DCA Automate - The Cardano DCA Engine powered by AI

[Proposal setup] Proposal title

Please provide your proposal title

DCA Automate - The Cardano DCA Engine powered by AI

[Proposal Summary] Budget Information

Enter the amount of funding you are requesting in ADA

90000

[Proposal Summary] Time

Please specify how many months you expect your project to last

12

[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?

DCA is an effective strategy for achieving long-term profitability, but it's challenging. DCA is abandoned during market panics, and double down due to fear of missing out (FOMO) during bull markets.

[Proposal Summary] Supporting Documentation

Supporting links

• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1UZSms5XhEb_7v5WEvhcMe3wT9c_eyCQSepJfjQGcBaU/edit?usp=sharing
,
• https://docs.google.com/document/d/1qUbNK27hv-NEOireTe89poyUJJF-vYxtT-IStXZWLCo/edit?usp=sharing

[Proposal Summary] Project Dependencies

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

No

Describe any dependencies or write 'No dependencies'

No dependencies

[Proposal Summary] Project Open Source

Will your project's outputs be fully open source?

Yes

Please provide details on the intellectual property (IP) status of your project outputs, including whether they will be released as open source or retained under another licence.

We commit to open-sourcing all non-sensitive components under MIT license:

1. Will Be Open Sourced:
2. Smart contract source code（Plutus）
3. Backend API architecture
4. Scheduler engine
5. Developer documentation
6. Integration guides（wallet + DeFi）
7. Portfolio visualization components
8. Test cases
9. Security architecture diagrams

Will NOT Be Open-Sourced:

1. Lightweight prediction model 2.Infrastructure secrets (servers, API keys, SOC configs)

[Theme Selection] Theme

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

Smart Contracts

[Campaign Category] Category Questions

Describe what makes your idea innovative compared to what has been previously launched in the market (whether by you or others).

Most existing applications in the market only support very simple DCA strategies, often offered by centralized exchanges as a basic add‑on. These tools are limited in scope and do not prioritize the actual benefits for users. Similarly, some websites provide nothing more than a DCA calculator, which can illustrate potential outcomes but cannot help investors execute their strategy in practice. Our solution goes beyond these limitations by integrating several innovative elements:

1. End‑to‑end execution: Investors can not only design their DCA plan but also seamlessly execute it on‑chain through smart contracts.
2. AI‑driven insights: A built‑in predictive model offers price trend analysis, helping users make more informed decisions.
3. User‑centric design: The platform emphasizes transparency, customization, and education, ensuring that investors understand the strategy and feel confident in applying it.
4. Calability: While starting with Cardano, the architecture is designed to expand across multiple chains, offering broader accessibility.

In short, DCA Automate transforms DCA from a static calculation tool into a dynamic, intelligent, and actionable investment assistant—something that has not yet been delivered in the market.

Describe what your prototype or MVP will demonstrate, and where it can be accessed.

The MVP of DCA Assistant is designed to showcase the core value proposition of the product: making disciplined, automated, and user‑friendly DCA investing possible on‑chain. Specifically, it will demonstrate:

1. End‑to‑end DCA plan creation and execution Users can set up a recurring investment plan (amount, frequency, asset) and see it automatically executed via Cardano smart contracts. This proves the feasibility of transparent, decentralized execution.
2. AI‑powered price trend insights (simplified model) A lightweight predictive module will provide short‑term trend probabilities (e.g., likelihood of upward or downward movement), showing how AI can enhance decision‑making without overwhelming complexity.
3. Portfolio visualization and feedback The MVP will include clear charts that illustrate cost averaging effects and portfolio growth, helping users understand the tangible benefits of sticking to their plan.
4. Educational guidance A built‑in learning module will explain the principles of DCA, its advantages, and risks, demonstrating the product’s commitment to user empowerment and trust.

In essence, the prototype will prove that investors can:

• Create a personalized DCA plan.
• Execute it securely on‑chain.
• Receive AI‑driven insights and visual feedback.
• Learn and build confidence in the strategy.

This demonstration validates the product’s unique positioning as more than a calculator or a simple exchange feature—it is a comprehensive assistant for long‑term crypto investors.

Where It Will Be Published

• GitHub (public, tagged by milestone)
• Demo scripts & reproducible test data

Describe realistic measures of success, ideally with on-chain metrics.

Technical

• ≥ 99.8% on-chain execution success rate（Cardano Mainnet）
• Smart contracts pass ≥ 1 third-party security audit with 0 critical vulnerabilities
• Average execution latency < 3 minutes for DCA execution
• Backend service uptime ≥ 99.5% post-mainnet launch
• CIP-30 wallet integration successfully validated on mainnet (Lace / Eternl / GeroWallet)

Adoption & Usage

• ≥ 1,000 unique mainnet wallets execute ≥ 1 DCA plan
• ≥ 15,000 ADA equivalent processed through automated DCA plans
• ≥ 200 daily active DCA executions
• ≥ 500 API calls/day for strategy triggering, plan monitoring, and wallet interactions

Ecosystem Integration Metrics

• ≥ 3 Cardano ecosystem integrations(Wallets, Data Tools, DeFi protocols)
• ≥ 1 analytics dashboard
• ≥ 2 Communities or DAO enrollment

User Satisfaction Metrics

• ≥ 80% of test users reported that "Automated DCA improves investment discipline"
• ≥ 70% of users stated that it "Reduces emotional trading behavior"
• ≥ 75% Developer documentation satisfaction
• ≥ 90% Completion rate: Users can complete the entire process from "Create plan → Wallet authorization → Automatic execution"

[Your Project and Solution] Solution

Please describe your proposed solution and how it addresses the problem

The DCA Automate is designed as an intelligent, end‑to‑end platform that empowers crypto investors to adopt disciplined, automated, and transparent dollar‑cost averaging strategies. It tackles the core problem of emotional, inconsistent decision‑making in volatile markets by combining AI insights, blockchain execution, and user‑centric design.

Key Elements of the Solution:

1. Automated DCA Execution via Smart Contracts: Investors can set up recurring purchase plans that are executed directly on the Cardano blockchain. This ensures transparency, security, and removes the need for constant manual intervention, reducing the risk of emotional trading.
2. AI‑Driven Price Trend Forecasting: A lightweight predictive model provides short‑term market insights (e.g., probability of upward or downward movement). This helps users make informed adjustments to their DCA plans without requiring deep trading expertise.
3. Portfolio Visualization and Feedback: Interactive charts show the effects of cost averaging and portfolio growth over time. This visual feedback reinforces investor confidence and demonstrates the tangible benefits of sticking to a disciplined strategy.
4. Educational Support: Integrated tutorials and FAQs explain the principles, advantages, and risks of DCA. This addresses the knowledge gap among new investors and builds trust in the strategy.
5. Scalable Architecture:While the MVP focuses on Cardano, the system is designed to expand to other chains (e.g., Ethereum, Solana), ensuring long‑term adaptability and broader accessibility.

Why Build on Cardano?

• Low Transaction Fees: Cardano offers significantly lower fees compared to many other blockchains, making recurring micro‑transactions (like DCA) cost‑effective and practical for retail investors.
• Energy Efficiency & Sustainability: Its proof‑of‑stake consensus mechanism is environmentally friendly, aligning with the values of long‑term, responsible investing.
• Strong Smart Contract Framework (Plutus): Cardano’s Plutus platform provides a secure and flexible environment for building automated financial contracts, ensuring reliability in executing recurring investments.
• Focus on Financial Inclusion: Cardano’s mission emphasizes accessibility and inclusion, which resonates with the goal of helping ordinary investors adopt disciplined strategies without needing advanced trading skills.
• Growing Ecosystem & Community Trust: Cardano has a strong developer community and reputation for academic rigor, which enhances credibility and user confidence in products built on its chain.

How It Solves the Problem

1. Reduces emotional bias: By automating investments, users avoid impulsive buy/sell decisions driven by fear or greed.
2. Simplifies complex strategies: Instead of relying on calculators or basic exchange features, users get a complete assistant that designs, executes, and monitors their plan.
3. Builds investor confidence: AI insights and visual feedback help users understand the value of consistency, encouraging long‑term participation.
4. Leverages Cardano’s strengths: Low fees, sustainability, and secure smart contracts make recurring investments practical, trustworthy, and scalable.

In short, building on Cardano ensures that the DCA Assistant is not only innovative but also cost‑efficient, sustainable, and aligned with the values of long‑term investors.

[Your Project and Solution] Impact

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

Real Use Cases & Ecosystem Partners

DCA (Dollar-Cost Averaging) automation offers substantial long-term benefits to the Cardano ecosystem by enhancing user engagement, providing valuable tools, and expanding use cases.

Real Usage Impact

Automated DCA on Cardano serves as a compelling use case to attract retail investors by showcasing real automated investing, encouraging a shift from active trading to long-term holding and governance participation. This is expected to boost on-chain activity, increase small, long-term transactions, and improve ADA staking retention.

Ecosystem Value

The system provides a reusable smart contract architecture for automated execution, which facilitates the development of next-generation tools such as automated strategy engines, strategic wallets, and automated DeFi tools. It also creates strong synergies with DEXs like Minswap and Spectrum, wallets like Lace, and data platforms like TapTools and DexHunter.

Real Use Cases

• Retail Investors: Automates execution to mitigate FOMO (Fear Of Missing Out), panic selling, and missed contributions.
• Trading Teams/Communities: Enables bulk creation of fixed plans for communities.
• DeFi Protocols: Allows built-in strategies to attract more TVL (Total Value Locked).
• Wallet Providers: Offers smart strategy functionalities.

Summary

Enhancing the holding value and utility of ADA:

• DCA Automate provides ADA holders with a practical, risk-mitigating tool, encouraging long-term holding and participation in ecosystem activities, thereby enhancing the intrinsic value of ADA.

Demonstrating Cardano's financial capabilities:

• It showcases the ability of Cardano smart contracts to handle complex, valuable financial logic (automated investment, scheduled execution), attracting more developers and users interested in financial applications.

Showcasing Cardano’s Strengths:

• Low fees make recurring micro‑transactions viable. Energy‑efficient proof‑of‑stake aligns with sustainable finance. Plutus smart contracts highlight Cardano’s secure and flexible infrastructure. By building on Cardano, the project showcases these unique advantages to a wider audience.

[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 combines both technical expertise and academic rigor, ensuring we can deliver this project with high levels of trust and accountability. We bring extensive backend development experience, providing a solid foundation for building reliable and scalable systems. In addition, all team members are master’s students specializing in computer science with a concentration in artificial intelligence, and one member is a PhD candidate actively engaged in advanced AI research. This blend of practical engineering skills and deep academic knowledge equips us to design, implement, and maintain a solution that meets professional standards of security, transparency, and performance.

To validate our approach, we will:

1. Prototype and Test: Build an MVP that demonstrates end‑to‑end functionality, including AI‑driven insights and on‑chain execution.
2. Data‑Driven Evaluation: Use historical crypto market data (BTC, ETH, ADA) to backtest DCA strategies and measure effectiveness.
3. User Research: Conduct pilot studies with retail investors to gather feedback on usability, trust, and perceived value.
4. Iterative Refinement: Apply agile development practices, incorporating continuous testing and peer review to ensure robustness.

Through this structured validation process, we will confirm both the technical feasibility and the practical value of our solution, while maintaining accountability to our users and the wider Cardano community.

[Milestones] Project Milestones

Milestone Title

Smart Contracts and Backend Architecture

Milestone Outputs

Outputs

• Smart contract for DCA execution (Plutus)
• Unit‑tested DCA execution
• Backend API for plan creation + scheduling + wallet authorization
• Internal unit tests ≥ 95% coverage
• Initial testnet deployment

Acceptance Criteria

Acceptance Criteria

• Smart contracts pass internal static analysis (no critical issues)
• Backend API can reliably create/update/execute plans in staging
• End-to-end testnet execution demonstrated smoothly

Evidence of Completion

Evidence of Completion

• GitHub repo (contract + backend + unit tests)
• Testnet demo video
• Architecture + sequence diagrams

Delivery Month

4

Cost

30000

Progress

30 %

Milestone Title

Strategy Builder & UI

Milestone Outputs

Outputs

• Web UI allowing users to create advanced/customized DCA plans
• Frontend connected to backend
• Wireframes and UX prototypes validated with test users ≥10
• User flow validated with ≥10 test users

Acceptance Criteria

Acceptance Criteria

1. ≥80% of users are able to independently create and save a DCA plan through the interface(UI or API)
2. Mobile/Desktop UI responsive
3. The UI automatically generates smart contract call parameters

Evidence of Completion

Evidence of Completion

• Frontend demo video for connecting to backend services
• Usability test logs and feedback summary
• Final UI screenshots

Delivery Month

3

Cost

20000

Progress

50 %

Milestone Title

Wallet Integration + Portfolio Engine

Milestone Outputs

Outputs

• CIP-30 wallet integration (Lace / Eternl / GeroWallet)
• Dynamic portfolio visualization charts showing cost averaging and growth trends
• End‑to‑end testing of wallet transactions and data visualization
• Real-time DCA execution feedback

Acceptance Criteria

Acceptance Criteria

1. Wallet authorization fully functional
2. Execution success rate ≥ 99% on testnet
3. Charts reflect real aggregated data
4. Transaction reliability verified
5. Visualization updates in real time after each executed DCA transaction

Evidence of Completion

Evidence of Completion

• Wallet authorization demo
• Visualization module screenshots
• Transaction logs

Delivery Month

2

Cost

15000

Progress

70 %

Milestone Title

Mainnet Launch, Security Audit, Partner Integrations

Milestone Outputs

Outputs

• Third-party audit report（0 high-risk）
• Mainnet deployment of smart contracts + backend
• ≥ 3 real ecosystem partner integrations
• ≥ 20 real investors participate in beta testing
• Complete documentation package

Acceptance Criteria

Acceptance Criteria

• Mainnet uptime ≥ 99.5%
• ≥ 1,000 unique wallets create ≥1 DCA plan
• ≥ 15,000 ADA equivalent processed
• ≥ 500 daily API calls
• Ecosystem partners produce demo videos (wallet/data tools/DEX)

Evidence of Completion

Evidence of Completion

• Audit report
• Mainnet live URL + dashboard
• Partner integration videos（TapTools / Minswap / Wallet）
• Catalyst close-out report

Delivery Month

3

Cost

25000

Progress

100 %

[Final Pitch] Budget & Costs

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources

1. Smart Contract Development and Security Audit (38,000 ADA): Plutus/Aiken contract development and a comprehensive security audit by a top-tier third-party firm.
2. Backend and Frontend Development (31,500 ADA): Development of backend APIs, policy creators, and visualization modules.
3. Infrastructure and Security (13,500 ADA): Infrastructure such as servers, API gateways, and domain names, as well as Security Operations Center (SOC) monitoring.
4. User Testing and Incentives (4,500 ADA): Small financial incentives and bug bounty programs for early user testing.
5. Documentation (2,500 ADA): Tutorial and Technical documents

Total: 90,000 ADA

[Final Pitch] Value for Money

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

Direct Utility Creation

• Builds smart contracts, backend, AI, and wallet support to expand Cardano’s real‑world use cases.

Lowering Barriers for Adoption

• Provides a user‑friendly DCA Assistant that simplifies investing, boosting wallet adoption and transaction volume.

Strengthening Trust and Transparency

• Funds third‑party audits and testing to ensure safety, reliability, and reinforce Cardano’s secure reputation.

Ecosystem Growth and Integration

• Integrates CIP‑30 wallets and visualization tools, creating reusable components for other Cardano projects.

Educational and Community Impact

• Offers DCA learning modules to empower new users and align with Cardano’s mission of financial inclusion.

Reusable On‑Chain Automation Engine

• Delivers the first automation framework, enabling advanced strategies like DCA, TWAP, VWAP, and Grid.

Wallet Innovation

• Helps wallets add intelligent investing modules, enhancing user experience and functionality.

Accelerated Financial Tooling Maturity

• Advances Cardano’s ecosystem with practical financial tools, positioning it as a leader in blockchain finance.

[Self-Assessment] Self-Assessment Checklist

I confirm that evidence of prior research, whitepaper, design, or proof-of-concept is provided.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal includes ecosystem research and uses the findings to either (a) justify its uniqueness over existing solutions or (b) demonstrate the value of its novel approach.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal demonstrates technical capability via verifiable in-house talent or a confirmed development partner (GitHub, LinkedIn, portfolio, etc.)

Yes

I confirm that the proposer and all team members are in good standing with prior Catalyst projects.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal clearly defines the problem and the value of the on-chain utility.

Yes

I confirm that the primary goal of the proposal is a working prototype deployed on at least a Cardano testnet.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal outlines a credible and clear technical plan and architecture.

Yes

I confirm that the budget and timeline (≤ 12 months) are realistic for the proposed work.

Yes

I confirm that the proposal includes a community engagement and feedback plan to amplify prototype adoption with the Cardano ecosystem.

Yes

I confirm that the budget is for future development only; excludes retroactive funding, incentives, giveaways, re-granting, or sub-treasuries.

Yes

[Required Acknowledgements] Consent & Confirmation

I Agree

Yes