UHI8's Hookathon just set a new record — 134 project submissions. A new founder perk landed, Uniswap is hosting an API event exclusively for UHI builders, and we want to hear what you've been shipping.

🏆 UHI8 Hookathon: Our Biggest Yet

134 project submissions is a new record for the Hookathon.

Builders across the Uniswap v4 ecosystem showed up with serious projects, many focused on hooks that increase Asset Class Specific Liquidity. Check out the recording of the demo day event here.

Congratulations to all our prizewinners and to the full UHI8 cohort on graduating! Check out the winning projects:

👉 UHI8 Hookathon Winners for Uniswap Prizes 

👉 UHI8 Hookathon Winners for Reactive Network Prizes  

👉 UHI8 Hookathon Winners for Unichain Prizes

Whether you took home a prize or not, 134 teams putting hooks into the world is no small thing. Congrats to everyone who made it happen and we hope you’re inspired to keep building.

🛠 New Founder Perk: CreateOS via NodeOps

You've built the MVP. Now what?

For most early teams, the answer is: a wall of operational complexity. Deployment pipelines, environment configs, CI/CD, monitoring, scaling, rollbacks, all of that before you can ship or scale what you’ve built.

CreateOS is built to remove that friction entirely. It's an AI-powered workspace from NodeOps where builders connect their repo, describe what they want to deploy, and CreateOS handles the rest: CI/CD workflows, containerization, deployment automation, monitoring, rollbacks, and secure production environments. It supports Web2 and Web3 stacks, frontend apps, backends, APIs, databases, microservices, and more, all running on globally distributed compute infrastructure.

In short: you've built it. Now CreateOS helps you execute end-to-end.

As an Atrium alum, you have access to a special trial and credits through NodeOps.

Learn more about this perk and apply for your trial and credits on CreateOS here.

⚡ The Uniswap Developer Platform beta is live: UHI builders get a dedicated session on April 21st

The Uniswap Developer Platform beta is now live, giving builders self-serve access to the Uniswap API, the same infrastructure used by MetaMask, Ledger,  Fireblocks, Talos, and Anchorage Digital.

Here's what you get:

• Deep liquidity and competitive pricing: Uniswap API provides access to onchain and offchain liquidity, powered by efficient routing across the Uniswap Protocol

• Free integration: no subscription fees or per-call charges, even at scale. 

• Full fee ownership: set and customize swap fees to your specs. You collect 100%, settled directly to your wallet. 

• Battle-tested infrastructure: 10M+ assets across 17 chains, $3B in onchain liquidity, ~200ms routing speed. 

And the best part for you: Atrium is partnering with Uniswap Foundation for a special workshopping session focused on the API, exclusively for UHI builders on April 21st

Go sign up and generate your free API key at developers.uniswap.org, and start exploring before the event. We want you to come ready to provide real feedback and help shape where the Uniswap API goes next. RSVP here to join the event.

🔒 Get Your Audit Subsidized: Uniswap Foundation Security Fund

If you're building toward production and an audit is sitting between you and a mainnet launch — this one's for you.

The Uniswap Foundation Security Fund (UFSF) subsidizes up to 100% of security audit costs for projects building on Uniswap v4, deploying on Unichain, or building elsewhere in the Uniswap ecosystem. The fund has already supported 25+ projects — and applications are accepted on a rolling monthly cohort basis.

Security audits are one of the most expensive and logistically painful parts of shipping a real product. This is a direct path to getting that covered. The deadline for the next cohort of audits is April 7th.

Apply for the UFSF here.

📣 Know Someone Who Should Sponsor the Next Hookathon?

Our Hookathons keep getting bigger — 134 projects this round — and we're always looking for partners who want to test their tech with DeFi builders shipping their best work.

If you're at a company or protocol that should be involved, or you know someone who should be, put them in touch with Theresa:

• Telegram: tlfreet

• Email: team@atrium.academy

📬 UHI Alumni: We Want to Hear From You

UHI alumni are shipping real projects, and we want to capture what you’re building.

Fill out this quick survey → and help us better understand you as a builder and what you need to continue your DeFi journey. Your feedback directly shapes the perks and resources we add to the program.

Filling it out could also lead to:

• A blog feature or public event spotlight, like this great conversation with Robert

• Highlights in upcoming Uniswap Foundation public events for a select group of alumni

• New swag for a few lucky respondents 🎁

Even if you haven't shipped something you're ready to shout about yet, we’d love it if you could take 2 minutes and tell us what matters to you. That feedback is just as valuable.

Fill out the survey

That's all for this edition. Keep building — we'll see you out there. 🏛

— The Atrium Team

Uniswap v4 came to life in 2025. With the mainnet launch in January, Uniswap v4 crossing $190B in cumulative volume, and 5000+ v4 hooks initialized, it's fair to say hooks are driving innovation in DeFi.

Atrium Academy is proud to contribute to this growth with another strong year for the Uniswap Hook Incubator (UHI) and continuing to grow an ecosystem of builders who have turned v4's vision into reality.

By the Numbers: UHI's 2025 Impact

Developer Onboarding & Ecosystem Impact at Scale for the last 12 months:

• 1,375 applications from developers across 50+ countries

• 260 graduates from cohorts 4-7 who completed the intensive 8-week program

• 241+ hooks shipped by developers, ranging from MEV protection systems to innovative liquidity management tools†

• 313,533+ Pools with Atrium alumni hooks*

• $697,354,633+ Total Volume from Atrium alumni hooks*

†Source: Hook Directory 

*Source: Atrium Hooks Dashboard

From Workshop to Mainnet 

The program's impact extended far beyond education. UHI graduates launched some incredibly successful v4-native protocols:

• Kevin and Killian participated in UHI5 and then joined the inaugural Hook Product Accelerator (HPA) program to launch their company, LP Hub: 

  • We're proud to have deployed the first test pools with our dynamic pricing logic which are already facilitating real trading on mainnet. In early 2026, we're launching our LP strategy builder that will enable liquidity providers to deploy capital more intelligently and benefit from proven market-making techniques being embedded into our pools to improve their returns.

  • While we aim to bootstrap as far as possible, this coming year we're looking for LPs who are interested in testing our pools, helping us grow initial TVL, and providing feedback. 

  • Atrium's support was invaluable—they provided high-quality dev resources and connected us directly with key players across the value chain. 

• James and Arnold from Lighthouse used their time in UHI4 and HPA to build their newest product, Harbor:

  • We recently participated in Protocol Labs' inaugural d/acc residency at Edge City Patagonia, where we field-tested our own protocol design as a part of a larger exploration of the role of protocols in governance.

  • Harbor provides on-chain liquidity infrastructure for streaming and vesting tokens, enabling locked assets to trade immediately using Uniswap v4 markets and virtual liquidity. Harbor replaces opaque OTC desks (which demand 25-45% discounts) with transparent, programmable bond markets. Harbor is raising a $1.5M pre-seed to drive $1-2M in volume and position the protocol for a strong seed in Q1 2027. Heading into early 2026, we're focused on going to market.

  • Atrium's support during these programs was especially valuable in leading us through the process of defining our ideal customer profile and deciding how to target early users.

• Robert is a UHI1 grad and returned to participate in the HPA program to focus on his company, Numo:

  • I recently moved to Nairobi and am working with importers to send money from Kenya to the US, Europe and local East African markets as I can offer close to the interbank FX rate with less than a day delivery. In 2026, Numo's focus is on getting the necessary VASP license to do direct on and off ramping of stablecoins with local banks.

  • Atrium was great in helping me structure market research for this next stage of Numo.

• Tom is a UHI1 grad that used the tech build in his Capstone project at the core of his token launchpad, Flaunch:

  • Flaunch was launched as a day 0 Uniswap V4 protocol to offer token launching that empowered the creator whilst protecting the traders. Since then, it's seen over $100 million in trading volume, and currently has over $6 million TVL.

  • The learnings from Atrium Academy reduced the amount of time in learning a new technology by magnitudes, teaching both core and periphery context and approaches.

  • Tom loved his UHI experience enough that he’s come back to serve as Lead Instructor for UHI Cohorts UHI6 onwards and will be leading 2026 cohorts.

• Ryan from Usher Labs joined UHI3 and has spent 2025 working on Fiet Protocol which recently launched on mainnet:

  • A major milestone for us in 2025 was validating Fiet Protocol on Arbitrum mainnet via an experimental. It confirmed our hypothesis regarding how new markets integrate with the Uniswap ecosystem, and where initial trade volume will be acquired.

  • Early 2026 will be entirely dedicated to operating Fiet Protocol internally on mainnet. This covers capital efficient crypto-crypto markets, while onboarding early partners for crypto-fx markets. We will be raising in Q1 2026 on a SAFE, with token warrants.

  • Atrium Academy and the Uniswap Hook Incubator provided the education necessary to support our developments on Uniswap. We refer to the course materials even now.

• Cristiano and Ingrid were part of UHI1 and joined HPA this year to continue work on Levery:

  • One recent milestone we’re really proud of is the step-change in Levery’s institutional momentum this year as we assembled a top-tier bench of strategic advisors spanning senior leadership across tier-1 finance and the crypto compliance and infrastructure ecosystem. 

  • In early 2026, we’re focused on executing our GTM alongside these advisors and shipping repeatable production deployments. Fundraising-wise, we recently closed our angel round and we’re opening a VC window from January 15 to February 15, 2026.

  • Atrium’s support through UHI + HPA was a real catalyst. UHI provided rigorous technical mentorship and high-signal feedback loops, while HPA pushed us to translate strategy into a product-first execution plan with clear milestones, demos, and go-to-market discipline. 

Hook Development Trends 

What builders prioritized this year

As Uniswap grew in its first year on mainnet, UHI developers chose to focus their projects on the areas that make Uniswap powerful, and worked to improve returns for LPs as well as security and functionality universally. Below are the top project themes from 2025 submissions and some prize-winning hook examples from each:

LP optimization & dynamic fees (57% of projects) 

• Examples:

  • AdaptiveSwap (UHI4, EigenLayer Prize): Dynamic fee Uniswap v4 hook that adjusts swap fees based on external oracle data to protect LPs when volatility spikes by @jeancavallera

  • Advanced Liquidity Manager Hook (UHI4, Flaunch Prize): Dynamic fee management plus automated token launches; optimizes ETH pools with analytics-driven fee changes and revenue sharing to LPs by @koxy_dev

  • Prisma (UHI6, Uniswap Prize): Yield maximizer that auto compounds for passive LPs, using a basic interest rate plus LP fee and liquidity logic by Cristian

Incentives, rewards, yield (37% of projects) 

• Examples:

  • DexProfitWars (UHI4, Uniswap Prize): Turns trading into a gamified competition with leaderboards and rewards tied to profitable order flow by @0x_flwr, 

  • YOLO Protocol (UHI5, Across Prize, Circle Prize, Ink Prize, Uniswap Prize): Modular DeFi engine that combines CDP stablecoins, synthetic assets and native yield looping into a single Uniswap v4 hook to deliver leveraged, web2-like yield looping on-chain by @AlvinYap510

  • Bonded Hooks (UHI6, Uniswap Prize): Drag and drop hook compositions with FOMO and Gamefi style mechanics that reward participation and LP behavior by @JammaBeans

Cross-chain, Unichain, routing (30% of projects)

• Examples:

  • Liquidity Oracle (UHI4, EigenLayer Prize): Unichain-focused data layer that tracks liquidity behavior in v4 pools and feeds it into hooks as an oracle, enabling smarter cross-pool routing and decisions by @SuriPuri23 & @0xEricselvig

  • RampHook (UHI5, Across Prize) On ramp hook that holds liquidity in USDC but delivers “any token” to users across chains, using cross chain routing logic by Alejandro

  • OpSwap – American Options on Unichain (UHI6, Uniswap Prize) Options protocol that is explicitly Unichain native, using hooks and routing logic tailored to that environment by @lababidi 

MEV, execution, orderflow (29% of projects) 

• Examples:

  • Detoxer (UHI4, Uniswap Prize): A v4 hook suite that adjusts fees and routing to blunt MEV extraction and redirect some value back to LPs by @web3yurii

  • FrontrunThis (UHI5, EigenLayer Prize, Uniswap Prize): MEV aware execution layer that uses dark pool style orderflow plus EigenLayer infra to reduce frontrunning by @vansh_sahay & @rahulbarmann

  • LVR Auction Hook (UHI6, EigenLayer Prize): Auction based mechanism that redistributes LVR and MEV into LP revenue streams rather than giving it to external searchers by @cnaj_xyz & Cryptanu

Security, compliance, risk (19% of projects)

• Examples:

  • PumpUp (UHI4, Arbitrum Prize, EigenLayer Prize) Meme style token system that wraps reputation and security constraints around speculative activity to reduce outright scams by Saurabh

  • kvhook (UHI5, Ink Prize) KYC and compliance aware v4 hook that lets only verified users access specific pools, making institutional or regulated flows possible by @daniel__boye

  • AlphaEngineHook (UHI6, EigenLayer Prize, Fhenix Prize) Privacy-preserving Uniswap v4 hook that runs encrypted strategies so top traders can compete to generate yield for LPs without revealing their edge by @kr_nilay27 & @consentsam_

Request for Hooks: What to Build in 2026

Building on 2025's momentum, the 2026 Uniswap Hook Incubator Hookathons will focus on four strategic themes designed to drive innovation in areas where Atrium Academy and Uniswap Foundation see the greatest potential for ecosystem growth.

While the core curriculum and cohort lectures for the Uniswap Hook Incubator will remain consistent for all cohorts, each of the four 2026 Hookathons will offer focused Guest Workshops and Office Hours that help drive innovation on the theme, as well as specific prize pools focused on the best idea meeting the theme criteria.

Want to plan ahead for the year, here’s a preview of the themes so you can start cooking on ideas:

UHI8 (January- March 2026): Specialized Markets

Focus: Asset-Class Specific Liquidity

The first Hookathon of 2026 challenges builders to create bespoke liquidity systems tailored to specific assets, trade sizes, and chains. Generic AMMs served DeFi well in its early days, but the future belongs to specialized markets optimized for their unique use cases.

Hooks that you could build:

• Hook templates optimized for RWAs, stablecoins, or long-tail tokens with custom pricing curves and risk parameters

• Chain-localized routing hooks that optimize execution for Base, Optimism, Arbitrum, or emerging L2s

• Large-cap pair hooks with block-based execution or segmented order flow to handle institutional-size trades

• Stablecoin liquidity managers with dynamic fee adjustment and automated rebalancing based on peg stability

• Fractionalized LP position systems that make concentrated liquidity accessible to retail through NFT-like shares

Apply by January 4th to join UHI8 and participate in this Hookathon

UHI9 (April- June 2026): The Yield-Protected AMM

Focus: Impermanent Loss & Yield Systems

This next Hookathon tackles DeFi's longest-standing LP challenge: impermanent loss. With hooks, we can finally build AMMs that protect liquidity providers while unlocking sustainable onchain yield.

Hooks that you could build:

• Impermanent loss insurance hooks that offset losses through dynamic rebalancing, premium accrual, or integrated derivatives

• YieldBasis-style fixed-income systems built entirely on hooks, creating predictable returns for LPs through structured products

• Delta-neutral hooks that automatically hedge LP exposure using per-block micro-rebalancing, options protocols, or external hedging

• Fee-smoothing mechanisms that reinvest or distribute yield over time, creating sustainable revenue streams

• Cross-pool hedging routers that match opposing liquidity positions across correlated pairs to neutralize directional risk

Apply by March 22nd to join UHI9 and participate in this Hookathon

UHI10 (July - September 2026): The Fair Flow Frontier

Focus: Sustainable Liquidity & MEV Protection

The third Hookathon addresses value leakage. Even with Aegis, Angstrom, and other pioneering MEV-resistant hooks, there's massive room for creative solutions that protect LPs and make volatile-pair liquidity sustainable at low fees.

Hooks that you could build:

• Hooks that randomize swap ordering, introduce execution delays, or use probabilistic settlement to neutralize sandwich attacks

• Time-weighted execution windows that spread trades across blocks to reduce MEV surface area

• Fee rebate systems tied to order flow quality, rewarding good actors and penalizing toxic flow

• Hybrid routing between private orderflow systems (CoW Protocol, Flashbots Protect) and public Uniswap pools

• Protocol-native MEV auction hooks where LPs recapture a percentage of extracted value instead of losing it

Apply by June 21st to join UHI10 and participate in this Hookathon

UHI11 (October - December 2026): Curated Liquidity

Focus: Active Management & Curation

The final Hookathon of 2026 bridges DeFi asset management with Uniswap liquidity. Hooks enable curators and automated strategies to manage positions directly, bringing Wall Street-caliber portfolio management onchain.

Hooks that you could build:

• Vault-managed or token-gated hook modules where curators control strategy parameters and LP access

• Curated LP networks where depositors follow professional managers, similar to copy-trading but for liquidity provision

• Hooks that auto-rebalance positions using offchain signals, oracle triggers, or machine learning models

• Performance fee systems, strategy backtesting infrastructure, and seamless migration between hook-based strategies

• Reputation-weighted curation where top performers gain increased AUM and management responsibility

Apply by September 20th to join UHI11 and participate in this Hookathon

2026 is your chance to start building!

Whether you're a seasoned Solidity developer looking to master v4 hooks or a founder building the next breakthrough DeFi protocol, there's never been a better time to get involved.

Next Steps:

• Apply to the next UHI cohort: Eight weeks of intensive, hands-on hook development with mentorship from Uniswap engineers and DeFi leaders. Applications open at atrium.academy/uniswap

• Explore Hook Atlas: Discover live projects, find inspiration, and see integration opportunities at hookatlas.com

• Join our events: Weekly workshops, AMAs, and project showcases open to all v4 developers. Subscribe here. 

• Start building: The v4 template repo, documentation, and developer resources are all waiting at docs.uniswap.org

2026 is about going deeper: solving the hard problems, building sustainable primitives, and creating moats in specialized verticals. The four Hookathon themes point the way, but the breakthrough innovations will come from you.

The future of DeFi is programmable, specialized, and hook-native. Let's build it together.

About the Uniswap Hook Incubator

The Uniswap Hook Incubator is a nine-week, cohort-based program run by Atrium Academy and funded by the Uniswap Foundation. It provides experienced Solidity developers with hands-on training in v4 hook development, culminating in a capstone Hookathon where teams compete for prizes. With nearly 500 graduates and 420+ hooks shipped, UHI has become the primary onboarding path for v4 builders. Tuition is fully covered by the Uniswap Foundation.

gm ga gn ☀🌙

Can’t believe it’s November! 2025 has been an amazing year packed with talented devs building quality hooks. As we hit the final two months of 2025, we’re  back with a fresh round of updates, opportunities, and events for Atrium alumni, from IRL meetups in Buenos Aires to new platforms helping you build your next hook and find your next role.

Let’s dive in.

Atrium Academy at DevConnect: See you in Buenos Aires 🇦🇷

Heading to DevConnect? We’ll be there all week,  and we’d love to see you.

Here’s where to find us:

• ⚽ Uniswap Cup: Saturday, Nov 16, come cheer on the Atrium team as we battle for football supremacy. The team roster is set, but you can still soak in the vibes. If you're in the area, come hang out cheer OR get involved from anywhere and join in the unicup.fun prediction game (built with v4 hooks!).

• 🏠 Uniswap House: Monday & Tuesday, Nov 17-18, Uniswap Foundation is hosting a space for builders and UHI devs will have a special section for networking, brainstorming and hanging out. While the event is now full, you can join the waitlist if you're not already attending. We hope to see you! Bonus points if you come up with Hookathon inspiration or teammates and join the Hookathon starting on Nov 24th.

• 🍹 Liquidity Lounge: Monday, Nov 17, in the evening after you’re done building at Uniswap House (or whatever your Monday plans are), we’ll host a low key Happy Hour nearby. Register here to join us.
  
  If you’re coming to Buenos Aires, be sure to join the telegram group here so you don't miss a thing. 

Introducing Hook Atlas 🌐

The Hooks ecosystem has exploded.... and now, you can see the best all in one place.

Hook Atlas is a brand new directory for Uniswap v4 Hooks. It’s a curated source of production examples, integration ideas, and opportunities.

Hook Atlas exists to map the landscape of hooks built, spark new ideas for what to build, and connect you with the resources available for builders. Whether you’re looking for inspiration or simply connecting with what’s live today, Hook Atlas can help!

🔗 Explore Hook Atlas
🧵 Read the launch thread

Hiring for Web3’s Future: Cyfrin Jobs 💼

Cyfrin just launched Cyfrin Jobs, a jobs board and recruitment platform designed to transform how protocols find talent and how developers discover and land their dream roles.

You can browse open roles from audited teams, post your own listings, and more. Check out their post introducing the job board here. 

If you’re looking for your next role, or ready to hire, this is worth a bookmark.

🔗 Join the future of Web3 hiring →

The Next Hookathon is Coming 🪝

It’s time to build again.

The next Uniswap Hook Incubator Hookathon (UHI7) kicks off on Monday, November 24 and runs until December 12, with Fhenix and EigenLayer returning as sponsors.

Whether you’re picking up your old project, experimenting with a new hook design, or joining as a mentor, we’d love to see alumni back in the arena.

🧾 Lock-in form goes live next week, so keep an eye on Discord and your inbox.

What Have You Been Building? 🧱

UHI alumni are shipping some incredible things lately. And we want to capture all your good news.

Fill out this super quick survey, and help us better understand you as a builder and what you need to continue your DeFi journey. We’ll take your feedback into account as we’re adding new perks and resources.  

We’ll also work with Uniswap Foundation to highlight some alumni in upcoming public events and a few lucky alumni will get new swag as a reward for filling this out. 

Even if you haven’t shipped something you want to share, take 2 minutes to fill out the survey and tell us what’s important to you.

Got something you’re launching or want to share with the community?
Hit us up at team@atrium.academy — we’d love to feature it in the next drop.

Until next time,
Team Atrium
Atrium Academy

Security that Starts Before the Audit

Audits are a milestone, but they’re not the beginning. Too often, we’ve seen teams come into audit day with messy code leading to ballooning costs and wasted cycles.

Pre-Audit Scans have the power to flip that script. They are tools and services (exactly what is offered depends on the company) that you can use while you build in order to ensure that you’re building and testing with a security focus in mind well ahead of any audit or official deployment. They help you:

• Catch vulnerabilities early, while you’re still iterating

• Ship cleaner code into audits and save on costs

• Move faster, with the confidence that your foundation is strong

Security isn’t just a checkbox. It’s a crucial part of building something people can trust.

Powered by the Best in the Space

We’re excited to collaborate with Areta as they launch pre-audit scans with leading providers who all share our builder-first ethos:

• Olympix (official UFSF scan partner)

• Octane Security

• AlmanaxAI

• Sherlock DeFi

They’ve all been building the battle-tested tooling designed to make security a part of the way you build.

Discount for Atrium Alumni

With Pre-Audit Scans now live on Areta Market, UHI Devs have access to security coverage from the first line of code through post-deployment monitoring.

We’re excited to bring this perk to our Alumni and we continue to expand our support on our mission to give every DeFi builder the resources to go from idea to company with security, speed, and confidence.

All UHI Alumni will receive a special discount on pre-audit scans through the Areta Marketplace. When choosing a pre-audit scan with Areta:

• Every UHI Alum is eligible for a 20% discount 

• UHI Hookathon Winners are eligible for a 50% discount (and this retroactively applies to past hookathon winners!)

Start Scanning Today

Ready to explore you options? Check out the available Pre-Audit Scans now. 3 simple steps!

1. Go to the Marketplace to sign up: https://marketplace.areta.io

2. Sign up as a project, and select “Pre-Audit Scan” when requesting a quote.

3. You’ll have the option to select if you are a UHI Alumni and/or Winner to access the related discounts.

It’s that easy to start proactively building towards a secure launch and a stress-free audit!

Happy Building! 

Atrium Academy Team

Back with another drop of updates, announcements, and celebrations for the Atrium community.

Let's dive in.

Founder Perks for Alumni 🚀

We've been busy finding incredible opportunities for Alums:

Para
Para is a wallet and authentication platform purpose-built for composability. It makes it easy to embed secure, multi-chain wallets directly into your app—without sacrificing power or user experience. With Para, developers get the building blocks for seamless onboarding and robust auth flows, whether they’re building walletless UX or scaling a full ecosystem of apps.

🔗 Announcement
📺 Watch the event

Chronicle Labs
Chronicle is decentralized infrastructure for fast, verifiable onchain data—built for teams that care about reliability, cost transparency, and censorship resistance. It gives developers access to oracle feeds they can trust, without sacrificing speed or decentralization. Whether you're shipping a DeFi protocol or experimenting with a new primitive, Chronicle makes high-integrity data easy to access and integrate.

🔗 Announcement
📺 Catch the session

These partnerships aren't just announcements—they're real opportunities for our community to build, grow, and scale their projects with proven infrastructure. And be sure to check out these partnerships and more tips and tools for Alumni in the Graduation Pathways. 

It's Hookathon Time! Mark Your Calendars 📅

Next Hookathon starts soon: September 1st

We're excited to welcome back EigenLayer as a sponsor, and to have Fhenix joining us for the first time.

Ready to ship your next hook? Lock in your participation in the hookathon by filling out this form: https://tally.so/r/wLNXMl 

Note that there’s a slightly updated process for confirming your participation in this Hookathon. When you fill out the Project Lock-in form, you’ll get a confirmation email with a unique code for your project. Keep that code handy for the progress updates and your final submission! 

Interested in building, but looking for a team?

Next Friday, August 22nd at 10amEDT, Atrium is offering an optional session to help interested devs find teammates and cofounders to build with for the UHI6 Hookathon.

What: Hookmates: Meet Cofounders & Teammates for the UHI6 Hookathon
When: Friday, August 22, 2025 at 10amEDT
Where: We'll use Gatherround for the session. Devs will be added to a calendar invite once they've filled out the form below
What you'll do: You'll meet with 1:1 up to 8 other peers to talk hook ideas and potential hookathon collabs in quick 5 min sessions, to do some quick exploration on who you might want to build with
How to join: Fill out this form. It's not long, and will help us use your time well in the session

Can't join next Friday? You can still fill out the tally form so your information is captured. After the event, we'll share a directory of Devs interested in building and joining teams so that it's easier to connect with others looking to collaborate. 

We hope you’re excited to join in again, and we can't wait to see what you'll build next.

UHI5 Prizewinners 🏆

UHI5 wrapped a few weeks back–with some of our biggest participation yet!

→ 100+ devs
→ 57 hooks
→ $50k in prizes

Huge thanks to Uniswap Foundation, Eigenlayer, Across, Ink, Circle, and Flaunch for making this possible.

🧵 Be sure to check out our prize thread to celebrate the prize-winning hooks from the UHI5 Demo Day.

For the full list of all hooks built at UHI since the first Hookathon, head over to our Hooks Directory, where you can sort hooks by cohort and prizewinner status!

Whether you shipped solo or in a team, whether you won or just pushed something bold—we're proud of you.

Security Resources for Your Hook: Introducing Areta Market🛡

As you continue developing your UHI project, professional security auditing is the critical step towards deployment. We're excited to share a resource that's helping UHI alumni secure their projects efficiently.

What is Areta Market?

Areta Market is a specialized platform connecting Uniswap ecosystem projects with 25 vetted security providers. It streamlines the traditionally complex audit process while providing opportunities for financial support.

How the Platform Works:

→ Submit your project requirements once
→ Receive 10-12 competitive quotes from pre-vetted providers
→ Compare proposals transparently in one place
→ Access typical cost savings of up to 30%
→ Work with firms auditing major DeFi protocols

Funding Support:

Beyond competitive marketplace pricing, additional support is available with the Uniswap Foundation Security Fund (UFSF). There are Monthly applications (submit by the 7th of the month). Selected projects receive up to 100% coverage. Projects not initially selected remain eligible for retroactive funding for one quarter when using Areta Market.

35% of projects receiving UFSF subsidies are UHI alumni!

Getting Started:

Professional security is essential for any protocol handling real value. Areta Market makes this process more accessible for builders at your stage.

→ Visit Areta Market to learn more: Areta.Market

→ Check out the Audit Readiness Playbook, and see the announcement here.

As an amazing launch feature, every open marketplace booking now enters the Marketplace Lottery: Approximately every 10th audit receives 50% off automatically. Just post your audit requirements and select an offer from one of the providers on the open marketplace!

UFSF September cohort opens: The uniswap foundation security fund provides up to 100% coverage for security audit costs to projects building in the uniswap ecosystem. Applications for the next cohort close on September 7, 2025.

Got something you're building or launching? We want to brag about you. Hit us up at team@atrium.academy and we'll feature it in our next drop.

Until next time,

Team Atrium
Atrium Academy

Back again with another drop of updates, shoutouts, and spotlights for the Atrium community.

Let’s jump in.

New Brand. New Site. Same Dev-First Mission.

Crypto has spent billions trying to "onboard developers."
But too often, we burn through them instead—one-off grants, no follow-up, no staying power.

We launched Atrium to take a different approach.
Not weekend hackathons. Not vanity metrics. Real follow-through.

In the past year, we've run 4 UHI cohorts.
→ 2,000+ applicants
→ 700+ onboarded
→ 200+ hooks shipped
→ $150K+ in prizes

Your projects are even turning into real companies.

Now we’ve launched our site—atrium.academy—to reflect the model that’s working.

Same bones:
→ The curation of an accelerator
→ The spirit of a hackathon
→ The intensity of a bootcamp

Just packaged up with a sharper story and more ways for you—and future devs—to plug in.

🧵 Here’s the launch thread on X
👀 Second protocol partner announcement coming soon

Atrium Academy is live on Farcaster and LinkedIn

Yes you heard that right, we somehow became a more web2 and web3 brand in the same week :) 

Join the new Farcaster atriumacademy channel

• Why: Farcaster is growing rapidly (again) and is a great “Little Channel” to invest in as a highly engaged onchain community. 

• Action: post GM and/or share your hook page

• P.s. We’ll soon start working with teams for a “hook of the week” discussion but we encourage you to break the ice and share a bit about your project yourself :) 

Follow the new LinkedIn school page

• Why: We want developers to be proud of their education.

• Action: Add Atrium Academy to your “Education” or “Experience”. Link to your onchain certificate to “Licenses & certificates” 

P.s. Shoutout to Karan and Yurii for doing this already!

UHI4 Prizewinners

UHI4 is wrapped–and it was our biggest cohort yet.

71+ devs. 52 hooks. $47k in prizes.

Huge thanks to Uniswap Foundation, Eigenlayer, Arbitrum, Flaunch, and Brevis.

🧵 Head over to our thread to catch a full rundown of the event and celebrate the prize-winning hooks from the UHI4 Demo Day.

For the full list of all hooks built at UHI since its inception last year, head over to our Hooks Directory, where you can sort hooks by cohort and prizewinner status!

Whether you shipped solo or in a team, whether you won or just pushed something bold—we’re proud of you.

Grad Pathways Now Live

You shipped a hook. Now what?

Whether you're building a company or want to score a grant, the new Grad Pathways Guidebook breaks it all down. If you’ve got ambitious goals for your project and your future, Atrium Academy and the Uniswap Foundation are excited to help you achieve them.

As a first step, we’ve officially launched Graduation Pathways for UHI alumni. This Guidebook is your first step in understanding opportunities for brand exposure, UF grants, and securing funding for your company.

📚 Read the Guidebook and let us know what else you’d like to see. We’re building this with you.

That’s it for this drop.

Got something you’re building or launching? We want to brag about you. Hit us up at team@atrium.academy and we’ll feature it in our next drop.

Until next time,
Team Atrium

Welcome to the very first edition of the Atrium Newsletter.

Let’s jump in.

Last month, we wrapped up Demo Day for the third cohort of UHI!.UHI3 saw 80+ developers build 55 hooks. Our prize pool was the biggest yet: $43,000, provided by Uniswap Foundation, Eigenlayer, Arbitrum, and Brevis, Arbitrum.

We had returning alums come back with a bang, as well as new faces, among the prizewinners…

Head over here to check out the full list of prize-winning hooks from the UHI3 Demo Day, which ranged from dynamic fee hooks to AI agent index funds.

And for the full list of all hooks built at UHI since its inception in March, head over to our projects directory, where you can sort hooks by cohort and prizewinner status!

Starting late last year, we’ve been running weekly live events to keep you abreast of all things v4 — including Unichain office hours, auditing workshops, and Project Demos.

We plan on doing deep dives into community-built hooks (i.e., hooks built by all of you) every 1-2 months. Our events are attended by top devs and industry thought leaders, and are a great way to promote your project.

(We’ve also launched our Developer Journey profiles, another avenue to promote the exciting projects that UHI alumni have built. Examples: Levery, flaunchgg, Unimarket, Rugguard)

We’re excited to announce an opportunity tailored to UHI alums & hook builders: the Uniswap Foundation Security Fund (UFSF), in collaboration with Areta.

The UFSF is a $1 million fund made available by a Uniswap Foundation Grant that subsidizes security audits for projects building Uniswap v4 hooks. Selected applicants gain access to high-quality security services from whitelisted security providers.

The UFSF will subsidize up to 100% of the audit fees for successful applicants. Several UHI projects have already been granted subsidies — congratulations to Lumis, Unicord, Tenor, Gamma Strategies, and LIKWID.FI!

Applications for the UFSF open in Q1 2025 — read more here, or declare your interest here.

The Uniswap Foundation is launching its Ambassador program in 2025.

This new program, designed with UHI graduates in mind, will provide a chance for folks passionate about Uniswap (both the tech and the community) to grow the Uniswap ecosystem through content and/or technical contributions.

UF Ambassadors will be hand-picked from an applicant pool composed solely of UHI graduates. Ambassadors will serve a term of 6-12 months and can apply for an extension of this term, depending on their performance as mentors, content creators, and community/event leads.

Read more and apply here.

Every single week, funders & investors ask us to connect them with UHI alumni who are continuing to build their hooks, raising money, hiring, auditing, etc.

We want to connect you to them.

Keep us up to date with your progress by telling Manu the following:

1. Have you continued working on your hook after UHI? Do you intend to?

2. Are you looking for funding?

3. Have you audited your hook, or do you intend to audit your hook?

4. Where do you need the most help right now?

ETHDenver is coming up!

Uniswap Foundation is planning to organize builder gyms / coworking sessions on Feb 26 and Feb 28. We’ll collaborate with them to ensure UHI devs are invited.

Stay up-to-date by joining this telegram group for UHI devs going to Denver.

Background: how did you get into web3 and into the Uniswap ecosystem?

I first got into Web3 (or crypto) in high school. I went to a boarding school and Bitcoin mining was all the rage in 2014. So I assembled a mining rig with two Radeon 7950s to mine Feathercoin in my dorm room. My first real “job” in web3 was during DeFi summer, when I was hired by a CEX market maker to do CEX/DEX arbitrage, as on-chain trading volume was picking up at the time.

One interesting fact is Uniswap is actually not the first DEX that I used. I used EtherDelta in 2017 and KyberSwap around 2020; neither of them is permissionless. What drew me into the Uniswap ecosystem is the permissionless nature of it and the fact anyone can create and list a token there.

Why do you want to build on v4?

I think v4 is a continuation of the permissionless culture that Uniswap has always pioneered. v4 allows developers to customize each liquidity pool to their content, and v4 hooks run permissionless on Uniswap. I think this will enable a lot of experimentation and rapid iteration for DeFi.

Why did you join UHI? How was the experience being a dev in UHI?

Our team joined UHI because we believe it’s a great opportunity to spend some quality time building and experimenting with interesting ideas. UHI is unique compared to other incubators because there are no strings attached, whereas many other incubators take significant ownership in the protocol even before the team has built anything. We think the transparency and openness of UHI has attracted many devs who have great ideas and just want to ship them.

One aspect of UHI we appreciate is its educational content. Our team came from a smart contract auditor background, and we have audited many Uniswap V2/V3 forks in the past, so we are familiar with the Uniswap architecture and the math. But I can imagine the educational content (i.e. workshops and office hours) has helped many participants tremendously.

Tell us about your project: What inspired it? If you presented at Demo Day/won a prize, what was the experience like? What did the project lead to after UHI?

The inspiration behind Degen Options emerged from the need to innovate how trading volume is incentivized in DeFi. As part of UHI, we aimed to create a feature that aligns the interests of traders, liquidity providers, and long-term token holders. We are honored to be invited to present Degen Options on Uniswap Day at ETHCC. Degen Options will launch as a Semantic Layer ecosystem project.

What are you exploring next?

Besides building Semantic Layer, we are exploring creative ways of using Uniswap v4. We believe we will see a lot more on-chain transaction volume coming from AI agents, and we are exploring unique ways that AI agents can use Uniswap v4.

What impact do you hope your work will have?

We hope Degen Options will transform how trading incentives are structured in DeFi by aligning the interests of traders, liquidity providers, and token holders. By rewarding trading volume with non-fungible options tied to a token's future performance, we aim to promote sustainable growth, reduce short-term token dumping, and foster stronger community engagement. Ultimately, we want to set a new standard for incentive design that balances immediate participation with long-term ecosystem stability.

How do you hope to see DeFi evolve over the next few years?

We hope to see smart contract security improved, so users can worry less when using DeFi applications. Currently, we have smart contract audits and bug bounties. We look forward to having more lines of defence in DeFi. At Semantic Layer, we are actively researching how we can support dApps in adding additional lines of defence.

Background: how did you get into web3 and into the Uniswap ecosystem? 

I entered the web3 space through Bitcoin mining before COVID-19, but my deeper involvement in the web3 industry began during my time at ConsenSys, where I provided technical support for Layer 2 solutions like Arbitrum and enterprise blockchain platforms. After ConsenSys, I explored different aspects of web3 through my own projects – launching an NFT project and leading a GameFi DAO. 

My path to the Uniswap ecosystem started after being laid off from ConsenSys, when I discovered Atrium Academy while working on personal projects and trading memecoins. This led to a transformative journey from participating in Atrium Academy to becoming a Uniswap Foundation (UF) Ambassador, and eventually joining as a Developer Support Associate.

Why do you want to build on v4? 

After experiencing different aspects of web3 development, v4's potential to revolutionize the DeFi landscape really captured my attention. The hooks functionality introduces unprecedented flexibility for customizing liquidity pools, which opens up possibilities for both innovative trading mechanisms and positive social impact. 

Having worked with various protocols and seeing their limitations, I recognize v4's capacity to disrupt the current DeFi meta and create more efficient, secure, and inclusive financial systems.

Why did you join the Uniswap Hook Incubator (UHI)? How was the experience being a dev in UHI?

I joined UHI's second cohort through Atrium Academy because I saw an opportunity to contribute meaningful solutions to the ecosystem. Having participated in other technical programs like Amazon Cloud Institute, I found UHI's approach particularly compelling. While shorter in duration, it offered seasoned developers a clear pathway to learning about a new product and ecosystem platform for building innovative use cases. The experience was eye-opening - the power and flexibility of v4 hooks exceeded my expectations. Being part of UHI provided not just technical knowledge but also connected me with a community of innovative developers all working to push the boundaries of what's possible in DeFi. 

What really set UHI apart for me is its active alumni network and the unique opportunity to return to work on existing capstone projects or start entirely new ones in later cohorts. I think this creates a dynamic environment where there's a constant influx of new talent and ideas, fostering ongoing innovation and collaboration. The program's focused curriculum, supplemented by targeted workshops with ecosystem partners, ensured we gained deep, practical knowledge of the Uniswap v4 protocol. You also get a real sense of community because of the hackathon-like structure that helps build the relationships needed to take a very technical idea from conception to something that is demo’ed in front of VCs and a growing network of high octane peers.

Tell us about your project: What inspired it? What did the project lead to after UHI? 

During UHI, I focused on developing Rugguard, one of three ideas I had considered. The project was inspired by my experiences in the ecosystem and the need for better security mechanisms. I also had ideas for a non-profit impact-focused hook, recognizing the potential for v4 to create positive social change. 

The project and UHI experience opened doors, leading to roles as a UF Ambassador and eventually a full-time position as a Developer Support Associate, where I now help with integrations for the upcoming Unichain launch.

What are you working on at Uniswap Foundation?

My journey with Uniswap started with a deep interest in hooks, which led me to join Atrium Academy, where I worked alongside a teammate to develop our project, Rugguard. This experience opened the door to joining the Uniswap Foundation's Developer Ambassador program, where I helped support developers in the Uniswap Discord community. The role evolved into a contracting position with the Foundation, focusing on Unichain support and v4 developer outreach to help build the ecosystem. 

Now, as a full-time Developer Support Associate at the Foundation, I'm dedicated to onboarding infrastructure providers and other DeFi/web3 partners into the Unichain/Uniswap v4 ecosystem. I'm particularly excited about working with these partners to leverage v4's capabilities and create innovative solutions that will shape the future of DeFi.

What impact do you hope your work will have? 

I hope my work helps make DeFi more accessible, secure, and impactful. Through my roles in developer support and ecosystem development, I aim to help lower the barriers for new developers entering the space while ensuring the technology is used responsibly to create positive change.

How do you hope to see DeFi evolve over the next few years? 

I envision DeFi becoming more accessible while maintaining high security standards. With innovations like v4 hooks, we can create more sophisticated financial products that serve real-world needs while protecting users. I'm particularly excited about the potential for combining DeFi with social impact initiatives, making financial services more inclusive and beneficial for everyone.

Background: how did you get into web3 and into the Uniswap ecosystem?

I have always been a builder at heart, which led me to gravitate towards startups and open-source projects very early on. As I spent time building, it took me a while to get good at it, and then not as much time to become great. As I delved deeper into technology and programming, I found myself enjoying complexity more — especially the challenge of breaking things down to eliminate that complexity.

I discovered crypto very early on in 2010, but I didn’t pay much attention to it until later when Ethereum introduced smart contracts. During that time, I realized how challenging it was to work on Ethereum, which motivated me to create solutions that could help make it easier for others. This was essentially the beginning of my journey into Web3, and years later, I find myself writing smart contracts for multi-million dollar protocols. The rapid pace of this space means there is always more to learn and explore—it's truly unlike anything else.

I first encountered Uniswap during the V2 days, having only heard about V1 a couple of times. The AMM concept intrigued me because it simplified a complex process and operated entirely on-chain, simultaneously unlocking a new primitive for trading at that time. I ended up building tools for Uniswap V2, then for V3, and now for v4. Along the way, I met many people and learned a great deal from the experience. I've never looked back!

Why do you want to build on v4?

Uniswap has consistently been at the forefront of on-chain trading technology, particularly in the area of AMMs. Although Uniswap V2 and V3 serve as strong foundations for development, they lack the ability to influence their underlying behavior. This is where Uniswap v4 becomes particularly intriguing. v4 maintains the core features of the AMM while introducing the ability to influence it’s behavior, offering a new level of control that was previously unavailable without creating an entirely new AMM from scratch.

My experience with Uniswap V3 allows me to envision the possibilities that this new capability offers. I can build experiences that were previously impossible, such as developing a new incentivization model using a Concentrated Incentives Hook, creating a lending protocol for liquidity, or even establishing a prediction market entirely within the hook to facilitate trading. The ability to implement custom logic during the lifecycle truly unlocks a new set of capabilities, and that is what excites me about building with Uniswap v4.

Why did you join UHI? How was the experience being a dev in UHI?

I joined the very first batch of the Uniswap Hook Incubator (UHI). At that time, I was already exploring Uniswap v4, which was in active development. UHI provided an excellent opportunity for me to deepen my understanding and connect with like-minded individuals. It was clear that Uniswap v4 would introduce a new primitive that would attract attention in the space, so I was determined to get a head start and develop on top of it. Having previously built projects with Uniswap V2 and V3, I already had ideas for v4, and joining UHI allowed me to start bringing those ideas to life while learning from others.

The experience during UHI was fantastic. I gained valuable insights about v4 and also about various other topics. I met many like-minded individuals, including the Atrium team, who were incredibly welcoming and always eager to help. Their support motivated me to strive for more and achieve greater things.

Tell us about your project: What inspired it? If you presented at Demo Day/won a prize, what was it like presenting & winning? What did the project lead to after UHI?

I built several projects during my time at UHI, targeting an existing pain point and trying to solve it the best I could think of.

Liquidity incentivization is a core concept in DeFi, one that goes far beyond any one protocol and exists universally across the entire space. It has always been hard to incentivize the right liquidity group and even more so to manage it appropriately. This issue inspired the Concentrated Incentives hook, which allows the pool creator to specifically incentivize the current tick or an active price range, ensuring that protocols can effectively reward the liquidity that meets their needs while giving the most rewards to those who help achieve these goals.

Another concept that's interesting to me is Prediction Markets. However, nearly all trading for the market options currently happens on order books, which is really hard to manage and even harder to perfectly create a spread for. This inspired the Unimarket hook, which created a prediction market inside the hook and allowed people to trade the outcomes directly via Uniswap v4, unlocking liquidity and trading for the options.

I was incredibly proud that both of these hooks received prizes during the UHI Demo Day! Presenting to an audience and explaining how these projects work was a surreal experience. I plan to develop both of these hooks further as I gather more insights into demand and engage with others to understand how they address specific pain points.

What are you exploring next?

I’m one of those people who enjoys juggling multiple projects at once. This approach helps me learn new things and explore a wide variety of interests. However, it also means I end up spending an excessive amount of time building things — though we’ll leave that topic for another time. 

Currently, I’m working with Reserve Protocol to develop the next generation of the index protocol. I also run a small one-man Web3 studio called Metacrypt, which hosts several of my projects, including CreateMyToken and Unispark. Soon, there will also be Zaha Studio, focusing exclusively on projects related to Uniswap v4 and Unichain.

I’m very excited about building with Uniswap v4 and Unichain in the coming weeks and months, and I can’t wait to explore and discuss interesting new ideas!

What impact do you hope your work will have?
I'm not sure what to hope for, but all I can think about is leaving a positive impact on the ecosystem.

I enjoy building things, and I often do it simply because I love the process. However, seeing people use and enjoy the products I create brings a level of satisfaction that is truly unparalleled.

As I continue building, I'd love to focus on two things: to create for the joy of building and ensuring that every project leaves the world a little better than I found it. That’s the hope I carry with me, finding ways to innovate and inspire while sticking to my core values.

Background: how did you get into web3 and into the Uniswap ecosystem?

Our journey into web3 began around 2017, driven by a shared fascination with decentralized systems and their transformative potential for traditional finance. Over the years, we contributed to several key initiatives, including working as contributors to ethereum.org, serving as a Developer Advocate for Polygon in LATAM, and participating in Protocol Labs Dev Guild to address bugs in IPFS. In 2020, we began working with web3 more extensively, helping financial market companies build tailored web3 solutions. During this period, we were already avid users of Uniswap and had a strong desire to develop a DeFi solution for our clients.

In late 2022, we founded Wireshape Blockchain, a enterprise EVM network. Now, our full focus is on Levery, where we aim to bridge the gap between traditional finance and DeFi. Uniswap’s innovative ecosystem, especially its leadership in Automated Market Makers (AMMs), provided the perfect foundation for us to bring Levery to life.

Why do you want to build on v4?

Uniswap v4 introduces unparalleled flexibility and efficiency with its innovative features like hooks and improved gas efficiency. These capabilities align perfectly with our goal to bridge traditional finance with DeFi. By building on v4, we can customize liquidity pool behavior, enhance compliance functionalities, and ensure seamless integration for financial institutions. This allows us to offer a robust, future-proof solution that caters to the complex regulatory and operational needs of our clients.

Why did you join UHI? How was the experience being a dev in UHI?

Joining the Uniswap Hook Incubator (UHI) was an easy decision. UHI provided an opportunity to work closely with industry leaders, gain access to critical resources, and collaborate with a vibrant developer community. The experience was transformative. The mentorship, technical guidance, and peer network within UHI helped us refine our product and address real-world challenges in the DeFi space. It also gave us the confidence to bring a compliant DeFi solution to financial institutions globally.

Tell us about your project: What inspired it? If you presented at Demo Day, what was it like presenting? What did the project lead to after UHI?

Levery was inspired by the growing demand from financial institutions to participate in DeFi while maintaining compliance with regulations. We saw an opportunity to build a solution that combines the best of both worlds: the efficiency and accessibility of DeFi with the regulatory adherence of traditional finance.

Presenting at Demo Day was a pivotal moment. It gave us a platform to showcase Levery to an audience of innovators, investors, and peers, validating our vision and gaining invaluable feedback. After UHI, the project gained significant momentum, attracting interest from institutions and earning acceleration support from Santander Bank, which helped us scale further.

What are you exploring next?

We’re focusing on enhancing our infrastructure to support multi-chain capabilities and further optimize liquidity management. We’re also working on advanced compliance tools, such as real-time AML/KYC integration, to ensure seamless adoption by financial institutions. Additionally, we aim to expand our partnerships with banks and explore collaborations with other DeFi protocols to broaden the scope of our services.

What impact do you hope your work will have?

Our ultimate goal is to enable financial institutions to participate in DeFi securely, fostering greater adoption of decentralized finance across the traditional financial sector. By providing a compliant and efficient infrastructure, we hope to lower the barriers to entry and demonstrate that DeFi can coexist with regulatory frameworks. This, in turn, can catalyze broader financial inclusion and innovation in the global economy.

How do you hope to see DeFi evolve over the next few years?

We envision a future where DeFi becomes an integral part of the global financial system.

This includes tighter integrations with traditional finance, greater regulatory clarity, and the development of scalable, interoperable protocols. We hope to see DeFi evolve to prioritize security, user experience, and compliance while maintaining its core principles of decentralization and openness.

With these advancements, DeFi can become a mainstream financial tool accessible to individuals and institutions alike.

Background: how did you get into web3 and into the Uniswap ecosystem?

After leaving education, I moved straight to working at client-facing digital agencies. I always enjoyed emerging technologies, but the majority of clients always wanted the same bread-and-butter WordPress build. There was very little room for innovation.

I had kept up with the blockchain from a distance, and in 2020 I started contributing to NFTX and joined my first EthGlobal hackathon. I was thoroughly pilled.

In 2021 I was fortunate enough to be able to start with Flayer Labs full-time as a Solidity Engineer and have been there since. My web3 career has been focused on NFT-Fi and DeFi since its inception, so exploring and utilising emerging tech to advance to Uniswap V4 was a no-brainer.

Why do you want to build on v4?

My background before entering the web3 space was heavily client focused, developing on the WordPress platform. One of the few charms of WordPress is that it was built on top of a hook-based system allowing developers to extend upon solid, stable core logic to implement their own functionality

When I saw that Uniswap was moving to a singleton model that also used this hook approach it instantly piqued my interest. The inherent gas saving logic is immediately obvious, but with Uniswap V4 allowing for hooks to modify the transaction flow before and after transactions it really opens Pandora’s Box for engineers.

The reason I refer to it as Pandora’s Box is that even though it can bring incredible pool logic that will greatly benefit LPs and EOAs, there is also the possibility of hooks acting maliciously to negatively impact the user’s funds.

Why did you join UHI? How was the experience being a dev in UHI?

UHI came to light at the perfect time. I had been working on a project that heavily depended on Uniswap V4, but with ever-updating dependencies in the V4 core and periphery contracts, it was getting difficult to correctly learn approaches. My experience with Uniswap and DeFi at the time also pretty much just stretched to having a basic grasp of k = x * y. 

Having expert guidance of the course leaders during both live streams and office hours, as well as fast async responses, was invaluable (explicit shoutout to Bhaumik!). Alongside the evolving codebase, the course guides were already knowledgeable of changes and without a doubt saved countless hours.

Tell us about your project: What inspired it? What was it like presenting at Demo Day & winning a prize? What did the project lead to after UHI?

Working on a small project that had fees managed externally of Uniswap. I wanted all fees to be sent as ETH, as recipients would likely just dump the token and subsequently tank the position price.

During the course I validated the idea and was able to prototype it. I continued to formalise it and it turned into the Internal Swap Pool.

Demo Day was a rush, verbalising the issue and showing off the logic. I didn't expect it to be so well received and was taken aback when I received an email saying that I had won a prize.

The hook is now incorporated into two projects that I know of, and has even been audited. I am extremely excited to see it used alongside the Uniswap V4 release.

What are you exploring next?

I am still in my role at Flayer Labs, actively working on developing flaunch.gg and preparing it to launch on Base when Uniswap V4 (eventually) drops. After finishing the UHI program, my confidence in, and approach to, DeFi contract development has skyrocketed, and I have continued to keep abreast of V4 as a focus.

The Internal Swap Pool hook that I developed during the UHI program has taken pride of place in the protocol and has continued to evolve during development.

In the coming weeks I will also be releasing a fortnightly Uniswap V4 newsletter, revolving around hook development, industry news, and sponsored investment and job opportunities. I’ll be spamming it on my socials soon!

What impact do you hope your work will have?

It’s a strange thought; I’ve also just built for the joy of building. They say that “build it and they will come” but the second step was never important to me. I always just wanted to build things that make the user say: “Oh wow... that’s kinda cool.”

To me, allowing all pool fees in ETH and minimising pool impact? That’s kinda cool. I really hope that more hooks continue to implement the hook, and if anyone is interested: I’m always around to help!

How do you hope to see DeFi & the blockchain space evolve over the next few years?

My main hope for DeFi, as well as the blockchain in general, in the coming year is that the separation of chains is obfuscated and interoperability is completely under-the-hood for the end user. This will allow protocols to promote mass adoption and have access to liquidity without explicit off-chain keepers and staggered transactions.