Please describe your proposed solution.

<u>Problem definition</u>

Cryptocurrency in general, and so Cardano, is at the beginning of its expenditure, but it lacks attractivity from people that are not familiar with new technologies. New tools and platforms need to be created to bring these people into the cryptocurrency wave, especially into the Cardano ecosystem.

On the other hand, music is universal and one of the oldest ways of communication and expression that ever existed. Yet, not everyone has access to musical instruments, classes, places where to practice, and scholarships. The actual tools to connect with one another to learn, exchange, practice and develop skills are very limited. Also, musical instruments can represent a big expense. Currently, people mainly connect with each other by word of mouth, but it has its limitations.

Our platform will be the meeting point of these 2 entities and consequently, will drastically expand the Cardano community.

The global musical instrument market size was valued at almost $10 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach $11.5 billion by 2030. The problem is that not everyone can afford musical instruments. On the other hand, the global Peer-to-Peer market is valued at approximately 70 billion and is increasing every year.

<u>Our solution</u>

The first part of our platform detailed here will bring people from outside of the cryptocurrency bubble into this new technology, allowing them to connect and develop their music skills and network. This part of the platform will constitute the core and we will then apply for other funds to develop more modules and to connect to other features developed by the Cardano community like NFT generation tools, wallets, smart contracts, music streaming… Therefore, our project focuses on key features:

-Giving access to musical instruments to all: Buying a new instrument can be expensive, especially when we are not sure whether we would really enjoy it. With our platform, users will be able to find people in proximity owning instruments/materials they would be willing to rent or sell.

-Easily finding music teachers in proximity: People will be able to propose and find music classes.

-Finding crew: People will be able to find specific musicians (guitarists, saxophonists, singers, pianists…) at proximity and connect with them to build a band or just expand the group they already have.

-Finding a place where to practice or give concerts: When living in an apartment for example, practicing music can be challenging. Moreover, finding a place to give a concert often requires a lot of time going to bars or restaurants asking owners for this opportunity. That is why on the Rythmeet platform, people will be able to propose such places,

-Funding music scholarships for kids: Our vision through this platform is to help musicians access everything they need to develop their hobby. That's why we will create a fundraising feature and the money will be solely used to pay scholarships for kids/students who cannot afford registration fees for music schools. Smart contracts will be used to track the money collected and make everything transparent for the community.

Since our goal is to bring people who are not aware or comfortable with cryptocurrencies, we will allow them to pay using their own money or Cardano. The role of this part of the platform is to familiarize them slowly with this cryptocurrency and not to frighten them. Simple tutorials will be created to explain how to buy Cardano for those who do not already have. To encourage people to use Cardano, fees will be lower for transactions using Cardano. Music is present in every single country on the planet, heard in most houses and cars, therefore linking the Rythmeet platform to the Cardano ecosystem will drastically expand the network and number of transactions of this cryptocurrency.

Please define the positive impact your project will have on the wider Cardano community.

• <u>In what way will the success of our project bring value to the Cardano Community? </u>

Our proposed solution will leverage our team's expertise in blockchain technology and software development to contribute to the enhancement of the Cardano ecosystem.

Also, as this project is open source, we are going to increase the number of open-source contributions.

Our team will build the Rythmeet platform which will be user friendly and will serve as a platform to connect to other Cardano projects (Smart contracts, wallets, educational projects, NFT generation tools…) and bring new people with interest in music, unfamiliar with cryptocurrencies into the Cardano ecosystem, strengthening it. Rythmeet will be a real-world application of the Cardano blockchain technology showcasing its adaptability and effectiveness to the music world.

This project also aims to attract students, music artists and business owners into the Cardano ecosystem.

• <u>How will we measure this impact?</u>

The success of our project will be measured through different criteria:

We will track the successful completion of every step detailed in this proposal.

We will improve and develop the platform regarding user’s feedback, especially during the Beta testing phase. This feedback collection will be made through our website, social media, forums and media channels.

Bringing new people into the Cardano ecosystem, and after completion, we seek to bridge our platform with other Cardano projects.

In term of timeline, the success will look like:

Success after 4 months of receiving funding: The website is launched, and the first users begin to register.

Success after 10 months: All technical problems have been solved and the website works smoothly. We reach 5,000 users including 5 music schools, and 15% of them use Cardano currency. People begin to donate for scholarships using the fundraising feature. We will begin the marketing phase using the network of musicians we already have.

We will also begin to bridge our platform with other Cardano projects and ask for more funds to continue develop other features.

Success after 15 months: We reach 20,000 users and at least 10 music schools are using our platform. 50% of users use Cardano currency. We could then begin to host advertisements on our platform and become financially self-sufficient. With money increasing, we will focus more and more on marketing, contacting other influencers, music festivals and advertising on platforms like Reddit, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter for example. We already know people from Shinetech working in marketing and ready to work on this project. After 15 months, we should be able to pay for the first scholarships.

• <u>How will we share the outputs and opportunities that result from our project?</u>

At the end of every step detailed in the timeline and even after the platform launch, we will update the community on the progress of our platform Rythmeet through:

Website: Rythmeet.com

Twitter: @rythmeet

Github: <https://github.com/alanhegron/Rythmeet>

Telegram: @AlanHegron

Instagram: @Rythmeet

The website is empty and social media accounts have no activity yet. Everything will change after receiving the funds and beginning the development phase.

Once the platform is launched, we will continuously inform our members on every news involving Rythmeet through publications on social media.

We will share the impact and opportunities of our platform with new partners, like artists, music festivals, music schools.

We plan to participate in music events like concerts and festivals to showcase our platform and the potential of Cardano.

We will also participate in Town Halls to inform the catalyst community on the progression of the platform, have its feedback and we will call for collaborations with other funded projects from the Cardano community.

What is your capability to deliver your project with high levels of trust and accountability? How do you intend to validate if your approach is feasible?

While the current budget will allow us to develop the first part of the Rythmeet platform, we may request additional fundings in future Catalyst rounds to develop the marketing and add new features.

• <u>How do we intend to validate if our approach is feasible?</u>

The main goals for our Rythmeet project are:

1- Create a versatile and decentralized platform for all musicians, on the Cardano Blockchain. This will provide security and trust for the users.

2- Promote inclusive and equitable access to musical education and musical career development.

3- Introduce the Cardano cryptocurrency to new people in an easy and accessible way through their passion: music.

4- Create a User-friendly, smooth and intuitive interface. Shinetech has already developed frameworks that perfectly suit our project.

Technical feasibility: Shinetech being involved in multiple types of industry, our development team has the technical skills to develop the platform using effective technologies like the Cardano blockchain and smart contracts. Shinetech also has website frameworks corresponding to our needs, shortening the development time for our platform.

Market feasibility: The global musical instruments market size was valued at almost $10 billion in 2020 and is projected to reach $11.5 billion by 2030. On the other hand, the global Peer-to-Peer market is valued at approximately 70 billion and is increasing every year. Our platform will provide enhanced security using the Cardano blockchain and a user-friendly interface. Consequently, we have no doubt it will be financially sustainable over the years and will lead to a considerable increase in transactions using the Cardano cryptocurrency.

What are the key milestones you need to achieve in order to complete your project successfully?

Milestone 1 (Weeks 1-2):

Setup the website with initial ecommerce platform frameworks available at Shinetech, install plugins and spread project documents to the development team members and discuss for comprehension.

Design the whole platform and define the features to add to the framework.

(<u>Checkpoint 1: ADA15,000 for this part)</u>.

>Milestone 2 (Weeks 3-6):

Develop features for payment and to allow web users to trade with Cardano (ADA).

Develop features for each account, like changing profile, sharing information through social media and beginning of integration into blockchain.

(<u>Checkpoint 2: ADA15,000 for this part</u>).

>Milestone 3 (Weeks 7-9):

Develop features between accounts, like rating, review, text chatting.

System test for receiving and inspection, Search Engine Optimization (SEO), solve problems found through system tests and finish integration into blockchain.

(<u>Checkpoint 3: ADA15,000 for this part</u>).

>Milestone 4 (Week 10-16):

Beta testing with volunteered music schools

Solve issues found by users and launch. This will be the end of the MVP phase.

(<u>Checkpoint 4: ADA15,000 for this part</u>)

>Milestone 5: Form partnership with educational entities

During the platform development, we will contact music schools to propose a partnership. They will be able to test and use the Rythmeet platform to help students develop their skills and their network. We already have an agreement with 3 music schools, but we are looking for more.

>Final Milestone (Never ending):

Further business analysis and add features based on users' opinion and tools developed by the Cardano community.

Who is in the project team and what are their roles?

The proposer, Alan Hegron (<https://www.linkedin.com/in/alan-hegron-ph-d-09648154/>) received 2 Ph.D. in research and worked for top ranking Universities like Columbia University or New-York University. As a researcher, he developed the capability to manage multiple projects simultaneously involving international teams and to face and solve critical problems. He will be responsible for the coordination of the team members and the completion of all steps.

Most members of the developing team, work for Shinetech which is a leading software development provider founded in 2001 in Beijing, China, with additional global locations in the US, Canada, Europe and Australia. Shinetech collaborated with more than 1500 clients including world known companies like Coca-Cola, BMW, Ralph Lauren or HP. For HP, Shinetech developed its website and is still managing it worldwide (<https://www.shinetechsoftware.com/>). Beyond our team, Shinetech will provide us with extensive resources including platform frameworks, a marketing team and any specialist we may need.

Even though Shinetech is a Chinese company it is also based in other countries like US, Australia or Canada so restrictions that may occur in China regarding cryptocurrencies won’t affect the development of Rythmeet.

Here is the development team:

Project manager, senior full-stack developer: Jason Hao Li

• Over 4 years of experience in full-stack web development. Expert in back-end development frameworks, front-end development, system design, business analysis and senior project manager. (CV available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vHD-0Iqs2gn9DSRo4qtdgedB5N4AiWus/view?usp=sharing)

Expert PHP developer: Finley Fei Ma

• Over 9 years of experience in PHP, Node, Front-end and 4 years project manager. Expert in PHP MVC framework, web development and CI/CD. (CV available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vHD-0Iqs2gn9DSRo4qtdgedB5N4AiWus/view?usp=sharing)

User interface designer: Keyon Keyang Du

• Over 7 years of experience in graphic design. Expert in UI and UX design and mobile app design. 4 years as UI team manager. (CV available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vHD-0Iqs2gn9DSRo4qtdgedB5N4AiWus/view?usp=sharing)

Expert PHP developer: Ranger Guan

• Over 9 years of experience in software development. Expert in front-end and multiple languages (PHP, javascript, TypeScript, Python…). Expert in web applications including E-commerce, in app creation and in Agile development methodologies. (CV available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vHD-0Iqs2gn9DSRo4qtdgedB5N4AiWus/view?usp=sharing)

Senior software engineer: Jeff Junwei Chen

• Over 7 years of experience in software engineering, proficient in both frontend and backend development. Expert in blockchains and digital currency. For example, he developed the website www.ddpurse.com which is a BCH wallet based on WeChat platform. Users can generate a wallet to manage their cryptocurrency (BCH), receive the BCH to the address generated in DDPurse, or send BCH to any other BCH address, and backup the mnemonic words etc. (CV available at https://drive.google.com/file/d/1vHD-0Iqs2gn9DSRo4qtdgedB5N4AiWus/view?usp=sharing)

Bioinformatic specialist with PhD-level: Albert Feghaly

• Over 6 years in academia using Python, Javascript, big data, ML. Albert is developing with his team the successfully funded ''osNFTs for science popularization'' project from Funds #6 to #9 and “PanDAO: Focus on interoperability” from Fund#7. (https://www.linkedin.com/in/albert-feghaly-28060a113/)

Please provide a cost breakdown of the proposed work and resources.

1 Developer (Back- and Front-End): 35$/hour: ($1,225/week x 5 weeks = $6,125) (ADA18,000)

1 Developer (Cardano Blockchain): 37$/hour: (1,295/week x 4 weeks = 5,180) (ADA15,500)

1 Technical Project Manager: 35$/hour ($1,225/week x 4 weeks = $4,900) (ADA14,500)

1 Content Writer: 30$/hour ($1,050/week x 2 weeks = $2,100) (ADA6,000)

1 Designer: 30$/hour ($1,050/week x 2 weeks = $2,100) (ADA6,000)

Total: ADA60,000

For marketing, publicity, and promotion other than through our network, we will request more funds in future campaigns.

How does the cost of the project represent value for money for the Cardano ecosystem?

Cost Justification:

The budget allocated to this part of the platform reflects Shintech prices and aligns with average freelance rates. Alan Hegron, the founder and project lead, will not receive any financial compensation for his work at this stage of the project.

Partnership with other Cardano projects:

Being part of the Cardano community, we are very open to collaborating with other members of the Cardano community to help each other develop. For example, we plan to link our platform with wallets, NFT platforms, other educational projects, and fundraising features. We will also use and develop smart contracts. This aligns with Cardano's vision of community-driven development and collaborative governance.

Inclusivity and development of the Cadano community

More than just targeting people already using crypto, the Rythmeet project seeks to bring thousands of people from outside the crypto bubble into the Cardano community. We believe that the number of Cardano new users brought by our platform will increase exponentially in the next few years and has no real limit since music is present in every single country.

Developing our platform to help every single musician and giving them access to a crypto wallet will significantly expand cardano’s use-case. Our project is targeting the music and the peer-to-peer industries which represent billions of dollars every year. If a small portion of transactions use Cardano, this will create utility for otherwise locked Cardano and consequently reduce its price volatility.

Social and educational impacts

We believe that the features offered by the Rythmeet platform will directly benefit people from all backgrounds, especially the fundraising part to fund scholarships, allowing them to have access to education and will give opportunities to the Cardano community to increase its income with music. It will also empower musicians by helping them develop their career as artists or as teachers. The use of smart contracts will help us gain musicians trust through increase security and revenue distribution transparency.

In essence, our project aligns seamlessly with Cardano’s vision for ethical blockchain development, emphasizing transparency, security, and decentralization. Rythmeet will contribute to Cardano’s goals of community growth and education. Through fostering musician connections, providing affordable resources, facilitating music education, and integrating with other Cardano projects, Rythmeet will become a pivotal force for positive transformation. Endorsing Rythmeet not only advances ethical blockchain development but also demonstrates a commitment to cultivating a dynamic, inclusive, and enlightened Cardano community.