$25,000 Prize Pool in Bitcoin and Elite Residencies Available for Developers Building Real-World Bitcoin Payment Solutions during Time2Build Challenge
Breez, a leading Bitcoin Lightning Network technology company, recently launched a $25,000 prize for their Time2Build challenge, a global developer challenge designed to drive sustainable adoption of Bitcoin payments in open-source software.
The initiative, backed by industry leaders Lightspark, Tether, Fulgur Ventures, and Plan B Network, offers a $25,000 prize pool paid in Bitcoin, along with prestigious residencies at Draper University and PlebLab.
A New Approach to Bitcoin Integration
Time2Build represents a significant departure from traditional hackathons. Rather than rewarding proof-of-concept demonstrations or short-lived experiments, the initiative requires developers to integrate the Breez SDK—a free, open-source toolkit for self-custodial Lightning Network payments—into existing open-source projects with active user bases. Critically, submissions must be merged into production code by project maintainers to qualify for rewards, ensuring that Bitcoin Lightning features actually reach real-world users.
“There’s never been a better time to build on Bitcoin,” said Roy Sheinfeld, CEO of Breez. “Developers now have the tools to bring peer-to-peer money to anyone, anywhere, anytime. This finally unlocks the transfer of value, just as the internet unlocked the transfer of information. We’ve launched Time2Build to spark the next generation of open-source apps, and we can’t wait to see what they create.”
Comprehensive Developer Support
The Breez SDK provides developers with an end-to-end solution for integrating self-custodial Lightning payments into their applications and services, eliminating the need for third-party dependencies while maintaining user control over assets. The SDK supports modern Lightning protocols including Bolt11 and LNURL-Pay, and integrates seamlessly with Lightspark’s third-party Lightning Network service provider, Spark.
Kevin Hurley, Co-founder and CTO of Lightspark, commented: “Lightspark is building open payments for the Internet—modern, always-on payment solutions powered by Bitcoin: the only open, neutral network for moving value. Bitcoin’s potential as a programmable, global money is finally within reach, and it’s developers who will take it the rest of the way. Time2Build is the perfect stage for builders to put that to the test.”
Timeline and Prize Structure
- Challenge Period: October 7 – November 15, 2025
- Merge Period: Until December 16, 2025
- Winner Announcement: January 8, 2026
Prize Distribution:
- Top Tier: $7,000 in Bitcoin per project
- Mid Tier: $3,500 in Bitcoin per project
- Select Entries: $1,000 in Bitcoin per project
- Additional Prizes: Residencies at Draper University and PlebLab
A distinguished panel of judges including Jeff Booth, author of “The Price of Tomorrow,” alongside representatives from Lightspark, Tether, and Breez, will evaluate submissions based on their real-world impact and technical excellence.
Global Community Participation
Over 40 developer communities spanning Africa, Asia, Latin America, Europe, and North America—from Lagos to London—are participating in the initiative, hosting local meetups to promote the challenge and support developers. This global reach underscores the universal potential of Bitcoin Lightning technology to enable instant, nearly free transactions worldwide.
Eligibility Requirements
To qualify for Time2Build rewards, projects must:
- Utilize a free and open-source software (FOSS) license
- Maintain an active developer and user community
- Serve a real-world user base
- Successfully merge Lightning Network integration into production code
About the Lightning Network
The Bitcoin Lightning Network is a layer-2 scalability solution that enables instant, low-cost Bitcoin transactions off-chain while maintaining the security guarantees of the Bitcoin blockchain. Currently comprising nearly 1,600 nodes and 43,561 payment channels, the network processes over $480 million in transaction capacity and continues to gain adoption among mainstream financial institutions and retailers worldwide.
Industry Support
The Time2Build initiative is supported by a coalition of leading Bitcoin organizations including:
- Tether (stablecoin leader)
- Lightspark (Lightning Network infrastructure)
- Fulgur Ventures (Bitcoin venture capital)
- Plan B Network (Bitcoin education)
- Geyser Fund (crowdfunding platform)
- Draper University (entrepreneurship education)
- PlebLab (Bitcoin startup accelerator)
How to Participate
Developers interested in participating can register at time2build.dev or contact Danny Stagg at danny@breez.technology for more information.
About Breez
Breez is a technology company focused on making Bitcoin Lightning Network integration seamless for developers through its open-source SDK. The company’s mission is to enable peer-to-peer Bitcoin payments in applications used by millions, making self-custodial Lightning payments accessible to developers worldwide without compromising on user control or security.
Media Contact:
Danny Stagg
Breez Technology
Email: danny@breez.technology
Website: breez.technology
Challenge Website: time2build.dev
