Web3 Foundation Announces Grant Funding for Creation of On-Chain Randomness and Timelock Encryption Capabilities

Web3 Foundation, whose flagship project is the Polkadot blockchain protocol, announces the latest grantee under the Decentralized Futures Program. The funding is part of the Foundation’s Decentralized Futures Funding Program, backed by $20 million and 5 million DOT that is designed to kickstart teams and individuals building ambitious projects that contribute to the growth of the Polkadot ecosystem. The funding will support Ideal Labs in the creation of the Encryption to the Future (ETF) network.

The ETF Network is a cutting-edge substrate-based blockchain leveraging a unique consensus mechanism focused on publicly variable on-chain randomness and timelock encryption. The initiative represents a crucial step towards addressing the challenges of secure delayed transactions, offering a robust solution to front-running resistance and enabling trustless multiparty interactions on the blockchain.

"The Decentralized Futures Program seeks to empower self-sustaining teams building ambitious projects," said David Hawig, Director of Ecosystem Development at Web3 Foundation, speaking on the grant funding to Ideal Labs. "The Ideal Labs vision for a cross-chain compatible tool for publicly verifiable on-chain randomness holds exciting potential to fully leverage the flexibility of Polkadot and ultimately enable all kinds of decentralized solutions."

"Publicly verifiable on-chain randomness can provide capabilities and benefits for voting and auctions, trustless asset swaps, and front-running resistance," said Tony Riemer, Founder of Ideal Labs. "With this funding, we are looking forward to engaging with the Polkadot community by seeking their feedback on our early-stage tools that will guide future development."