DMCC, the leading international business district that drives the flow of global trade through Dubai, and the global crypto exchange Bybit, have concluded the third edition of their flagship international Web3 hackathon, awarding a total prize pool of USD 140,000 to the region’s most promising decentralised projects. Held at S/O Uptown Dubai, the event brought together global innovators, investors and industry leaders under the theme “Shaping the next wave of Web3: driving the future of decentralisation.”
Building on the success of its previous editions, this year’s hackathon expanded its scope with two new tracks – DeFAI (Decentralised Artificial Intelligence) and DeSci (Decentralised Science) – introduced to reflect the latest developments shaping the decentralised technology landscape. With these additions, Web3 Unleashed 3 featured six key focus areas in total, including DeFi, Web3 Gaming, SocialFi, Infrastructure and Tokenisation, ensuring the competition continues to capture the full breadth of innovation defining the global Web3 ecosystem.
10 finalist teams presented their projects live to a panel of judges composed of leading experts and investors from across the industry, each competing for a share of the USD 140,000 prize pool.
Recognised for their technical prowess, the five winners were:
Yumi Finance
Glint Analytics
Sorachain AI
Aurayale
Spout Finance
Ahmed Bin Sulayem, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, DMCC, said: “The momentum behind the Web3 Unleashed hackathon shows how firmly Dubai has established itself as a global centre for next-generation technologies. In only three years, this platform has evolved from a regional concept into a global reference point for Web3 innovation, uniting builders, investors and partners from across the world. By introducing DeFAI and DeSci this year, we are anticipating and responding to technological change. This underlines our commitment to defining the future of decentralised innovation and ensuring that Dubai remains a leading force in the digital economy, enabling the people and projects that are transforming it.”
“Our collaboration with DMCC continues to demonstrate how rapidly the Web3 ecosystem in the UAE is advancing. Each year, we see a notable rise in the technical depth and global calibre of the teams joining Web3 Unleashed,” said Helen Liu, Co-CEO of Bybit. “Bitcoin’s pullback from its historical high serves as an important reminder that this industry is built for the long term. Real progress in blockchain requires patience from founders and builders, especially during moments when the market tests conviction. Bybit remains committed to supporting innovators who focus on real utility and sustainable impact, and we are proud to help cultivate an environment where world-class talent can continue to grow in Dubai.”
In addition to co-organiser Bybit, the hackathon was held in partnership with DWF Labs, CROSS, Verse8, The Open Platform, Blockchain for Good Alliance (BGA), CV Labs, Hacken, Cointelegraph and Blockchain Gaming Alliance (BGA), who each played a key role in providing mentorship, resources and exposure to participating teams throughout the competition.
With over 700 member companies, the DMCC Crypto Centre is a comprehensive ecosystem for companies that develop Web3 technologies and associated value-added services. Providing everything that crypto businesses and entrepreneurs need to set up and scale their operations, it has become the largest concentration of crypto and Web3 firms in the region.
Headquartered in Dubai, Bybit is the world’s second-largest crypto exchange by trading volume, serving over 50 million users.
