TrustChain is proud to announce the winners of its fifth Open Call, focused on achieving high energy efficiency and optimisation within Distributed Ledger Technologies through the innovative use of digital identities, trustworthy data, and novel economic mechanisms. The call sought to find the most appropriate trade-offs between technological application, the security of consensus protocols on one side, and the crucial sustainability requirements on the other. A strong emphasis was placed on user-centric design, energy efficiency, trustworthiness, scalability, privacy by design, greenness, openness, and legal compliance.
TrustChain Open Call #5 was open for applications from November 11, 2024, until January 15, 2025, spanning a total of 66 days and attracting a diverse range of applicants from around the globe, receiving a total of 146 applications.
Application Highlights: A Global Snapshot
Open Call #5 garnered significant international interest, with applications received from numerous countries. Spain led the number of submissions with 21 applications, followed by Italy with 10, and France with 6. The United Kingdom, Greece, Germany, Portugal, and Singapore each submitted 4 applications. Other participating countries included Romania, Switzerland, Austria, Estonia, Bulgaria, Netherlands, and Poland with 3 applications each, and a wide array of other nations contributing 1 or 2 submissions. In total, applications were received from 36 different countries across.
Figure 1. Number of applicants per country in submitted applications under TrustChain Open Call #5.
The market relevance of the applications was broad, with “Consulting & Business” and “Industry & Manufacturing” seeing high numbers of submissions. “Blockchain & Crypto” was also a significant category, highlighting the core focus of the call. Other markets represented included Energy & Environment, Finance & Banking, Data & Analytics, Software & IT, Creative & Media, Government & Public Sector, Data & Analytics, Education, Health & Wellbeing, and Internet of Things (IoT).
In terms of applicant structure, the majority of submissions came from single organizations (legal entities), accounting for 94 applications. Consortiums (groups of organisations) represented 17 applications, while groups of individuals (team) and mixed groups of individual(s) and organisation(s) also contributed submissions.
Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) were the most prevalent type of organization applying, with 99 submissions, underscoring the vital role of SMEs in driving innovation in this space. Secondary or Higher education establishments, research organisations, non-for-profit organisations, public bodies, international organisations, and foundations also participated.
Figure 2. Distribution of entity applicants involved in submitted applications under TrustChain Open Call #5
Figure 3. Distribution of submitted applications per type of team under TrustChain Open Call #5.
The Winning Projects
Following an evaluation process, fifteen projects were selected as winners of Open Call #5. These winning projects were announced on May 14th during a Kick-off Meeting with previous Open Call winners and the TrustChain consortium. The selected projects represent a diverse geographical spread and address a variety of market sectors, all aligned with the Open Call’s objective of enhancing energy efficiency and trustworthiness in DLTs.
Winning projects hailed from Italy (2), Poland (1), Spain (2), France (1), Malta (1), Greece (3), Portugal (1), Serbia (1), Belgium (1), Bulgaria (1), and Austria (1). The market focus of the winning projects was equally varied, with notable representation in Software & IT, Consulting & Business Strategy, Artificial Intelligence and Energy & Environment, and Creative & Media.
Figure 4. Number of applicants per country in applications selected for funding under TrustChain Open Call #5.
The winning entities primarily comprised SMEs (17), alongside research organisations (2), non-for profit organisations (3), secondary or higher education establishments (2), and public bodies (1). The majority of winning applications were submitted by groups of organisations (consortiums) with 9 winning projects, followed by single organizations (legal entities) with 5 winners, and a group of individual(s) and organisation(s) with 1 winner.
Figure 5. Distribution of entity applicants selected under TrustChain Open Call #5
Figure 6. Distribution of selected projects per type of team under TrustChain Open Call #5.
Here are the details of the selected projects:
- EQUIVOR: Equivocation-Resistant Consensus for Distributed Ledger Technologies
- QX Chain: A Scalable Energy-Efficient and Interoperable Blockchain
- Tenclave: Modular Trusted Enclave for Energy Efficiency
- SPICE: Scalable Pluggable Irmin-Based Customisable and Energy-Efficient Storage Solution for Dlts
- AGRI.LINK: Agricultural Resource Linkage and Intelligence Network
- EARTH: Energy Efficiency Through Smart Heating on the Chain
- GreenChain: Green Distributed Ledger Technology
- GreenCertEC: Blockchain Based Green Certificates for Energy Communities
- PoE: Proof of Energy Poe Green Energy for DLT Networks
- DAO4HS: Data Altruism Organisation for Hinterland Systems
- RETE: Renewable Energy Token Economy
- TruE-MAN: Trusted and Energy Efficient Support of Multimedia Application Transfers Over Five G Network Slices
- Aviolog: Delegated Proof of Stake Solution for Real-Time Reduction of Aviation Emissions
- Pactus Nexus: Pactus Novel Exchange for Unified Solutions
- TripAnimal Agri: Tripanimal Agri-Tokenomics for Agri Tourism
These winning projects will now embark on a development journey, contributing to the TrustChain ecosystem by building innovative solutions that prioritize energy efficiency, trustworthiness, and scalability in DLT applications. Their work is expected to pave the way for more sustainable and robust decentralized technologies!
