HTX Genesis Hackathon Hong Kong Opens: Ten-Million-Level Ecosystem Fund Amplifies, Seeking the Next Cycle Breakthrough

While most people still perceive hackathons as "developer competitions," more profound changes have already begun to unfold.

On April 21st, the HTX Genesis Hackathon, co-hosted by HTX DAO and B.AI and co-organized by TinTinLand and OpenCity, kicked off in Hong Kong. The opening ceremony was bustling with energy, with the frequency of exchanges and the density of interactions continuously rising. Participants from developer communities, investment institutions, project teams, trading platforms, and public chain ecosystems gathered together to engage in systematic discussions on the technological evolution and commercial implementation of AI × Web3.

As a crucial gateway for global innovators into the HTX DAO ecosystem, this HTX Genesis Hackathon from the outset broke away from the single development focus of traditional hackathons, instead constructing a complete "development-incubation-investment-listing" closed loop. The event focuses on tracks such as AI and Web3 infrastructure, emphasizing real demand-driven and sustainable growth logic, aiming to select innovative projects with long-term value.

The Logic of Web3 Reconstruction Driven by AI: Ecosystem Capability Becomes the Core Competitive Variable

The distinctiveness of the HTX Genesis Hackathon lies in what it seeks to express.

During the opening ceremony, Justin Sun, Global Advisor to Huobi HTX, made a significant virtual appearance. Centering on the convergence trend of AI × Web3, he shared his latest insights on the industry's future development direction, providing a more macro perspective for the entire event.

Justin Sun analyzed that AI Agents will replace traditional interaction methods, becoming the core driving force for the next phase of the Web3 ecosystem.

He explained that past Web3 applications often came with steep learning curves and complex on-chain interactions. The introduction of AI Agents will propel decentralized applications from "manual operation" towards "intent-driven" interactions based on natural language. This means AI Agents can autonomously understand user needs, automatically plan pathways, and execute complex on-chain settlements such as cross-chain transactions. This paradigm shift towards intelligence and autonomy will not only significantly unleash on-chain productivity but also become a new breakthrough point for overcoming Web3's user growth bottleneck and leading the industry towards genuine mass adoption.

The remarks by Molly, HTX DAO Ambassador, shifted the perspective from industry judgment back to the ecosystem itself.

Molly delivered a presentation titled "HTX DAO Ecosystem Development Plan: Release of a Multi-Million Dollar Ecosystem Fund and Value Closed-Loop Strategy."

She pointed out that the core vision of the HTX Genesis Hackathon is to build a free financial port based on the exchange's stronghold. To achieve this goal, a five-pronged ecosystem matrix covering the entire industry chain has been constructed, comprising:

• Huobi HTX as the core business engine and liquidity center;
• HTX DAO serving as the ecosystem's governance hub and centralized decision-making brain;
• The public chain and innovation layer, with TRON providing payment network support and projects like JustLend and SunX building robust DeFi infrastructure;
• HTX Ventures focusing on the industry frontier, providing investment, incubation, and acceleration services for outstanding projects;
• B.AI targeting future trends, committed to building financial infrastructure for the era of AI Agents.

Furthermore, Molly introduced that to substantively empower the ecosystem, this hackathon has launched a substantial ecosystem development fund of 10 million USDT. This fund moves away from traditional broad-brush funding, adopting a "precision empowerment" strategy. Through a three-tiered distribution mechanism—"Early Innovation Milestone Release (Tier 1), Commercial Growth Convertible Grant (Tier 2), and Exceptional Ecosystem Supplementary Grant (Tier 3)"—it provides full-lifecycle support for projects from cold start to commercial maturity.

Molly also specifically noted that regarding future development, Huobi HTX has clearly defined four core strategic keywords: "Stability, Transparency, Institutionalization, and AI Empowerment." These aim to enhance the platform's long-term competitiveness in complex market environments and provide ecosystem participants with more predictable growth expectations.

In the subsequent panel discussion, the focus gradually converged on several more fundamental questions:

How is value created? How can capital flow more efficiently on-chain? And how can Web3 applications truly achieve mass adoption?

Panel Discussion Session

Multiple participants generally agreed that a single technological breakthrough can no longer support a new growth cycle. Only through the synergy of multiple elements—technology, capital, liquidity, and users—can the Web3 ecosystem potentially transition from structural innovation to systemic prosperity.

Comprehensive Resource Empowerment: Targeting the Next Web3 Alpha

As the discussions deepened, the competition blueprint for this HTX Genesis Hackathon was fully unveiled.

The competition period runs from April to July 2026 and is expected to attract approximately 100 hardcore development teams globally, culminating in a phase presentation and selection event in Hong Kong.

Beyond prize incentives, selected projects will receive multi-dimensional support from TRON, Huobi HTX, and B.AI, including computing resources, technical integration, ecosystem collaboration, and joint promotion.

Amid the accelerating convergence of AI and Web3, the HTX Genesis Hackathon is evolving from a single competition platform into an "infrastructure node" connecting global developer innovation with top-tier ecosystem resources. It is not merely searching for the next Alpha but is also providing the most robust structural support for the genuine growth of Web3 applications in the next phase.

About HTX DAO

HTX DAO is a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO) initiated with support from the Huobi HTX exchange and the TRON public chain ecosystem, collaboratively established by community members, early contributors, and global advisors. HTX DAO is committed to building an open governance ecosystem led by users, characterized by transparent rules and efficient collaboration, aiming to become a key engine driving the development of the decentralized financial system.

HTX DAO upholds the principle of "holding tokens is governance," aiming to inspire global user consensus and participation, connect community interests with platform value, and explore a new order in the world of crypto finance.