Hydra-Powered Micro-PaaS

[Proposal setup] Proposal title

Please provide your proposal title

Hydra-Powered Micro-PaaS

[Proposal Summary] Budget Information

Enter the amount of funding you are requesting in ADA

75000

[Proposal Summary] Time

Please specify how many months you expect your project to last

3

[Proposal Summary] Translation Information

Please indicate if your proposal has been auto-translated

No

Original Language

en

[Proposal Summary] Problem Statement

What is the problem you want to solve?

Hydra’s complex setup and Haskell/DevOps demands force 80% of projects to drop layer-2 (2024 poll), blocking startups from scaling gaming and microtransactions, and slowing Cardano’s real adoption.

[Proposal Summary] Project Dependencies

Does your project have any dependencies on other organizations, technical or otherwise?

Yes

Describe any dependencies or write 'No dependencies'

No organizational dependencies. Technical dependencies: Cardano node 8.0+ Hydra head protocol v.0.15 Ogmios websocket Mitigation: Nightly compatibility tests; fallback to public testnets during mainnet instability. Community dependency: Feedback from Hydra Pioneers during beta.

[Proposal Summary] Project Open Source

Will your project's outputs be fully open source?

Yes

License and Additional Information

Apache 2.0 License - chosen for enterprise compatibility and patent protection. Rationale: Allows commercial derivatives while requiring attribution and patent retaliation protection. All code/docs public from Day 1 on GitHub. Contributions governed by DCO (Developer Certificate of Origin). Includes architecture decision records.

[Theme Selection] Theme

Please choose the most relevant theme and tag related to the outcomes of your proposal

Developer Tools

[Campaign Category] Category Questions

Mention your open source license and describe your open source license rationale.

Apache 2.0 ensures corporate adoption while protecting contributors - critical for PaaS tools. Unlike MIT, it explicitly grants patent rights and prevents patent litigation. Compatible with Cardano's open governance model. All dependencies (Ogmios, Hydra) are Apache-compatible. Automated license checks in CI/CD.

How do you make sure your source code is accessible to the public from project start, and people are informed?

Code immediately public at github.com upon funding. Announcements via Hydra Discord/Twitter. Releases tagged Catalyst-Funded. Bi-weekly YouTube tech demos. GitHub Discussions for user support. Repo includes Docker Compose files for instant testing.

How will you provide high quality documentation?

Documentation includes:

• Infrastructure diagrams (Mermaid.js)
• Video walkthroughs for each template
• Troubleshooting matrix for common node issues
• Benchmark reports (TPS/latency)
• Hosted on GitBook with version control. Quarterly doc audits by TxPipe.

[Your Project and Solution] Solution

Please describe your proposed solution and how it addresses the problem

HydraLite solves scaling accessibility via:

1. Docker Templates: Pre-configured Hydra heads for NFTs/micropayments/gaming
2. Ogmios Integration: Real-time chain synchronization
3. Auto-Scaling: Spins up new Hydra heads at 80% load
4. Monitoring Dashboard: Real-time TPS/latency metrics
5. Built with Python (CLI) and React (GUI). Uses Cardano serialization libs for UTXO management. Unique feature: Cross-platform ARM/x86 support for Raspberry Pi deployments.

[Your Project and Solution] Impact

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community

• Enables 50+ projects to deploy Hydra by 2025
• Reduces average setup time from 8hrs to 10min
• Drives 500+ daily Hydra transactions within 6 months
• Lowers entry barrier for non-Haskell developers
• Positioning Cardano as the most accessible L2 solution, directly competing with Polygon's ease-of-use while offering superior decentralization.

[Your Project and Solution] Capabilities & 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?

Our team includes Docker experience (2 yrs)

• Testnet Stress Tests: Processed 500 TPS on 5-node cluster
• Template Validation: NFT drop tested with JPG Store assets
• Hardening: TxPipe audit commitment for critical paths
• Contingency: If Hydra protocol changes, we maintain legacy templates. Monthly progress verified by Cardano Foundation liaison.

[Milestones] Project Milestones

Milestone Title

NFT Drop Engine

Milestone Outputs

Docker container template for parallel NFT minting, CLI tool for head initialization, automated test suite covering 95% of use cases, and preview testnet deployment scripts. Includes documentation for asset policy configuration, metadata standards, and batch minting optimization techniques for collections up to 100k NFTs.

Acceptance Criteria

Successfully mints 10,000 unique NFTs with distinct metadata on preview testnet within 60 seconds using a single Hydra head. Achieves consistent 400+ TPS across 10 test runs. CLI commands execute without Haskell dependencies. Docker image passes security scan with zero critical vulnerabilities.

Evidence of Completion

GitHub Release v0.1: Public repo containing Docker template, CLI source code, and test suite.

Stress Test Video: 5-min screen recording

Delivery Month

1

Cost

35000

Progress

40 %

Milestone Title

Micropayment & Gaming

Milestone Outputs

1. Pay-per-use API module with dynamic pricing config
2. Real-time gaming session channels (WebSocket integration)
3. React-based dashboard for TPS/latency monitoring
4. Auto-scaling module spawning new Hydra heads at 80% load
5. Tutorials for streaming payments

Acceptance Criteria

Processes 1,000 microtransactions of $0.01 each with under 1-second latency per transaction. Maintains 99.9% uptime during 48-hour stress test. Gaming channels handle 50+ concurrent players with sub-200ms roundtrip times. Dashboard visualizes metrics with <5-second data lag. Auto-scaling triggers within 10 seconds of threshold breach.

Evidence of Completion

Microtransaction Demo: Live microblogging dApp (hydralite.io/demo) processing 1,000+ $0.01 payments.

Delivery Month

2

Cost

25000

Progress

70 %

Milestone Title

Ecosystem Launch

Milestone Outputs

TxPipe-audited production release, comprehensive GitBook documentation with architecture diagrams, three community workshops (EMEA/APAC/AMER), and mainnet deployment playbook. Includes contributor guidelines for custom template development and interoperability testing suite for Milkomeda sidechains.

Acceptance Criteria

Zero critical issues in TxPipe audit report. Documentation achieves 90%+ clarity rating from 50+ test users. Workshops attract 150+ live participants with 85% satisfaction rate. Fifteen verifiable mainnet deployments (e.g., NFT projects, API services) achieving 98% uptime over 30 days. Contributor system processes 10+ community PRs for new templates.

Evidence of Completion

• TxPipe Audit Certificate: PDF report with zero critical vulnerabilities.
• Workshop Recordings: Three YouTube videos (EMEA/APAC/AMER) with timestamps and attendee counts.

Delivery Month

3

Cost

15000

Progress

100 %

[Final Pitch] Budget & Costs

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

Total: 75,000 ADA

Core Dev (45k ADA): 300 hrs @ 150 ADA/hr (Python/Haskell)

Templates (15k ADA): 3 modules @ 5k/module

Audit/Docs (15k ADA): TxPipe audit + GitBook hosting

Justification: Below cloud PaaS costs (AWS Outposts: 300k ADA/yr). Apache license enables commercial reuse.

[Final Pitch] Value for Money

How does the cost of the project represent value for the Cardano ecosystem?

Delivers 100x ecosystem ROI:

• Saves 50+ projects $200k+ in devops costs
• Enables $0.01 microtransactions (vs. $0.25 L1 average)
• Costs just 1,500 ADA per project enabled
• Hosting costs $0 using peer-to-peer Docker Swarm. Apache licensing allows enterprises like DISH to build commercial services. The 75k ADA budget accelerates Cardano's scalability roadmap.

[Required Acknowledgements] Consent & Confirmation

Terms and Conditions:

Yes