Modular Fellows
Modular Fellows is a program designed to empower modular builders with the right resources to build the future of scalable and sovereign blockchain networks.
Over the course of the three month program, Modular Fellows will receive engineering support, mentorship, and a monthly stipend of $3,000 to build a project of their choice. After the program, continuing support will be available for Fellows in the form of fundraising help and grants.
Applications are currently closed. Check back for details about future cohorts.
Overview
Milestones
Each month, the Fellows will complete a project milestone, culminating in a demo-day presentation.
Month 1 - Learning and Exploring (start building whenever you’re ready)
In this month, you will immerse yourself in modular blockchains to come up with ideas of protocols, tools or applications to build during the rest of the program.
- Milestone - present an idea that you want to pursue
Month 2 - Designing & Implementing a Basic Prototype
In this month, you will design and implement a basic prototype of the idea that you settled on during the first month.
- Milestone - present the prototype for feedback
Month 3 - Build out the Prototype into a Functional Product
In this month, you will expand on your prototype to build a functional product which you will demo and explain with a write up.
- Milestone - demo, write up of product
Project ideas
Fellows do not need to have a specific project idea at the start of the program, but you will need to settle on one by the end of the first month. There are no right or wrong ideas, but here are a few to get you thinking:
- New execution layers, e.g. a Move rollup
- Rollup infrastructure services, e.g. one click deploy rollup sequencers
- Modular interoperability solutions, e.g. settlement layers or bridges
- Modular versions of the following
- Popular DeFi apps e.g. AMMs & lending protocols
- NFT platforms
- Naming services like ENS
- Social graphs like Lens Protocol
Support
Weekly office hours
An optional meeting to ask questions, get help and receive feedback.
Wednesdays alternating at 8:00am or 6:00pm Central US time.
Lessons & tutorials
Presentations from Celestia Labs team members & mentors explaining key concepts or giving tutorials on specific tools.
Demos from participants
Presentations from fellows about what they are working on for feedback.
Communication
Fellows will share a Telegram group with other Modular Fellows and Modular Mentors.
Monthly stipend
Fellows will receive $3,000.00 per month paid on completion of each milestone.
Continuation
Though the program lasts only 3 months, we will provide you with continuing support in the following ways.
- Grants & Funding - We will assist you in fundraising or in applying for a grant so that you can continue building your project.
- Alumni Network - You will be inducted into the Modular Fellows alumni network where where you can keep in touch with other past and future Modular Fellows.
Modular Mentors
Modular Fellows will work closely with the Celestia Labs team and a group of hand-picked Modular Mentors who will help solve engineering problems and provide feedback on milestones.
These are the Mentors for the first cohort:
- Wei Dai - Research partner at Bain Capital Crypto
- Can Gurel - Researcher at Delphi Digital
- Eric Wall - Blockchain Researcher
- Eli Krenzke - Research Team Partner at Polychain
- Zaki Manian - Co-Founder of Sommelier, Co-Founder of iqlusion, helped build the Cosmos ecosystem, including launching the first public Cosmos testnet
- Marko Baricevic - Cosmos-sdk lead and founder of binary holdings works.
- Morgan Beller - General Partner at NFX, a seed-stage venture capital fund, prev. Head of Strategy for Facebook's Novi
- John Adler - CRO, Celestia Labs
- Mustafa Al-Bassam - CEO, Celestia Labs
- Ismail Khoffi - CTO, Celestia Labs
- Evan Forbes - Software Engineer, Celestia Labs