Sameer Katte

If you're doing a hackathon in 2026, listen up: Record. Your. Demo. Video. Before you present live. Here's what organizing 2000+ hackathons have taught me: This one decision determines who places and who goes home empty-handed. Here's why: Your demo WILL crash >Not might. Will. >API rate limits. Database timeouts. WiFi drops. Dependencies break. >Live demo fails = judges see nothing = you don't place. >Backup video = judges still see your working features = you're still in the running. Remote judges are real >Many hackathons have online reviewers you never meet. >They evaluate before in-person judging even starts. Text description? They skip it. >Demo video? They watch and score you. You just made it past the first filter while others got eliminated without knowing. Future opportunities need proof >Six months later, an investor or recruiter asks: "What have you built?" >You pull up a clean 2-minute demo. >Not scrambling to rebuild a forgotten project or explain something you barely remember. How to actually do this: >Record the night before demo day (you'll be too stressed morning of) >Keep it 2-3 minutes max >Structure: Problem → Your solution → Show it working >Focus on ONE core feature that matters (not everything) >Upload to YouTube (unlisted works fine) >Add the link to your submission 30 minutes of work. One video. Infinite insurance. Teams that prepare for failure handle it better than teams that assume success. The winners aren't always the best coders. They're the ones who showed up prepared. So hit record on that video.

🚀 Applications Open: ETH Scholar Campus Ambassador Program by @MastryHub India has millions of talented Web2 developers. But very few are actually building in Web3. Not because of lack of skill but because there’s no clear entry point. That’s what we’re trying to change. With hashtag #ETH hashtag #Scholar, we’re enabling students to start, learn, and build in Web3 directly from their campuses. We’re now inviting students/developers to become Campus Ambassadors. You’ll lead your college’s Web3/Ethereum chapter, organize workshops and hackathons, and build a real developer community. 📅 Last Date: 15th May 2026 🔗 Apply here: lnkd.in/ghdYrDpa If your campus doesn’t have a Web3 ecosystem yet this is your chance to build it. Comment “ETH” or DM me. @EFetheverywhere @ethmumbai @naruto11eth @sokkkkaaa @nethan_eth @candufaz @AroraBhavyam @ant_sabado @Sai__Jadhav @ethereumfndn

Another day, another DeFi protocol losing $200M+. Drift just got completely drained and the attack was absurdly simple: Attacker minted fake tokens → Created fake liquidity → Compromised one admin key → Listed fake collateral → Disabled protections → Drained every vault 31 transactions. 12 minutes. Done. The security setup? 2-of-5 multisig with ZERO timelock. $200 MILLION protected by two signatures and no delay. This is what happens when you rush to deploy without basic security hygiene. Every Indian builder watching this: Don't make this mistake. Timelocks aren't optional. Multisig thresholds matter. Admin key security is non-negotiable. Test everything. Then test again. Because the difference between "we're building the future" and "$200M drained" is attention to detail.