10X Founders Demo Day v2.0 opens applications with $150,000+ reward pool

August 18, 2026 — Inspira Labs, Yellow and Cicada have opened applications for the second edition of 10X Founders Demo Day, an online startup evaluation event scheduled for August 25. Eight selected Web3 startups will pitch their products to a panel of active venture investors, with a combined reward pool valued at more than $150,000.

The event is designed to give early-stage founders access to investor feedback, ecosystem support and services across funding, security, infrastructure, media and growth. Applications close August 20.

Eight founders to pitch live

Selected teams will have five minutes to present their projects, followed by two minutes of questions from the judging panel. Each participating team will be evaluated by the full panel against the same criteria and will receive written feedback following the event.

The confirmed judging panel includes representatives from Animoca Brands, Contribution Capital, Comma3 Ventures, Fenbushi Capital, Funders VC and Zee Prime Capital, with additional names expected to be announced ahead of the event.

Sonic will participate as the Anchor Partner, while Injective, Hacken, Galxe, 1inch, Cointelegraph Accelerator, Cryptic and Atlas will join as co-hosts.

$150,000+ in support and services

The reward pool combines grants, audit credits, oracle infrastructure, API access, media support, marketing services and ecosystem resources.

Sonic will provide a $20,000 ecosystem grant to the winning team, along with access to its builder program and technical support. Injective is offering up to $20,000 following its internal due diligence, while Hacken will provide $15,000 in audit credits.

Atlas will contribute $5,000 in first-party price feeds and a CoinMarketCap listing, while Cointelegraph Accelerator will provide $10,000 in media credits. Galxe, 1inch and Cryptic will contribute additional campaign, API, marketing and growth services.

The three event hosts — Inspira Labs, Yellow and Cicada — will contribute a combined $60,000 across market making, advisory, acceleration and go-to-market support.

The structure is intended to provide participating founders with resources they can use as they progress from product development toward market launch, rather than limiting support to a cash prize for the winning team.

Sonic joins as anchor partner

The second edition introduces an Anchor Partner role, with Sonic participating directly in the evaluation process alongside the investor panel.

The organizers say the role is intended to bring ecosystem and chain-selection considerations into the evaluation process earlier, while founders are still assessing where to deploy their projects.

The broader co-host group spans infrastructure, DeFi, security, media and growth, providing participating teams with access to resources across multiple areas of Web3 development.

Building on the first edition

The first 10X Founders Demo Day attracted more than 150 applications, with 12 teams selected to pitch after screening on product, team, traction, token model and market fit.

The judging panel included Varys Capital, Funders VC, Starknet Foundation, Magnus Capital, Coinsilium and Draper Associates. Backyard Finance was selected as the winner of the first edition, which featured a $125,000 reward pool.

More than 7,000 people watched the first event live. According to the organizers, participating founders subsequently received direct outreach from judges, while several teams developed partnerships originating from the event.

For the second edition, the organizers have reduced the number of stage slots from 12 to eight while increasing the overall reward pool and expanding the number of ecosystem and service partners.

Applications

10X Founders Demo Day v2.0 will take place online on August 25. Applications close August 20.

The event is open to founders with a working product or demonstrated traction who are planning a token generation event within the next three to six months