Another year, another hacker extravaganza - introducing the ETHBerlin04 experiences

Every ETHBerlin is different. We love to experiment with the platform we created and see how our audience reacts. This year, thanks to a generous grant, we’ve gone sponsorless. 

What does this mean? 

Instead of the standard sponsor bounties and the usual booths, we invited projects that we love and are friends of ETHBerlin, to submit a proposal to host an experience that nourishes the minds and souls of our hackers, by making ETHBerlin more quirky, colorful, exciting and educational. ETHBerlin is a hackathon first and foremost, but it has always been more than just a hackathon. Offering people cultural experiences is just as important as the environment we provide for hacking.   

We were overwhelmed with amazing proposals, and we worked with the teams to design a diverse range of experiences for our hackers; some are educational, others are entertaining or cultural. Here’s a little preview of what else you can expect at this year’s hackathon, other than hacking, hosted by our co-conspirators. 

Co-Create hosted by RefractionDAO

In the history of media, sound, and related image-based practices, hardly any city in the world has been as impactful in the concept of collaborative performance and presentation as a genre and medium as Berlin. From the early hacklabs, cross-sound performances, and crypto raves, the sense of a joint collaboration has been at the core, inviting artists of many disciplines and genres to create, exhibit and perform together, creating novel social sculptural movements.

It is in this ethos that the Department of Decentralization, in collaboration with Refraction DAO, presents ‘co-create’. The exhibition asks questions in and around identity, open source technology, and participatory frameworks as they relate to contemporary on-chain discourse. The IRL exhibition is inspired by the Bring-Your-Own-Beamer initiative (idea by Rafael Rozendaal, the first BYOB took place in Berlin in 2010, hosted by Rafael and Anne de Vries) and asks presenting artists to consider and bring the device on which they believe the work is best suited. The exhibition is curated via an Open Call.

Exit Through The Gift Shop by DoD

Although we are going sponsorless this year we will still have stellar ETHBerlin04 swag and some of our experience hosts will also distribute some goodies of their own which will be up for grabs in our gift shop. 

Wellness Room by Day, Planetarium by Night, by Scroll

Hosted by Scroll, during the daytime hours there will be yoga, reiki, meditation and breathwork sessions throughout the weekend so hackers can recenter and refresh before the next round of hacking. 

At night the space will transform into a starry night, with areas for hackers to sleep or unwind under the stars with some relaxing music.

Coffee & Books by Eigenlayer

Everyone knows that behind every powerful hackathon there is strong coffee. That’s why the wonderful team at Eigenlayer will be hosting a cafe serving some of the best coffee in Berlin. Drop in for your caffeine boost, and while you’re at it browse through some of the books that should be part of every hacker’s library.

Cocktails at the Cinebar by Celestia 

The old saying goes, “At Club Tropicana drinks are free”, and it’s the same with the cinebar at ETHBerlin, where on Saturday it’s happy hour. But make it the whole night. Celestia will be serving what they do best: vibes, games and some fine cocktails. Starting from 6pm you’ll be able to take a break from your computer and mingle with other teams, mentors, and hackers over a cocktail or two. It might look like Club Tropicana, it might not. We can’t make any promises. 

Cypherpunk Cinema by DoD

For newbies to our hackathon series, our amazing venue is blessed with a cinema and very comfy couches for the ultimate viewing experience. As per ETHBerlin3, we will be curating the cinema on Saturday with movies to inspire you, so you can take a break, kick back, relax and enjoy some good movies. 

Privacy Corner by Web3 Privacy

A hacker-focused safe space where you can get productive feedback on your hackathon project idea, its privacy features & general viability. Expect to connect with a broad range of privacy & decentralized tech experts, pagency framework for privacy use-cases ideation sessions, and feedback loops from experienced hackathon judges. Empowering hackathon teams, one project at a time.

Görli On-chain by Infura

Join the Decentralized Infrastructure Network (DIN) and Consensys Diligence team on a Smart Contract Capture the Flag (CTF) Farcaster Frames challenge. Solve a few riddles via interaction with the contracts on Etherscan to unlock the ability to mint (via Phosphor) a limited edition Görli Commemorative NFT. After Görli's launch in Berlin at Görlicon on Feb 2019, this NFT celebrates the testnet's hard work and now deprecation after processing 300M+ TXs and 10.6M+ blocks. The Smart Contract puzzle will be deployed at EthBerlin and available for the broader audience afterwards. The full experience is contained within a Warpcast Farcaster Frame.

THC @ETHBerlin04 by the Social Dist0rtion Protocol

Social Dist0rtion Protocol (SDP) where the first "o" in "distortion" is a zero, have an important message for you. Their upcoming special operation will unfold at ETHBerlin04, where they urgently require your collaboration to avert a dire human destiny.

SDP are introducing a new THC as in Treasure Hunt Challenge at the event. This challenge, inspired by our manifesto, is set in a dystopian future where surveillance is ubiquitous, all transactions are monitored and controlled by government-operated blockchains, and anonymity is not merely a privilege—it's a crime. 

teledisko hosted by telediskoDAO

The teledisko needs no further explanation. Brought to you by telediskoDAO, it’s the smallest disco on earth - literally an upcycled telephone booth with a disco in it. teledisko earned itself the nickname 'Berlin in a box' and has even been called the peak of German engineering. Born from the Berlin subculture, it is a prime example of how a unique product from the intersection of art, club culture, and high technology can go mainstream and become a global success story.​ While teledisko is the most miniature disco on earth, it is also one of Berlin's top 10 most visited party venues. 

Need to let off some steam in between hacking? Get yourself in the telephone booth and dance it off! 

Family Style, by Avara (Lens)

The Avara team has supported ETHBerlin ever since the first hackathon, remember ETHLend? - for the 2024 edition, the team is creating a fun experience for those that after so much internet, need to disconnect for a while and do something else, something fresh.

Family Style, located in the Library, invites hackers to relax, have some matcha, get some Lens swag live-screen printed by a local Berliner screen printer and hang out with the Lens team. Stani and co-conspirators will be lounging around and hosting impromptu conversations, so grab your matcha, sit and let’s share a hacker family moment.

Midnight Munchies from Base 

We all know hacking is a hunger inducing sport. So we’ve teamed up with Base for a late night pizza delivery to make sure hackers get fed when the hunger kicks in late at night!

Pizza will be served on Saturday, after 22hs. Stay tuned for the mic call, and make sure to get some napkins, greasy fingers guaranteed :) 

Donut Wall by Missing Link

Back by popular demand is the donut wall! It’s exactly what it says on the tin - A wall of donuts for you to get your sugar hit during the weekend.

Courtyard Party courtesy of our frens  

Berlin loves a good Hof party, or courtyard for us English speakers (not to be confused with The Hoff). Put on your dancing shoes (or bring your laptop) and join us in the courtyard as there will be DJs bringing their different vibes, for you to enjoy with a drink/have a dance/hack to (delete as appropriate).

• 17:00 - 19:00: Jommi 
• 19:00 - 21:00: Anna (https://soundcloud.com/innermost3000)
• 21:00 - 23:00: Manu + @blockravers
• 23:00 - 01:00: Manuel

After Party by Entropy & Fuel 

It would not be a hackathon without an after party. It would also not be Berlin without a dose of techno. Huge shoutout to Entropy who are organising an after party of all after parties - Berlin style, and thanks to Fuel for literally giving more fuel (drinks) to the hackers. Once the hackathon is over you can head over to Aeden for a good old rave to end the weekend. 

Finally a big shoutout and thank you to E.G. Galano, Founder of Infura and supporter of ETHBerlin since its inception, for his donation to this year’s ETHBerlin experiences 💛

Huge thanks to all our hosts this year! Looking forward to seeing everyone next weekend at the hackathon extravaganza that is ETHBerlin04.

Love,

Lea, MP & Helena (aka the experiences queens)