What is Tezos Grant Program?
The Tezos Foundation’s Grant Program is a key initiative that deploys resources to entities and initiatives to ensure the long-term success of the Tezos blockchain. The areas of interest for grants reflect the current needs of the Tezos ecosystem, and the foundation invites unique ideas and innovations.
The grant process is divided into three stages: Proposal, Award, and Post-Award. The process takes on average eight weeks from proposal submission to completion of necessary paperwork.
Tezos Grant Program
In the Proposal stage, a grant proposal is submitted, which includes information on the proposed project, its purpose, a roadmap, an introduction of the project team, evidence of familiarity with the Tezos ecosystem, anticipated value added to the Tezos ecosystem, and measures to assure the longevity of the solution beyond the grant duration.
The Award stage involves an in-depth review of the grant proposal by ecosystem experts, supervised by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). The TAC completes an in-depth due diligence process and develops recommendations on a proposal’s fit and usefulness to the Tezos ecosystem. The TAC’s recommendations are then reviewed by the Executive Committee (EC) or the Tezos Foundation Council (FC) which then makes the final decision.
In the Post-Award stage, approved applicants work on the legal paperwork to finalize a grant with the Tezos Foundation. The grant agreement for the project and the corresponding payments are usually structured along milestones. Once a milestone is completed, the grantee submits a report, which is reviewed and if approved, the payment for the milestone is issued.
The areas of interest for the Tezos Foundation’s grants include Baking, Developer Experience, Education and Training, End-User Applications, Privacy, Security, and Other categories that may advance the Tezos ecosystem. The foundation aims to empower bakers, improve user experience for developers, enable ecosystem members, support new applications, enhance privacy-preserving solutions, and build security solutions for Tezos.
Application Process
The application process for the Tezos Foundation’s Grant Program consists of three stages: Proposal, Award, and Post-Award.
Proposal: The process begins with the submission of a grant proposal. This proposal should include key information about the proposed project and how the team plans to succeed. Details can include functional and technical aspects of the proposed solution, its purpose, a roadmap, an introduction of the project team, evidence of familiarity with the Tezos ecosystem, anticipated value added to the Tezos ecosystem, and measures to ensure the longevity of the solution beyond the grant duration. After submission, the proposal is vetted by the Tezos Foundation. The outcome of this step can be a forward for in-depth reviews, a revise and resubmit, or a decline. This stage takes about one week.
Award: If forwarded for in-depth review, the grant proposal is reviewed by ecosystem experts, supervised by the Technical Advisory Committee (TAC). The TAC completes an in-depth due diligence process and develops recommendations on a proposal’s fit and usefulness to the Tezos ecosystem. These recommendations are then reviewed by the Executive Committee (EC) or the Tezos Foundation Council (FC) which then makes the final decision. Final decisions about grant proposals, which can be an accept, decline, or a revise and resubmit, are then communicated to grant proposers. This stage takes about three weeks.
Post-Award: Approved applicants work on the legal paperwork to finalize a grant with the Tezos Foundation. The grant agreement for the project and the corresponding payments are usually structured along milestones. Once a milestone is completed, the grantee submits a report, which is reviewed and if approved, the payment for the milestone is issued. After the project is finished, the Tezos Foundation conducts regular check-ins to determine the prosperity of the project. At this stage, the Tezos Foundation explores further collaboration opportunities with grantees and may offer to connect parties in the Tezos ecosystem with similar synergies. This stage takes more than four weeks.
The areas of interest for the grants include Baking, Developer Experience, Education and Training, End-User Applications, Privacy, Security, and other projects that may advance the Tezos ecosystem.