Substrate is the framework for building blockchains. It is extensive, modular, and open source, and allows entrepreneurs and visionaries to build a blockchain that can be run independently or connected easily to the Polkadot ecosystem. The Substrate Builders Program (SBP), launched a year and a half ago, identifies, supports, and mentors current and potential Substrate-related projects.

Over 50 projects have been onboarded to the Substrate Builders Program to date and have received assistance in key areas of building chains, applications, and tools to create a better internet. Areas of support include technical development, launch process support, marketing and communications guidance, and individualized consultations designed to help projects succeed in their goals.

Projects in the Builders Program are allocated to one of three tracks: the Infrastructure Track, the Chains Track, or the Application Track.

Chains track: Projects building impactful Substrate-based blockchains, which can potentially be run as parachains or parathreads on Polkadot or as independent chains.

Infrastructure track: Projects building Substrate/Polkadot-related infrastructure, including bridges, UIs, tooling, smart contract support, and validator infrastructure.

Application Track: Projects building applications on top of Substrate-based chains, including areas like DeFi, governance, identity, and anything that hasn’t been possible before without the benefits of the interoperable Polkadot ecosystem.

Builders for Builders

Builders for Builders is a new initiative that aims to empower teams building Substrate-based parachains to develop and grow their own ecosystem of builders developing on top of their parachain. As part of the Builders for Builders initiative, the Substrate Builders Program team will share best practices gained from running the SBP for over a year now to help parachain teams build their own similar programs for teams building solutions on top of their parachain. These programs, called Parachain Builders Programs (PBP) will allow parachain teams to become mentors to others and develop their own thriving community of builders, enriching the Polkadot ecosystem as a whole.

The Builders for Builders initiative has three project stages:

1. Design: the SBP team meets with the parachain team to design their PBP
2. Transition: the SBP team leads the first batch of teams through the PBP while the parachain team observes
3. Handoff: the parachain team takes over leading the PBP from the SBP team

Due to the highly focused and cooperative nature of the Builders for Builders program, a limited number of accepted teams will be able to receive guidance at any given time. The final phase of the Builders for Builders program ensures that exclusive guidance is given by experienced teams, sharing learnings and best practices aimed at creating a gold-standard ecosystem.

Which teams can apply to the Builders for Builders initiative?

Any team that has successfully completed all agreed upon milestones for the Substrate Builders Program, has built a parachain based on Substrate, and has a testnet with at least minimal functionality for Decentralized Applications (Dapps) can be part of the Builders for Builders initiative.

Any team that has built a parachain with these capabilities but has not been part of the Substrate Builders Program can go through a series of technical reviews to assess what has been built and to determine its eligibility for the initiative.

Apply to the Substrate Builders Program

Have a great idea for building a chain, application, or infrastructure tool on Substrate? Head over to the website to find out more information and apply.