Sui Reveals 12 Projects from Its Inaugural Hydropower Accelerator Program
The Sui Foundation has just wrapped up its first Hydropower Accelerator program, spotlighting twelve innovative projects that are now ready to expand within the Sui ecosystem. This announcement marks a significant milestone for the Sui network, which has been fostering growth and innovation in a variety of sectors.
The program, which received hundreds of applications, carefully selected twelve teams to form its initial cohort. These teams are working on projects that span from decentralized finance (DeFi), decentralized physical infrastructure networks (DePIN), to real-world assets. Among the standout projects is 7k, which has rapidly emerged as Sui's second-largest trading aggregator, showcasing the potential for smart trading ecosystems. AdToken has also made waves by enabling businesses to run advertisement campaigns directly on the blockchain, fostering a new era of peer-to-peer marketing.
Further enriching the lineup are projects like InsiDeX, which offers in-depth analytics for all DeFi activities on Sui, and Gifted, enhancing the user experience in digital gifting. Other notable participants include Lotus Finance, focusing on decentralized market making, and Nativerse, which innovates in non-custodial liquid staking. Nemo Protocol has introduced a native yield trading platform, while Pomerene aims to revolutionize international trade with its DePIN solution. Printr offers a platform for tokenizing assets and crowdfunding, and Protocol Media Labs is dedicated to bolstering journalism through decentralized tools. One project's details, however, remain under wraps, adding an element of intrigue to the cohort.
The Hydropower Accelerator itself is an intensive eight-week boot camp that not only provides startups with mentorship and learning opportunities but also connects them with vital resources and industry experts. This program is pivotal for tech development, marketing strategies, and fundraising, allowing participants to directly engage with the Web3 community and receive tailored feedback from venture capitalists familiar with the Sui ecosystem.
About Sui
Sui is an innovative layer-1 blockchain platform crafted to meet the demands of global adoption, providing a secure, robust, and scalable development environment. Rooted in a unique object-centric data model and fortified by the trusted Move programming language, Sui is engineered to tackle the inefficiencies found in current blockchain frameworks. In addition to its solid technical underpinnings, Sui places a strong emphasis on user experience, aiming to remove common barriers encountered in blockchain interactions.
Sui's Expanding Ecosystem
In parallel with these developments, the Sui ecosystem has seen substantial growth. The Q4 report of 2024 highlighted a peak Total Value Locked (TVL) of $1.8 billion, doubling from the previous quarter's average of $1.4 billion. This growth is accompanied by a dramatic near-decade increase in cumulative trading volume, underscoring the network's rising prominence in the blockchain space.
Sui's expansion is fueled by a mix of DeFi, DePIN, and gaming initiatives, alongside strategic partnerships that enhance its market footprint. A notable partnership last month was with Ant Digital Technologies and ZAN, aimed at tokenizing assets with environmental and governance benefits. However, the project wasn't without its controversies; in October 2024, Sui faced allegations of insider token sales. The Foundation responded promptly, clarifying the stringent oversight and management of token lockups by qualified custodians.