poland.

ICP Hub Poland:

Twitter
LinkedIn
Telegram
OpenChat

Team

Voting Neuron Members:

Relevant Experience

CryptoDEVence is a dedicated software developer who has been actively involved with the Internet Computer. As the founder of ICP Polska, he is committed to driving the adoption and understanding of Internet Computer technology in Poland. His role as an educator has been crucial in expanding the reach and impact of this innovative technology across the region. He is a ā€œold schoolā€ programmer who, as part of his Motoko education, created and is developing an app that will (we hope) be useful to the Polish crypto community someday. He tests various ICP solutions and shares his experiences. He plans to start publishing his first educational materials in September. At NNS, he votes every day with his morning coffee.

Myself, Krzysztof Żelazko. I am a Music Producer with ten years of experience and 2 years of experience developing on the Internet Computer. I have worked and consulted on multiple projects on the Internet Computer like ICode DAO, Rakeoff or 8YearGangDAO. Recently I also contributed to the ICP Hub Poland neuron by creating it and its decentralized voting framework. In addition to my development work, I also hold an active voting known neuron on the NNS.

Motivation for Becoming a Voting Neuron

  • As an ICP Hub we feel itā€™s very important for us to contribute as much as we can to the decentralization and progression of ICP, joining the governance process as a responsibly voting neuron enables us to achieve that.
  • The goals of the ICP align closely with our mission as an ICP Hub. We are dedicated to supporting and initiating projects that bolster the ICP ecosystem, ensuring that our objectives and efforts contribute to the protocolā€™s strength and sustainability.

Why do we need the grant funding?

  • Grant funding is essential for us to allocate more time and resources to the review process and voting. With this support, we can increase our teamā€™s capacity, dedicate more hours to these crucial tasks, and potentially expand our team by bringing in additional reviewers. This will enhance the quality and efficiency of our work and help us better communicate the governance activities with community.

Why did we choose Subnet Management, and Participant Management & Node Admin?

  • We have decided to apply for the Subnet Management, and Participant Management & Node Admin grants because these topics are more flexible in terms of time for us, and we have the experience to effectively analyze these topics, as we do this now regularly anyway,
  • Since our team is not very large, we are looking to start with something that wonā€™t require too much time but still allows us to contribute meaningfully.

Our Long-Term Interest in ICP

  • At ICP Hub Poland, our long-term interest is rooted in our commitment to advancing ICP. Our activities, including boot camps, hackathons, start-up incubations and community building, are aligned with ICPā€™s long-term growth.
  • As a hub, all our activities are deeply involved and align with ICPā€™s long-term growth goals. We are dedicated to expanding ICP in Poland. Our long-term goals depend on the success of the ICP ecosystem because we help startups and companies build on ICP. The growth and success of ICP directly impact our mission and vision for the future.
  • As of now, part of advancing the ecosystem is to create and expand the governance structures for the Internet Computer. These activities include creating named neuron, promote governance among local communities, create space for active participation in governance of Internet Computer DAO and to help to improve the governing quality by actively participate in voting, reviewing & explaining proposals to the community.
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Hi ICP Community members

As a dedicated team committed to advancing the adoption and development of the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP), we are confident that we have the needed skills and resources to advance ICPā€™s core mission. Since our inception, ICP Hub Kenya has focused on building a robust community of ICP enthusiasts, developers, and stakeholders by fostering education, collaboration, and innovation.

As part of our ongoing commitment to the ICP community, we seek consideration for three proposal topics: Protocol Canister Management, Participant Management & Node Administration, and Subnet Management. By securing this grant, we aim to implement rigorous protocols that will ensure the integrity, reliability, and security of the ICP ecosystem.
We are not applying for a team grant.
We believe that our efforts will significantly contribute to the security and stability of the ICP network, and are excited about the potential impact of this opportunity. We look forward to connecting and working closely with the ICP community to achieve our shared vision of a secure and decentralized future.

About the team

Our team consists of 5 dedicated members, each possessing unique skill sets encompassing software development, developer relations, project management, and more. Our diverse range of expertise has, over time, proven fruitful as it allows us to approach challenges from multiple angles, ensuring comprehensive and innovative solutions. In addition, one of our team members, Tevin, has been actively participating in voting on the Network Nervous System (NNS) and staking ICP, which provides valuable experience and insight as we embark on becoming a voting neuron. His involvement will be beneficial in ensuring informed and effective participation in the governance of the ICP ecosystem, leveraging their firsthand knowledge and commitment to the platformā€™s growth and stability. Additionally, we have trained numerous local developers who are ready to provide assistance in need arises.

We seek to apply for a group grant to focus on the three key areas: Protocol Canister Management, Participant Management & Node Administration, and Subnet Management. Our teamā€™s combined skills will enable us to develop robust protocols for canister management, optimize participant management and node administration, and implement effective subnet management strategies.

Team members:

  1. Yvonne Kagondu (Team Lead) LinkedIn | Twitter

Yvonne Kagondu is a Blockchain and Web3 expert specializing in empowering the Kenyan youth and fostering Blockchain adoption. She is currently the cofounder of ICP Hub Kenya and has been at the forefront of developing initiatives aimed at

empowering Web3 developers and fostering ICP adoption in East Africa. With her extensive leadership experience and background in finance and cryptocurrencies, Yvonne possesses the needed capabilities to oversee the implementation of key initiatives centering on the proposed three topics.

  1. Tevin Isaac (Developer) LinkedIn | Twitter | Neuron ID - 47310282765699638696

Tevin is a blockchain developer and software engineer with 4 years of working experience. Throughout his career, he has interacted with various programming languages before specializing in JavaScript and its associated frameworks ā€“ Solidity and Rust. In addition, Tevin actively participates in voting on the Network Nervous System (NNS) daily when there are active proposals and stakes ICP monthly, which provides valuable experience and insight as we embark on becoming a voting neuron. His participation in the governance of the ICP ecosystem will be beneficial if our team is granted this opportunity.

Currently, Tevin is the lead developer at ICP Hub Kenya. One of his key achievements while working with the Hub is being part of the team spearheading the Olympus Accelerator Program in Kenya, as well as organising Ideathons and Hackathons, where he actively empowers and motivates participants to transform their innovative and disruptive ideas into reality. Aside from making big strides in his career path, Tevin also enjoys engaging and educating aspiring and upcoming tech enthusiasts and developers on blockchain, with a keen focus on the Internet Computer.

  1. Mary Usaji (Project Manager) LinkedIn | Twitter

Mary is an experienced and result-driven Web3 front-end developer with a background in business development. With over five years of experience in Business Management and a 2-year experience as a front-end developer, she has worked with various firms, honing her skills in orchestrating projects and driving business growth. Her unique blend of technical and business acumen sets her apart in the fast-evolving world of blockchain technology. Some key skills she has acquired throughout her business management career include leadership, strategic planning, market research, and customer relationship management. Currently, Mary works at ICP Hub Kenya as a Project Manager, where she orchestrates projects and events aimed at championing the increased adoption of the Internet Computer in the East African region.

  1. Stephen Kimoi (Project Manager & Dev Rel) LinkedIn | Twitter

Stephen is a Blockchain Developer, Technical Web3 Writer, and Web3 Strategist with a solid foundation in software development spanning three years. His keen interest in Blockchain motivated him to delve into the world of Blockchain development for the past two years and actively contribute to the evolution of decentralized technologies. Steve is a Project Manager and DevRel at ICP Hub Kenya, an initiative dedicated to democratizing Blockchain technology through accessible education and empowering developers to create real decentralized applications on the Internet Computer platform. As the Project Manager, he leads and manages projects focused on driving positive change and innovation in the East African region, with a particular focus on strategic partnerships, incubation programs, hackathons, and community events.

  1. Dedan Okware (Developer) LinkedIn | Twitter

Dedan Okware is a multifaceted Web2 and Web3 Software Engineer, Data Scientist, and Linux Package Builder. With a robust background in technology, Dedan is passionately committed to continuous learning and professional growth. He thrives on embracing new challenges to advance his skills and deepen his knowledge in Software Development, Machine Learning, and Data Science. Dedan is currently one of the distinguished beneficiaries of the Olympus Accelerator program, an initiative that equips him with invaluable resources and mentorship to transform his disruptive ideas into groundbreaking realities. Dedanā€™s expertise spans the evolving landscapes of Web2 and Web3, underscoring his adaptability and forward-thinking approach. His proficiency in data science and machine learning allows him to harness the power of data to drive meaningful insights and solutions. Additionally, his skills as a Linux Package Builder highlight his versatility and technical prowess.

Relevant experience

Since our inception, the team has made significant strides in promoting and advancing the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) across East Africa. Hence, we possess several key relevant experiences that make us an ideal candidate for this grant:

  1. We actively support multiple developer communities in Kenya, actively guiding and motivating the next generation of developers to build on ICP to benefit from the revolutionary potential of this platform.
  2. We have, so far, trained and mentored 50+ developers who can provide technical support for this project. The opportunity presented by this task will not only help them practice their acquired skills but also continue contributing to the ICP ecosystem.
  3. Recently, we joined the first cohort of Olympus and have incubated five products, each being built on ICP.
  4. Our team comprises professionals with significant industry experience in key areas, such as software engineering, project management, and financial economics, giving us a unique advantage when tackling the responsibilities that will be assigned to us once granted this opportunity.

Technical knowledge

Our team possesses a diverse range of technical expertise, essential for advancing the security and development of the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP).

  1. Our members are proficient in full-stack development, blockchain development, and both web3 frontend and backend development.
  2. We have a deep understanding of the Network Nervous System (NNS) architecture and functionality, enabling us to effectively manage and secure the network.
  3. Our technical skills extend to programming languages such as Typescript, Motoko, Rust, and Javascript, allowing us to develop robust and scalable applications on the ICP platform.
  4. Deployed nearly 200 canisters from our hub activities, demonstrating our technical expertise and commitment to the platformā€™s growth.
  5. Established a series of strategic partnerships that are beneficial to ICPā€™s bottom line, including collaborations with local government entities and industry leaders.

This comprehensive technical knowledge positions us uniquely to contribute meaningfully to the ICP ecosystem, driving innovation, and ensuring its security and stability.

Why you want to be a voting neuron

We would like to be a voting neuron as it offers us a unique opportunity to engage directly in the governance of the ICP network. The voting power associated with being a neuron will enable us to influence important decisions and proposals that shape the future of ICP, ensuring that our perspectives and priorities are considered in the networkā€™s evolution. This role not only enhances our ability to contribute to the development and security of the ICP ecosystem but also aligns with our commitment to fostering a robust and dynamic decentralized community. Being a voting neuron represents a significant opportunity for us to play an active part in steering ICP toward its full potential.

Why you need the grants to do so

We are fully dedicated to the advancement of ICP, and securing this funding is crucial for us to execute the necessary tasks effectively. The funds will facilitate our teamā€™s operations, enabling us to focus entirely on enhancing ICPā€™s security through our proposed initiatives in Protocol Canister Management, Participant Management & Node Administration, and Subnet Management. A key strength of our team is our ability to achieve targets at a low cost, ensuring that every cent is spent efficiently and yields maximum impact. This funding will empower us to continue our work with the same level of dedication and efficiency, driving significant progress within the ICP ecosystem.

Why you are acting in the long-term interest of ICP

We are committed to the long-term success and sustainability of the Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) because we believe in its potential to revolutionize the digital landscape by enabling truly decentralized applications and services. Our efforts are not just about immediate gains but about laying a solid foundation for future growth and innovation. By focusing on critical areas such as security, developer engagement, and community building, we aim to create a robust and resilient ecosystem that can withstand challenges and thrive over time. Our long-term vision aligns with ICPā€™s goals of providing a secure, scalable, and decentralized internet, ensuring that our work benefits the entire ICP community for years to come.

Why you are interested in the topics you apply for

We are particularly interested in focusing on Protocol Canister Management, Participant Management & Node Administration, and Subnet Management because these areas are critical to ensuring the security, efficiency, and scalability of the ICP network. By concentrating our efforts on these key areas, we aim to fortify the ICP infrastructure, enhance its overall security, and support its continued growth and adoption.

Why you remain a voting neuron in the long term, even after the grant is over

We intend to remain a voting neuron in the long term, even after the grant period concludes, as this commitment aligns with our dedication to promoting ICPā€™s integrity and security. By maintaining our role as a voting neuron, we will continue to actively contribute to the governance and development of the ICP network, ensuring that our efforts to enhance the ecosystem extend beyond the immediate term and support the networkā€™s ongoing growth and stability.

Whether you have some voting principles

In our role as a voting neuron, we will adhere to several key voting principles to guide our decisions and contributions.

  1. We will prioritize transparency, ensuring that our voting actions and rationale are clear and accessible to the community.
  2. We will emphasize fairness and impartiality, carefully evaluating proposals based on their merits and impact rather than personal or external biases.
  3. We will commit to thorough deliberation, taking the time to understand the potential implications of each proposal before casting our vote.
  4. We will align our voting decisions with the long-term goals of the ICP network, focusing on initiatives that promote decentralization, security, and sustainable growth for the entire ecosystem.
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Hi everyone,

Iā€™m Javier Arroyo Ferrer, Co-Founder and leader of the ICP HUB Canada & US and Partner at Quantum Leap Labs Inc. As a dedicated team of over 5 members focusing on the Internet Computer Protocol, we ensure sufficient redundancy to have at least 3 reviewers per proposal. We are interested in applying for a team grant and respectfully seek consideration for the following segments:

1, Participant Management & Node Admin
2. Subnet Management grants

While we have collaborated with many esteemed members of the ICP community since Genesis, we are eager to connect with those we have yet to meet. We are the team behind ICP HUB Canada & US and its official incubator, Quantum Leap Labs.

Team:

Our team comprises professionals with backgrounds in finance, computer science, and software development:

  • Javier Arroyo Ferrer (Partner at Quantum Leap Labs Inc/Leader of ICP HUB Canada & US)
  • Athika Fatima (Technical Program and Incubation Manager at Quantum Leap Labs, Community Manager at ICP HUB Canada & US)
  • Anjali Singla (Technical Mentor at Quantum Leap Labs Inc, Developer Relations Manager at ICP HUB Canada & US)
    Chetan Mittal (Developer Relations at ICP HUB Canada & US, ICP Master Instructor)
  • Fawaz Malik (ICP Master Instructor)

About Us:

Quantum Leap Labs Inc:
As the official accelerator of ICP HUB Canada & US, we guide projects from inception to DAO on ICP. We provide strategic Internet Computer expertise to align project goals with DAO objectives, enabling informed decision-making and successful launches in the Web 3 space. Our full support includes tokenomics, canister design, legal setup, marketing, community building, SNS DAO, and grant applications. More info: Website | Twitter | LinkedIn

Team Members Involved in Voting Neurons:

Javier Arroyo Ferrer: Twitter | LinkedIn
Javier is a prominent economist and entrepreneur driving blockchain innovation in North America. With over a decade of experience in banking and finance at leading institutions, he plays a crucial role in advancing the Internet Computer Blockchain across Canada and the United States. He is the Founder and Leader of the ICP HUB Canada & US AND PARTNER AT Quantum Leap Labs Inc.also a founding member of FUEL DAO, focusing on car renting and sharing, underscoring his commitment to pioneering real-world blockchain applications.

Athika Fatima: Twitter | LinkedIn | Github
Athika is a Computer Engineer specializing in Blockchain Development. She has worked with over 120 startups as a Technical Product Manager, gaining extensive experience in various industries. Currently, she is a Technical Program and Incubation Manager at Quantum Leap Labs and a Blockchain Product Engineer at Bitcoin Bay Corp. Her expertise spans multiple programming languages and blockchain technologies.

Anjali Singla: Twitter | LinkedIn | Github
Anjali is a Software Developer and Technologist with a background in Computer Science. She has over a decade of experience in software development and has engaged with blockchain projects on Ethereum and Polygon since 2021. Her current role as Developer Relations Manager at ICP HUB Canada & US focuses on bridging the gap between developers and the community.

Chetan Mittal: Twitter | LinkedIn | Github
Chetan is a junior in Computer Science with diverse tech industry experience. He works as Developer Relations at ICP HUB Canada & US and as a Software Engineer at Flicfit in Japan. His technical skills include proficiency in Solidity, Motoko, Python, and TypeScript. He is also well-versed in canister management essential for developing scalable applications on the ICP platform.

Fawaz Malik: Twitter | LinkedIn | Github
Fawaz is an ambassador for Internet Computer Protocol (ICP) in the education sector. With a postgraduate degree in blockchain development, he has demonstrated keen interest and dedication to the intersection of technology and innovation. He actively engages in roles at an AI/blockchain startup and serves as a Motoko developer.

Relevant Experience:

Our team consists of Computer Scientists and Software Developer Engineers with expertise in WebAssembly, Rust, TypeScript, Motoko, and Python. We have accelerated numerous projects to successful DAO status on ICP and are significant contributors to the Internet Computer Blockchain in North America. We regularly conduct Motoko and other ICP courses, teach tech workshops, and organize hackathons at leading universities across North America.

Technical Knowledge:

Our technical team members possess strong backgrounds in Computer Science and have extensive experience building projects on the Internet Computer. We have analyzed and reviewed hundreds of projects for Quantum Leap Labs and have participated as judges in several hackathons.

Projects incubating on the ICP or participating on their development:

  1. Fantasy Extreme
  2. BlockBolt
  3. Rubaru
  4. BIP Quantum
  5. Pixel Paddle
  6. Mesias Brand Intelligence Spain

Motivation for Becoming a Voting Neuron:

As early contributors to the Internet Computer Blockchain, we aim to leverage our expertise to improve the protocol and contribute to its decentralization. Our vision includes expanding the ICP community and ensuring the success of numerous projects as DAOs.

Need for Grant Funding:

Grant funding will help us achieve two key objectives:

Expand our incubation operations to support more ICP projects.
Onboard new technical talent to assist with proposal reviews and voting, enhancing our teamā€™s ability to manage proposals effectively.
Long-term Interest in ICP:

We plan to maintain a long-term presence in the ICP ecosystem, participating in conferences and incubating 10-30% of all successful SNS projects over the next four years.

Voting Principles:

We are committed to community engagement, delivering monthly reports, voting on at least 90% of proposals, and providing transparent explanations for our decisions. We will host AMAs and Tech Talks to review our decisions and ensure alignment with the community.

Grant Scope:

We plan to apply for grants in the following areas:

  1. Participant Management & Node Admin
  2. Subnet Management
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