The Start In Block 2026 startup competition concluded last week, and it exceeded all expectations. From over 1,000 applications across every corner of the digital asset ecosystem, 12 finalists made it to the stage at the Carrousel du Louvre. Two days of pitching in front of the leading investors, institutional leaders, and the most demanding jury in European digital assets. The energy in that room during the competition was unlike anything we have seen in previous editions. Every finalist brought something real. But three companies stood above the rest: 🥇 First Place: @Manakoai, also the winner of the Bittensor track by @YumaGroup 🥈 Second Place: @TheRiskProtocol, also the winner of the DeFAI track by Spectrum Nodes 🥉 Third Place: @SundialProtocol, also the winner of the Institutional Adoption track by @Cardano_CF A special recognition to the other finalists: @404gen_, Synth, @Bitcast_network, @Neuron_World, Deploi, @CoinbaxHQ, @MasumiNetwork, @zettacapital00, and @libertum_token, each of whom brought a standard that made this one of the strongest cohorts in Start In Block history. None of this happens without the people who gave their time and expertise to make the competition credible. Thank you to our jury, Mykolas Majauskas - @Bybit_Official, Tomasz Kajetan Stańczak (@tkstanczak) -@Nethermind, Jessi Brooks - @RibbitCapital, Greg Schvey (@GSchvey) -@YumaGroup, Siam Kidd (@SiamKidd) - @dsvfund, Brett Sun (@sohkai) - @preludexyz, Matthew Felice Pace (@mfelicepace) - @SpectrumNodes, Pablo Campos - @Bit2Me, David Bchiri - @xrpl_commons, Samiz Bayan (@samizb) - @DraperDragon, Brian Wong (@brian_wong) - ASCII Ventures, and Ethan Pierce (@EthanPierse) - @BorderlessVC. Thanks to our sponsors, @Cardano_CF, @SpectrumNodes, @YUMAGroup, @Bit2Me, and @AdevarLabs, for making the $10M+ prize pool possible. To every founder who applied, built, and took the stage this week, we see you, and we look forward to seeing you at Signal Week 2027.

200+ blockchain networks. One infrastructure layer to connect them all. Proud to welcome @SpectrumNodes as an official sponsor of #PBW26 🤝 Reliable, scalable, secure RPC and API solutions, the backbone developers and protocols run on. April 15–16, 2026 | Carrousel du Louvre & Château de Versailles #ParisBlockchainWeek

This is it. The final 24 hours. After tomorrow, the applications close, and the 100 startups moving forward are set. If you're not in, you're watching from the outside while others pitch for $10M+ at the Louvre in front of a level of lineup of investors and partners that might never be in one room again, including: @Cryptocom_Cap, @Cardano_CF, @animocabrands, @awscloud, @Bpifrance, @BNBCHAIN, @yzilabs, @deel, @bit2me, @DraperDragon, @DraperVC, @Maven11Capital, @CoinMarketCap, @TheBlockCo, @SpectrumNodes, @AdevarLabs, @lightspeedvp, @oviohq, @50Partners, @Dune and many more. This is your last chance to book your ticket to the stage at the Louvre! 🔗 Apply now: parisblockchainweek.com/star…

Only 48 hours left to register for #StartInBlock! 🚨 Apply now and get a chance to compete for over $10M in prizes, and pitch at the Louvre in front of our exemplary panel of investors and strategic partners, including @Cryptocom_Cap, @Cardano_CF, @animocabrands, @awscloud, @Bpifrance, @BNBCHAIN, @yzilabs, @deel, @bit2me, @DraperDragon, @DraperVC, @Maven11Capital, @CoinMarketCap, @TheBlock__, @SpectrumNodes, @AdevarLabs, @lightspeedvp, @oviohq, @50Partners, @Dune and many more. Be in the room where investors are actively deploying capital, forming partnerships, and building the ecosystems that scale startups into the next Web3 unicorns! Past Start in Block participants have closed funding rounds, secured enterprise partnerships, and built relationships with the institutions and VCs who became their most important clients, and so can you! Only 48 hours left to apply and be on stage at the Louvre in April. Apply now parisblockchainweek.com/star…

Founders building for scale, this is your moment! Start in Block is where the next generation of category-defining startups meets the investors, institutions, and operators who actually move capital. This year, selected startups will pitch live at the Louvre in front of our partners, including @Cardano, @AdevarLabs, @SpectrumNodes, @Bit2Me_Global, @awscloud, @deel, @drapervc, @DraperDragon, @TheBlock__, @strobefund, @MaelstromFund, @Cryptocom_Cap, @BNBCHAIN, @yzilabs, @Cointelegraph, @animocabrands, @Bpifrance, @Coinmarketcap, @iif, @LBankLabs, @MyriadMarkets, @LBV_VC, @aleph_im, @trgcapi, @mirana, @CV_Labs, @brian_wong, @EV3ventures, @BanklessVC, @MCSocialVenture, @bcfounders, @genventurecap, @draper_u, @halo__xyz, @0xProject, @EdenBlockVC, and @lightspeedvp, with more top-tier names being added. Apply now👉 parisblockchainweek.com/star… Here’s how it works: ➡️The top 100 startups will be shortlisted and announced to our global audience and investors ➡️The 12 finalists will be selected to pitch live at the Louvre in front of our esteemed jury members ➡️They’ll also receive a booth in the Startup Village pavilion🚀 ➡️The three winning founders will pitch at the main stage in front of attendees. You’ll be following in the footsteps of past winners like @glider__, @AlmanaxAI, @earnos_io, @crosscurvefi, @bitstack, @r3vl_xyz, @Zyfi_org, @xverse, @bubblemaps, and @Staex_io, who went on to raise capital, close enterprise deals, and scale globally after Start in Block. If you’re building something meant to scale, this is the room you want to be in. ⏳ Applications close 28 February More Details👇 parisblockchainweek.com/star…