We build build software-as-a-service that will allow queries of Cardano blockchain status and receive notifications on updates.
Our service will be connected by JavaScript/TypeScript/PureScript library that subscribes to live updates of Cardano blockchain. There will be also user interface for trying the queries during development (IDE), and setup automated runs of Cardano Wallet scripts whenever query triggers.
Any Cardano developer may create a free account to get a developer access token.
This per-project access token will enable developer for custom queries of entire Cardano blockchain database, extracting details of the transactions, and smart contract redeemer data.
Minimal online IDE will be sufficient for test queries, and status page will allow confirmation that service is working flawlessly.
The platform will also allow real-time notification of the change on the blockchain by means of server-sent events, wallet script execution, or webhook calls.
When app will be deployed to production, then we will ask for a subscription fee to cover infrastructure costs. This service will allow building entirely serverless dApps.
Among our main deliverables will also be tutorials and example apps that developers can adapt to use our serverless service.
We will also provide developer support for Catalyst projects that want to use the service. This way we grow ecosystem, and share the cost and burden of infrastructure necessary for Cardano dApp projects.
Using software-as-a-service will allow shared cache and instant-on dApp building, beside using less electricity and money.
Solution will make dApp creation more accessible, support dApp authors and make Cardano much easier platform to develop on.
We want to make the self-sustaining product that fuels ecosystem growth.
To achieve this we focus on developer ergonomics. Developer support is primary driver of the project.
Milestones M2 and M3 will include free beta plans, and milestone M5 will fund the Customer Success Engineering. From M2 forwards, we will help our partners develop dApps, instead of just giving away a free but clunky service. To assure developer accessibility, milestones M1 and M2 fund observability of the platform development and availability.
It would be ideal to sustain free trial dev accounts for indefinite future, and make project self-sustaining using production apps only. At the same time, thinking about the choice of investing in ergonomics versus making the cheapest service, we know that wise investment will fuel the growth of the developer ecosystem.
That is why we want to prioritise support of the projects funded by Catalyst.
Hosting production apps on our serverless platform may be cheaper and greener than self-hosting, but still needs to pay for the infrastructure and engineering costs.
As for the cost of code review, platform audit, and pentest: In order to maximize value to Cardano, we selected with great care those review, audit and pentest providers that promise to deliver this service within our tight budget constraints.
How to make the project more cost-effective and impactful, while keeping it sustainable in the future?
Main challenges are threefold:
- to improve developer ergonomics sufficiently to open a floodgate for dApp development
- to make the service secure, which we plan to address by SQL parsing, and sandboxing, as well as user account separation
- make it easily accessible to developers, which we plan to address by dogfooding the service, and making sure that developer documentation is our first priority when developing the service.