Strike and the Human Rights Foundation are teaming up to support open-source developers working to increase the usability and privacy of Lightning wallets, inspired by HRF’s research around the world with regard to what kind of functionality global Bitcoin users need today.
We are setting three challenges. An individual or team who solves any of the three challenges — as determined by an independent board of voices in the Bitcoin community — will receive a bounty of 1 BTC.
Challenge 1: Tip Jar
1 BTC to a FOSS non-custodial wallet that integrates BOLT 12 functionality to their wallet so that any user can simply generate a QR code from their wallet that can be shared with the world as a receive address or Lightning tip jar. The QR can be pinned to a Twitter profile, printed out and displayed in a store, for example. Senders scanning the QR should be able to pay X amount and that amount should arrive in the user’s non-custodial wallet. The QR code should not reveal the public key or IP address of the user.
Challenge 2: Stabilized Lightning
1 BTC to a FOSS non-custodial wallet that enables their users to “peg” their Lightning balance to the US dollar. We have no requirement for exactly how to do this, but suspect it will have something to do with contracts for difference. We realize this is an ambitious goal, and that submissions may be prototypes. We will leave it up to the board of judges to determine what will qualify as success. Bonus points if the mechanism that the user interacts with to “peg” their Bitcoin to USD is a slick slider.
Challenge 3: E-Cash
1 BTC to a FOSS non-custodial wallet that gives their users the option to enter into a (likely) custodial arrangement where Bitcoin can be sent to other users of that wallet using Chaumian e-cash. The arrangement should be such that the wallet administrators cannot know the identity of their users, their balances, or transaction histories. One suspects this would be a federated system, but all submissions will be considered.
The Bitcoin Bounty Challenge will launch on January 1, 2022, and run until December 31, 2022.
To claim a bounty, an individual or team must submit proof in the form of working wallet functionality by contacting bounty@hrf.org.
An individual or team may collect one, two, or three bounties. Any team is eligible: if a leading wallet maker would like to compete, we would be delighted.
Bounty submissions will be shared with and verified by our friends at OpenSats. The 9-person board will need a unanimous vote to approve the release of the bounty. HRF retains final approval on allocating the prize money.
The first individual or team to provably solve each challenge will be paid out in the form of a 1 BTC grant from HRF, sponsored generously by Strike and funded through its charitable affiliate, Bitcoin Worldwide Development Foundation. Additional support has been generously provided by CMS Holdings.
HRF is a 501(c)3 organization and this gift will be considered a prize under US law. Identifying paperwork will need to be filled out by the individual or entity claiming the prize.
Any unclaimed bounties will convert into general operating funding for the HRF’s Bitcoin Development Fund on January 1, 2023