Walrus Sessions: Tools Builder Activation
Event Rules
The Tools Builder Activation event (the "Hackathon") is organized and sponsored by the Walrus Foundation (the "Sponsor"). The overarching goal of the Hackathon is to foster developer engagement with the Walrus protocol (the "Network") resulting in the deployment and launch of a Network-native feedback and form platform that helps projects, teams, and the Sponsor collect structured feedback directly from their communities (each, a "Submission"), and the secondary goal is to foster the growth of the Network's global developer community while embodying the Walrus Foundation's values of openness, fairness and competition through tangible action that involves participants from the entire ecosystem.
By participating in the Hackathon, you agree to the Walrus Privacy Policy, the Deepsurge.xyz platform policies, and these Event Rules.
Key Information and Dates
Hackathon Duration: May 5, 2026 to May 18, 2026 ("Hackathon Duration")
Results Announcement: May 25, 2026
Hackathon Eligibility
You must be 18 years of age or the age of majority in the jurisdiction where you reside. You must not be a resident of a sanctioned or restricted jurisdiction.
You must register on the DeepSurge platform to participate in the Hackathon. Your Application must contain:
- Project name and logo
- Project description
- If your project is an existing project on the Network, please briefly describe the new feature or redesign that will be completed during the Hackathon.
- Project website
- Primary contact
- GitHub repo on which your project is published
- App store link for your project (if applicable)
Please note the following additional eligibility requirements for your Submission:
- Submit the required information on the following form: https://airtable.com/appoDAKpC74UOqoDa/shrN8UbJRdbkd5Lso
- Submissions must allow anyone to create custom forms for bug reports, feature requests, product feedback, surveys, applications, and other use cases. Form creators should be able to name forms, add or remove fields, choose required or optional inputs, and generate a shareable link to the form. Supported field types should include rich text, dropdowns, checkboxes, star ratings, screenshots, video uploads, URL links, confirmation checkbox.
- Submissions must be stored on Walrus, with responses organized by form. Sensitive data should be encrypted using Seal so only the form creator and approved admins can access private responses.
- Submissions must include a private admin dashboard where teams can review incoming submissions, filter responses, add internal notes, rank or prioritize feedback, export data, and turn raw feedback into actionable insights.
- Deploy your Submission on the Network's mainnet.
- Provide a link to a demo and a short video (3 minutes or less).
- Create a one-pager to sell your idea.
- Create a wallet dedicated to Walrus Sessions.
- Join the Walrus Discord: https://discord.com/invite/walrusprotocol
- Post a demo, screenshot, or link to your project using hashtag #Walrus on X.
Judgment of Submissions; Selection of the Winners
Submissions will be judged on the following criteria:
1. Product Utility & UX: How useful and intuitive is the product for real users? Judges will look at whether the app actually solves a meaningful problem and if people can use it without friction. This includes clarity of the interface, ease of creating/editing tables, and how well the experience compares to tools like Airtable or Notion.
2. Onchain Innovation & Use of Walrus: How effectively does the project leverage Walrus' unique capabilities? This is the core differentiator. Projects should go beyond just storing data and demonstrate why being onchain matters, e.g., composability, permissionless access, verifiability, or novel data ownership models. Bonus points for creative primitives that wouldn't be possible in Web2.
3. Technical Execution & Completeness: How well-built and complete is the implementation? Judges will evaluate code quality, stability, and whether the core features actually work. A polished MVP with working operations, performance considerations, and a thoughtful architecture should score highly, even if scope is limited.
All Submissions will be judged by a panel of judges (the "Panel") appointed by the Sponsor.
Prizes
A prize (the "Prize") will be awarded to Hackathon Team winners (each a "Prize Recipient"). Prizes will be denominated in WAL and will be deposited into a Prize Recipient-owned wallet that is capable of accepting WAL ("Recipient Wallet"); provided that the Prize Recipient must provide to the Sponsor its unique Recipient Wallet address information within 14 days of an official announcement, for the avoidance of doubt Sponsor shall determine if an announcement is an official announcement at its own discretion. Additionally, Prize Recipient must confirm via a de minimis test transaction, that the Recipient Wallet is compatible with WAL. Prize Recipient accepts all risk of loss with respect to any transfer of WAL to an incompatible wallet or an incorrect wallet address provided by Prize Recipient. Prizes will be awarded to the Teams in each category whose Submission earn the highest total overall score as determined by the Panel. The decision of the Panel will be final.
The Track-specific prizes are as follows:
- Best Submission: 1st place: $500; 2nd place: $300; 3rd place: $200
- Best feedback: Six winners, each $50 in WAL
- Special prizes: $200 in WAL will be awarded at the Panel's discretion to teams with exceptional contributions to the Network ecosystem during the Hackathon.
In order to receive the prize, one member of the winning Team must confirm acceptance of the prize via email. If a selected winning Team cannot be contacted, is ineligible, or fails to claim a prize, the prize may be forfeited and an alternate winner may be selected from the remaining eligible Submissions as determined in the sole discretion of the Panel.