Cardano Beam - GPS Smart Contracts
Problem
A platform that rewards users for their presence by event organizers and game builders - Pokemon Go with stablecoins
Total to date
This is the total amount allocated to Cardano Beam - GPS Smart Contracts.
About this idea
[GENERAL] Name and surname of main applicant
Dmitry Shibaev[GENERAL] Are you delivering this project as an individual or as an entity (whether formally incorporated or not)
Entity (Incorporated)[GENERAL] Co-proposers and additional applicants
Elcio Chiquinato
Vlad Mikirtumov
Kieran Simkin
[GENERAL] Please specify how many months you expect your project to last (from 2-12 months)
9[GENERAL] Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated into English from another language
No[GENERAL] Summarize your solution to the problem (200-character limit including spaces)
A platform for Gamification of IRL - aka Pokemon Go for stablecoins. No rival on other blockchains, offering a location-based solution for events and non-crypto users
[GENERAL] Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?
No[GENERAL] If YES, please describe what the dependency is and why you believe it is essential for your project’s delivery. If NO, please write “No dependencies.”
No dependencies.
[GENERAL] Will your project’s output/s be fully open source?
No[GENERAL] Please provide here more information on the open source status of your project outputs
libraries and contributions made during the development of Cardano Beam:
Open-Sourced Libraries:
Contributions to cardano-serialization-lib:
- Actively contributed to cardano-serialization-lib for both web and mobile platforms.
- Documentation on getting started with cardano-serialization-lib can be found on the Developer’s portal.
New Open-Sourced Library:
- Smart Contract Factory that will be open-sourced during delivery of this proposal: Generates new smart contracts using a NodeJS backend and a compiled Haskell executable. This innovation enables the rapid generation of smart contracts in under 100ms, leveraging the reliable Haskell language.
Remaining Code of Cardano Beam:
- The unreleased code pertains to the Web2 components of the app, including the front-end, database, and back-end responsible for syncing the state between different applications.
Open-Source Policy:
- The company typically open-sources Web3-related code to contribute to community knowledge.
- Web2 code, which includes the front-end, database, and back-end for state synchronization, is not open-sourced to prevent the creation of inferior copies.
This approach aims to share advancements in Web3 while protecting the proprietary aspects of the Web2 components of Cardano Beam.
[SOLUTION] Please describe your proposed solution
Cardano Beam is our Catalyst-funded platform that allows anyone to place an Asset on the World map by specifying the GPS coordinates (link: https://cardanobeam.app).
A smart contract locks Assets on the Cardano blockchain; to unlock them, someone must pass at that GPS location. Once the user passes at the location where the Asset was locked, the smart contract unlocks the asset and gets transferred to the user’s wallet.
This platform facilitates value transfer without payment terminals, without prior agreements, so long as the person receiving the payment is physically present at the specified location and conforms to the other conditions of whoever placed the Asset there.
Hundreds of users have already used the Cardano Beam platform, many of them from outside of the Cardano ecosystem, where their introduction to Cardano was through our app. The improvements will make the onboarding smoother and improve the user experience.
View of the world map with Assets placed globally using Cardano Beam at over 300 locations
We have also built an Events Marketplace that brings event organizers and Cardano Beam users together. We plan to offer this marketplace to businesses to host their events and advertisement campaigns
We will use the funds from Fund 11 to make five key improvements to the app:
- Rebuild the UX/UI to make the experience intuitive for the average user, especially those not familiar with crypto. This will drive adoption and bring unique users to the Cardano ecosystem.
- Business development. The team needs to be expanded to deal with the flow of enquiries and create actionable proposals for business owners.
- Enhance ticket validation for the same ticket to be used only once. The existing ticket approach is to confirm the ownership of a ticket without consuming it. We will extend this with an option to consume the ticket to accommodate high-value use cases where the same ticket should not be used more than once.
- Snap & Mint functionality where a user takes a photo at their location, the app turns the photo into an NFT and locks the NFT in a smart contract at that location for others to pick up.
Integrate proof of presence by leveraging the technology built by Kieran Smith. The proof of presence is an additional physical device that sends a message through a decentralized network such as Helium of World Mobile and records the location of the physical tower transmitting the message - making it possible to prove the location from where the message was sent. https://iwozear.art/device
Events Market Place
Cardano Beam lets event organisers publish their events and sell tickets to them. All in one place, thereby simplifying the user experience. Users can see the events around them in our Cardano Beam Mobile App and purchase tickets with ADA or Credit cards.
At the Event, the user shows the ticket as a QR code, and the event organiser scans it to let them in. The event organized can also leave POAP certificates in a GPS-enabled Smart Contract, which the user collects when at the event.
Each event organizer curates their event to their liking. Some create treasure hunts, and others create sports events. Some have multiple checkpoints from where ticket holders can redeem prizes; others check the ticket at one location to grant you access.
Events are listed on our Events page https://cardanobeam.app/events and in our Mobile app.
[IMPACT] Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community
Innovation
Cardano Beam is an innovation that helps the ecosystem reach its potential and helps improve the systems we use across the world for organizing and managing IRL events and for any application where rewarding for being at the right place at the right time is important. It will bring a sizable new user base to Cardano, as shown by the number of events successfully used over the last 12 months and the growing user base.
Cardano Beam is a new use case for the blockchain. It targets a specific area where blockchain can improve logistics and change how a part of the industry operates. The uptake of this innovation can attract a new and untapped user base to the Cardano ecosystem. Millions of small businesses worldwide are looking for an edge that allows them to reach customers in engaging, innovative ways. Therefore, a slight uptake of these use cases would increase the transaction volume on Cardano by a substantial amount.
It increases the number of products and integrations that offer new solutions for people to interact with and benefit from using Cardano.
The proposal directly addresses the challenge’s focus areas of “Creation or improvement of different products that provide value to the Cardano community and wider ecosystem.” by being a unique product on Cardano and other blockchains that creates GPS-enabled smart contracts with a ticket system for event managers.
It also offers Integrations with other existing services as has been used by several event organizers on Cardano and there are also several proposals in Catalyst Fund 10 that plan to use the Cardano Beam platform in their project:
- dSafari in Zambia - https://cardano.ideascale.com/c/idea/106185
- Cardano GPS Adventures - https://cardano.ideascale.com/c/idea/103120
- Cardano Cycling Tour - https://cardano.ideascale.com/c/idea/103586
This shows the adoption and familiarity with the platform by the Cardano Community
This product is suitable for execution right now and the Cardano ecosystem has the right technical requirements. Smart contracts and the eUTXO model are very convenient for location-based events as guarantee 1 person per 1 UTXO - so queues can be managed effectively. A fiat on-ramp to bring non-crypto users has been implemented in Cardano Beam, making it accessible for the general public.
We received our funding from Catalyst Fund 8 and developed the platform to its current state over the second half of 2022 and the first half of 2023.
A list of events that used Cardano Beam since its roll-out in 2022 and 2023
- A bike ride from Lisbon to the Algarve in October 2022, where 6 participants completed a 220km journey and collected prizes along the way dropped by the community. Viewers saw live where the participants were at all times and dropped additional rewards for them to pick up
- An Easter egg hunt organized by Web3 User Group and Directed in April 2023 where tens of participants purchased an Easter ticket which then gave them access to easter egg prizes hidden in the real word https://twitter.com/Web3UserGroup/status/1642945517385646086
- NY NFT conference where tickets were sold through Cardano Beam and users collected prizes at the location and around New York https://twitter.com/dynamic_io/status/1645111383686512642
- GPS Adventure pass, organized by the Web3 User Group who organize IRL adventures https://www.jpg.store/collection/web3gpsadventure?tab=items
- NFT Adventure Pass, a business created to run adventures on Cardano Beam https://www.xplore-nft.com. The adventure pass encourages outdoor activities and is geared toward tourists looking for a curated hiking route and have placed unique NFTs at the top of the 5 tallest mountains for participants to pick up https://twitter.com/xplore_nft/status/1647010552722358273
- Finding Octo, an educational project and augmented education experience for the young ones where the completing online tasks is complemented with outdoor activities https://www.slfdrvn.io/findingocto
- Yoga events were organized, and tickets sold for events in Lisbon through the Cardano Beam platform.
Prospective engagement
- In discussion with a large cycling event in the Netherlands with 1000s of participants to distribute prizes to participants with discounts to collaborating stores
- A carnival organizer in San Diego planning to user the app to sell tickets and distribute POAPs to participants. Over 300 news users are expected to use it during the event.
- Digital Safari in Zambia, a local entrepreneur in Zambia is organizing artists to create unique art pieces of wildlife and distribute them at GPS locations for a curated safari tour. This is done in collaboration with NMKR to support the minting of art pieces and Dynamic Strategies providing guidance on the ground.
- Chicago auto tour, a member of the local community of auto enthusiasts, is in touch to distribute minted assets from their community on Cardano Beam for members to collect.
- Dead Rabbit Society, a Cardano NFT community https://deadrabbits.io are in talks to organize a treasure hunt.
- Discussion with NMKR and Web3 User Group to bring Cardano to large German charities by demonstrating practical use cases of the blockchain through Cardano Beam.
- An influential member of the surfing movement on the West coast of Lisbon, Portugal is pushing for creating a surfing collection to be collected by holders of a particular surfboard at most iconic surfing spots in Portugal.
- The local municipality is exploring the possibility of creating a digital twin of its geocaching route by using Cardano beam as well as selling tickets to its farmer's market with our ticketing solution.
- A gaming company in Finland, focusing on Minecraft gaming is planning to extend the game to real-world locations. They have shown a preference for having multiple locations, but are very sensitive to the costs - we are investigating a possible use case for Hydra given the need for fast and cheap transactions and where there is tolerance for lower security guarantees. https://www.sog.gg/
In addition to events, the team has rolled out unique features that advanced the platform and the Cardano ecosystem
- A new ticketing solution was built where ownership of an NFT is verified in 5 steps by independently verifying the ownership of the NFT on chain and time bound with a short time interval by generating and scanning a QR code in the Cardano Beam app.
- An events marketplace that lets event organizers create an event and advertise it on the Cardano Beam website. Participants can buy a ticket to the event, which is delivered as an NFT to their Cardano Beam mobile app, which they use to gain physical access to the event and collect rewards at the location.
- Fiat on-ramp was built that allows non-crypto native users to participate in events by buying tickets with a credit card. This uses a cross-chain bridge (which the team also built) where payments made with a credit card are converted on-chain on the Polygon network, and the ticket is delivered on the Cardano network. Very few other projects on Cardano accept fiat payments which is necessary to drive adoption across non-crypto users.
We received positive feedback about the capabilities of our technology and how it helps to solve real-world problems. Decision-makers from most walks of life understand its use cases. The platform was featured in the Portugues business journal as the up-and-coming start-up solving real-world problems https://www.jornaldenegocios.pt/negocios-em-rede/detalhe/queremos-atrair-fixar-e-desenvolver-talento-em-cascais
[CAPABILITY & FEASIBILITY] What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?
he Cardano Beam platform has been operational since the end of 2022 and has been trusted by over 200 users and 10+ event organizers to run their events.
The go-live of the platform was called out in the October 2022 edition of Cardano 360:
https://youtu.be/hZRwLWKNNfQIOG featured it in its series on Marlowe smart contract language showing how it could be used for innovative use cases:
https://youtu.be/9bLINVNJPg4100% success rate in delivering on previously funded Catalyst proposal
The team has successfully delivered 3 previously funded Catalyst projects, and currently working on delivering 2 more proposals from fund 11
[PROJECT MILESTONES] What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?
UX/UI: A new layout for the Web app and the Mobile apps, including colour schemes and a first pass on the changes to the screens for improved UX. This work will be done primarily by the designer and the Web2/Web3 developer. A focus group of users will conduct tests; feedback will be collected and incorporated into the design.
Activities:
- Design wireframe for colour pallet for new design;
- Focus groups with existing users and event organizers;
- Implement changes to the Web app and Mobile apps and release to testnet;
- A trial event and collate feedback from test users;
- Incorporate user feedback and release to Production.
Expected time to completion: 2 months
Resources:
- One designer 40h per week for 8 weeks;
- One developer 40h per week for 8 weeks.
Deliverables:
A professionally designed UI in line with modern trends and an improved UX for the Cardano Beam Web and Mobile apps
Outputs:
A simplified and intuitive feel for the platform
Intended Outcomes:
Increased adoption by non-crypto users and the business community
Proof of Presence: The proof of presence hardware device is attached to an NFT on the Cardano blockchain. Pressing the button indicates the location of the owner of a particular NFT. We will mount a Helium hotspot which will be used to test transactions from the Proof-of-Presence hardware device. A working Helium hotspot. A test transaction is sent successfully from the hardware device to the HNT network. A Cardano Beam backend service monitors transactions on the HNT network and successfully picks up the transaction sent by the hardware device with the location from where the transaction is sent. This will be extended to the World Mobile Network on Cardano when it launches globally.
Activities:
- Mount HNT hotspot;
- Send a transaction from the devices to the mounted HNT hotspot;
- Create a daemon running on Cardano Beam server monitoring transactions;
- Adjust the Cardano Beam Mobile app to prompt users to confirm their location with the hardware device;
- Validate user location.
Expected time to completion: 2 months
Resources:
- One developer 40h per week for 8 weeks;
- One hardware technician 10h per week for 8 weeks.
Deliverables:
A proof of presence hardware device is attached to an NFT on the Cardano blockchain. Pressing the button indicates the location of the owner of a particular NFT.
Outputs:
Integrate the device with Cardano Beam mobile app and prompt the user to use the device to validate their location for high-value transactions.
Intended Outcomes:
Use for high-value transactions where physical presence needs to be guaranteed. Limit GPS-spoofing
Release full feature set: The last month will monitor the platform and make final improvements. At this stage, monthly business development cycles will bring additional event organizers and, as a result, require more from the team to focus on supporting new clients. The platform will have been released with a handful of new features, which may cause conflict between the features and unintended behaviour. This will be addressed. The platform documentation will be updated, new video tutorials recorded, and the smart contract factory open-sourced.
Activity:
- Release new features to production;
- Fix any bugs;
- Update documentation and video tutorials;
- Open-source smart contract factory;
- Follow up on business leads.
Expected time to completion: 1 month
Resources:
- One developer 40h per week for 4 weeks;
- One senior business developer 40h per week for 4 weeks.
Deliverables:
Release all features to production and monitor for user feedback and bugs. Update documentation and tutorials
Outputs:
Updated documentation and tutorials
Intended Outcomes:
Fully functional new features on the mainnet
[RESOURCES] Who is in the project team and what are their roles?
Project Lead: Dmitry Shibaev
Dmitry Shibaev is an experienced Project Lead and Senior Developer with a proven track record in both big tech and financial markets. His expertise spans 5 years in delivering large-scale SAP projects for energy companies in southern Europe and 15 years in financial markets, where he successfully led significant projects at a prominent investment bank across London, Singapore, and Amsterdam.
Open-Source Contributions:
Dmitry has actively contributed to the open-source community, showcasing his skills in building tools and fostering collaboration:
- Developed a wallet connector for DApps and Wallets, utilized by the Cardano Beam Web App. The GitHub repository has garnered 100+ stars and has been forked by IOHK.
- GitHub Repo
- App Demo 1
- App Demo 2
- Contributed to the Cardano Developer Portal with a quick start guide on connecting Web Apps to different Cardano web-wallets.
- Created a Public GraphQL endpoint with a web client, enabling users to query the Cardano blockchain conveniently.
- GitHub Repo
- App
- Developed a Staking Reward Calculator synced to the blockchain, providing insights into expected payouts from different pools.
- App
- Contributed Cardano Wallet Functions for integration into React Native apps.
- GitHub Repo
Full Stack Expertise:
Dmitry is proficient in both Web2 and Web3 technologies, showcasing his skills in building the full stack behind Dynamic Strategies (https://dynamicstrategies.io) and Cardano Beam (https://cardanobeam.app).
Plutus Pioneers Cohort:
Dmitry was part of the inaugural cohort of Plutus Pioneers and received recognition for building community tools at Adafolio (https://adafolio.com/portfolio/8f7da192-0257-11eb-9684-a45e60be653b).
Stake Pool Operation:
He is an integral part of a team operating the Cardano Stake Pool with the ticker DSIO, registered in 2020. The pool has received multiple delegations from the Cardano Foundation in acknowledgment of outstanding contributions to the community.
Community Engagement:
Dmitry actively participates in the Cardano forum and Cardano Stack Exchange, contributing to community discussions and sharing knowledge.
Designer: Elcio Chiquinado
Elcio Chiquinado is the founder of the design agency David and Golias, which has partnered with Dynamic Strategies to deliver the following elements for Cardano Beam:
- Design the brand identity of Cardano Beam
- Design the UX/UI and image Assets for the Cardano Beam website, Web App, and Mobile App interfaces.
- Communication templates and presentation packs
- NFT design pitches for the business outreach events
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/elciochiquinato/
Relevant projects that Elcio delivered previously
Brand Design of D-Orbit Fenix and Aurora Satellite control apps - Italy
Art Director for Vodafone Brand Design - Portugal
Note: Vodafone announced in June 2023 a partnership with NMKR
Art Director for Delta Cafes Brand Design - Portugal
Art Director for SATA Airlines Brand Design - Portugal
Brand Strategy & Design for Medbone - Portugal
Brand Design for RTP television channel - Portugal
Design of the book "Coletanea Direito 50 anos" for the government - Angola
Rebranding IMI International Media Ideas - Dubai
Before that, Elcio was the Art Director of a brand design agency in Portugal, Lisbon and a Teacher at the Lisbon School of Design (https://www.lsd.pt/), where he taught courses in Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, and Indesign)
Senior Business Developer: Vlad Mikirtumov
Aerospace Engineer by education. Experience project manager and test engineer at ASML microchips and HODL funds
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vmikirtumov/
Junior Business Developer: To be hired to support Vlad with the business outreach
Hardware Technician: Kieran Simkin
Kieran is a Cardano developer with experience in Javascript/Typescript, React, Next.js, Nest.js, PostgresSQL etc. Familiar with generating transactions in Serialization-lib, including multisig minting, payments, smart contract interactions
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/kieransimkin
Creator of the Hardware device that proves user location by sending a transaction on the Helium network where the location of towers is known https://iwozear.art/device
[BUDGET & COSTS] Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources
The budget is estimated based on 40 hours per week and 4 weeks per month.
Milestone 1: UX/UI (2 months)
- 1 Developer for 40h per week for 8 weeks @ $60/h
- 1 Designer for 40h per week for 8 weeks @ $30/h
Total $28,800
Milestone 2: Proof of Presence (2 months)
- 1 Developer for 40h per week for 8 weeks @ $60/h
- 1 Hardware technician for 10h per week for 8 weeks @ $40/h
Total $22,400
Milestone 3: Release full feature set (1 month)
- 1 Developer for 40h per week for 8 weeks @ $60/h
- 1 Senior Business Developer for 40h per week for 8 weeks @ $40/h
Total $32,000
Hardware costs:
- HNT hotspot: $1,500
- Proof-of-presence device: $60
The total budget $84,760
At a price of 0.40 ADA per USD
Total budget in ADA: 211,900
[VALUE FOR MONEY] How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?
Cardano Beam is a unique “value transfer system” for placing Cardano Assets at GPS locations and having people pick them up. Nothing like this exists today, and this is a potentially revolutionary blockchain application.
Similarly, there is currently no ticketing solution on Cardano that lets event organizers sell tickets to end users using a credit card and then track their attendance and give rewards for showing up. Cardano Beam is unique to Cardano and to Web3 as a whole - no similar solution exists on other blockchains.
This is an enhancement to Cardano Beam, which already has more than 200 users, with over 300 locations with smart contracts and well over 500 transactions.
Team
