Introducing the Zama Developer Program: Monthly rewards, certification paths, and startup acceleration for developers building the next blockchain primitive.
The best builders have terrible timing. They showed up to Bitcoin when it was “magic internet money.”. They coded smart contracts when gas was cheap because no one cared. They studied ZK when everyone said it was too complex.
They were all too early.
Until they weren't.
Blockchain faces a critical limitation: radical transparency is the default. Every balance, transaction, vote, and often the identities behind them lie bare on an immutable public ledger, accessible to anyone willing to trace the breadcrumbs.
The Zama Protocol leverages Fully Homomorphic Encryption (FHE) to transform blockchain's transparency problem, making confidentiality ubiquitous onchain. Years of research and careful abstraction have brought us here, where FHE is finally developer-friendly, and ready for production.
We're convinced the next breakthrough applications will require confidentiality at their core. Without it, blockchain's design space remains fundamentally limited.
Now we need developers and builders to help write blockchain's next chapter, with confidentiality built-in.
The Zama Developer Program is designed to give developers a clear path to master the Zama Protocol, while providing support, recognition, rewards, and fast-tracking for builders who choose primitives over trends.
Each month, we’re allocating $20,000 in rewards to the developers who push FHE forward, from their first FHE smart contract to fully confidential dApps that redefine what’s possible onchain.
The builder track ($10,000 in rewards each month).
Rewarding the 5 best demo apps submitted each month.
The Bounty Track ($10,000 in rewards each month).
Rewarding the 3 best submissions contributing to FHE and/or the Zama Protocol.
You can check out the previous winning projects of both tracks here to see what’s possible.
But what happens after winning the builder and/or bounty track?
The Builder and Bounty tracks are just the beginning. For developers ready to turn their FHE expertise into a career or company, we've built two paths that transform early builders into ecosystem leaders.
Become a Certified Zama Developer.
Certified developers gain exclusive access to paid contractor opportunities with Zama, our partners, and enterprise customers building confidential applications.
Think of it as joining an elite guild of FHE experts. Our partners don't just want developers; they specifically request certified developers. The certification process includes a rigorous interview to ensure you're not just technically capable, but ready to work on production-grade confidential systems.
What certification unlocks:
Launch with the Zama Startup Program.
Have an idea that could become the next blockchain unicorn? The Zama Startup Program transforms builders into founders.
This isn't just an accelerator, it's an unfair advantage. Selected startups receive everything needed to win in the confidential computing space:
Start as a builder, become certified to validate your expertise, then launch your startup with the credibility and network you've already built.
Every valid submission to the Developer Program is your first step toward certification and potentially founding the next breakthrough confidential application.
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The program is already live.
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