Every Uniswap Labs onsite has its range of activities, from team bonding to workshops to presentations. But everyone’s favorite part is the hackathon, and this summer was no different.

Fueled by pizza, limited sleep, and furious debugging, sixteen projects emerged from the 24-hour hackathon, ranging from an NFT photo booth to a complex MEV hook on Uniswap v4. Out of all the hackathon projects, only one could win the ⭐🦄Golden Unicorn ⭐🦄.

![IMG 1030 (1)](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/4l79OcbYaaP9fodI6kIEI5/c7fc474f74329b5589fc3d52bb4ac27f/IMG_1030__1_.jpg)
# S.O.N.A.R.
What happens when you put a Uniswap Labs protocol engineer and researcher in the same room? [Math blogs](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-v3-math-primer-2). And also a useful tool for calculating liquidity depth in Uniswap v3 and v4 pools. SONAR, an acronym for Serious Onchain No-bullshit Amount Renderer, calculates the market depth for an asset's liquidity within a specific price range. You can ask questions like how much USDC can I buy without moving the price more than 1%? SONAR has use cases for lending protocol risk management, routing heuristics, and onchain market liquidity comparisons.

> [Github Repo](https://github.com/aadams/marketdepth)

# Unisnap

In a first for a Uniswap hackathon, the Unisnap team brought the hardware. Unisnap is a true-to-life NFT photobooth --- a crazy idea with an equally dramatic story involving a smashed car window, heavy machinery, and a U-Haul.

Unisnap was a two-part project. One team, decked out in safety gear, brought out the chop saw to construct the photobooth's wooden frame. The other team hacked together the software that let anyone scan their [Uniswap wallet](https://wallet.uniswap.org/) using [UwU Link](https://github.com/ethereum/EIPs/pull/7253), snap a pic on an iPad, and mint it as an NFT. Unisnap was definitely a crowd favorite.

![image2](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/72B0gzfuTp7aQPIx4Td43k/e49bdf351ec945887ed2f8cffef450a3/image2.png)

# Backrunning hooks

With Uniswap v4 fresh in everyone's mind after our recent [announcement](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-v4), our cracked team of interns designed a hook that captures arbitrage after a swap and distributes profits back to the LPs instead of to backrunning MEV arbitrageurs. The project's implementation uses the `afterSwap` hook to execute a flashswap between three Uniswap pools to profit off the arbitrage, then distributes the profits among LPs or swappers.

> [Github Repo](https://github.com/emmaguo13/backrunning-hook/tree/main)

# TicketBlaster

Finally, we have our  ⭐🦄Golden Unicorn ⭐🦄 winners.

Ticketing is ripe for disruption with the string of scams, scandals, and scalpers. Blockchain and NFTs unlock ownership of digital assets and let people exchange them in open and fair markets. The Ticketblaster team built an end-to-end NFT ticketing system that venues can use alongside the Uniswap mobile wallet. Fans can use their Uniswap wallet to display a QR code for their NFT tickets, which they can sign in-app to prove ownership. The venue system can scan the QR code, verify ownership, and mark attendance on the backend.

> [Github Repo](https://github.com/Uniswap/ticketblaster)

# Other hacks
![image4](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/3qSBU3gSpZD7354XyM5Svh/182cc123a4fd0245d13be973d7f5c954/image4.jpg)

We've highlighted just a few projects above, but there were many more:
- __User-defined privacy controls__: Lets users set their privacy stances on ENS and makes it easy for apps to fetch those policies.
- __UniATM__: Convert physical dollar bills to stablecoins with the Uniswap wallet.
- __Hooks Registry__: A fork of [Token Lists](https://tokenlists.org/), a community-led initiative to improve discoverability, reputation, and trust in Uniswap v4 hooks.
- __Meme in your pocket__: A Uniswap wallet feature that displays a glowing green or fiery red unicorn horn, depending on how your portfolio is doing that day.
- __TokenAlert__: Customizable token price alert push notifications on the Uniswap mobile wallet.
- __Uniswap Pink__: A premium subscription for the Uniswap wallet to personalize it with custom themes and communities.
- __Shadowy Super Team__: Reducing production cost, increasing development speed, and having greater backend flexibility by using a backend monorepo with [SST](https://sst.dev).
- __Governance Attack__: A financial game based on governance voting.
- __Puzzle__: A puzzle game for onchain rewards and promotion.
- __Clippy Corn__: A clippy-like chatbot on the Uniswap app. Using the ChatGPT DaVinci model, the chatbot trained on Uniswap help center articles to help users.
- __Stedding__: Onchain allowlist for safe web domains.
- __Curvature__: Musings on the curvature of AMMs.

Uniswap Labs team members spent 24 hours hacking in-person. Out of the sixteen projects, only one can win the Golden Unicorn.

Uniswap Labs Company Hackathon

Learn how to get a crypto wallet with our step-by-step beginner’s guide.

How to Get a Crypto Wallet: A Step-by-Step Guide | Uniswap

# What is Uniswap? A Complete Guide
The Uniswap Protocol is the largest decentralized exchange for swapping cryptocurrency tokens on Ethereum and other popular blockchains. Launched in 2018, it is the world's largest and most popular decentralized exchange, with over $1.5 trillion in trading volume and 250 million swaps.

As of today, the Uniswap Protocol is the fifth largest application on Ethereum with over $4 billion in total value locked (TVL). The protocol consistently does billions in weekly trading volume and is the most popular decentralized exchange by volume on Ethereum mainnet, Polygon, Arbitrum, and Optimism.

Hayden Adams created the Uniswap Protocol in 2018 and later founded Uniswap Labs, which has built the largest marketplace for onchain digital assets such as cryptocurrency tokens and NFTs. Uniswap Lab's suite of tools includes:

* [The Uniswap Web App](https://app.uniswap.org/): The most popular way to swap on the Uniswap Protocol
* [Uniswap Wallet](https://wallet.uniswap.org/): A mobile wallet to purchase, send, and swap cryptocurrencies and explore NFTs
* [Uniswap NFT Aggregator](https://app.uniswap.org/#/nfts): A marketplace to explore, buy, and sell NFTs at better prices

No single entity or company controls the Uniswap Protocol. It is governed by [UNI](https://blog.uniswap.org/uni) token holders and stewarded by the [Uniswap Foundation](https://www.uniswapfoundation.org/).

# What is the Uniswap Protocol? The decentralized exchange built on Ethereum

The Uniswap Protocol is a decentralized marketplace to swap cryptocurrencies on the Ethereum blockchain. It exists as a set of persistent, non-upgradable smart contracts. That means that no one controls the codebase. The Uniswap Protocol's code cannot be changed or modified and will run as long as the blockchain is functional, even if Uniswap Labs disappears tomorrow.  Anyone can deploy the Uniswap Protocol contracts on any blockchain. The Uniswap Protocol is already on several blockchains, like Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, Binance Smart Chain, and Celo.

People use the Uniswap Protocol primarily for two reasons:

**Swapping**. The Uniswap Protocol is a decentralized exchange (DEX). Unlike traditional exchanges, decentralized exchanges are unique because they allow users to swap tokens without third parties facilitating the transaction or taking control of funds. Swapping on the Uniswap is completely self-custodial, which means you always retain control of your assets — and no third party can take or misuse your funds.

**Providing Liquidity**. Liquidity refers to how much of an asset is available to trade. The Uniswap Protocol relies on third parties to supply liquidity. These liquidity providers (LPs) are users who deposit tokens into a liquidity pool to provide liquidity for a particular token pair that swappers can trade with. In return for providing liquidity, LPs earn trading fees generated by the pool. Anyone can become a liquidity provider, a transformative change to participating in financial markets.

The Uniswap Protocol is [open-sourced](https://github.com/Uniswap/v3-core/), meaning that the code is publicly viewable for anyone to see.
# How does Uniswap work? Understanding automated market makers (AMM)
Unlike traditional order book exchanges where a buy order is matched to a sell order, Uniswap uses an automated market maker (AMM) system. AMMs use a mathematical algorithm to determine the price based on the supply of the asset, which removes the friction of having centralized middlemen and allows for an efficient way to buy and sell digital assets. There is no bidding or order book, just the price based on how much liquidity is available. When users want to make a swap, they input the amount of cryptocurrency they want to swap in and receive a number of tokens in exchange. All of this is done on the blockchain.

The Uniswap Protocol uses a constant product formula to determine the price of an asset. When a token is withdrawn (bought) from a pool, a proportional amount must be deposited (sold) to maintain the constant. The ratio of tokens in the pool, in combination with the constant product formula, ultimately determines the price of a token.

The constant product formula that the Uniswap Protocol uses is:

<Latex displayMode={true}>$ x \star y = k $ </Latex>

Where

* **X** = Reserve of the first token
* **Y** = Reserve of the second token

The total amount of both tokens should always balance out so that **K** experiences no change.

For example, if a liquidity pool has 10 ETH and 1000 USDC, the product of the two balances would be 10,000. If a user buys 1 ETH from the pool with USDC, the new balance would be 9 ETH and 1111.11 USDC, keeping the product of the two balances constant at 10,000.

The constant product market maker algorithm uses this formula to determine the price of each token in the pool based on the ratio of the two token balances. The price of a token in the pool is simply the ratio of the two token balances. In the above example, the price of ETH in terms of USDC would be 111.11 USDC after the swap.

![Graph (1)](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/5Su2EgjbYa5oyr274KWxMI/c1bbc67c8ba2053769e8546459e30fa0/Graph__1_.jpg)

The Uniswap Protocol has four versions:

* [Uniswap V1](https://twitter.com/haydenzadams/status/1058376395108376577) was the first version of the Uniswap decentralized exchange protocol, launched in November 2018. It was a revolutionary concept in decentralized exchanges, quickly gaining popularity in the cryptocurrency community. Uniswap v1 was the first DEX to natively pair tokens against ETH, the native token for Ethereum, letting users swap against the most popular token.

* [Uniswap v2](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-v2) launched in May 2020 and brought many upgrades to the Uniswap Protocol. Users could now trade any Ethererum-based (or ERC-20) token for any other ERC-20 token rather than just trading against ETH. Uniswap v2 greatly increased the protocol's flexibility and allowed for a broader range of trades.

* [Uniswap v3](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-v3) is the current version of the protocol. Released in May 2021, Uniswap v3 introduced concentrated liquidity whereby liquidity providers could now choose specific price ranges rather than providing liquidity across the entire price range. This meant that LPs could concentrate their capital on a specific price range, allocating their capital more efficiently.

* [Uniswap v4](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-v4) is currently being built in public with contributions from the broader Uniswap community. It has not been deployed yet. The goal with v4 is to make liquidity pools more customizable and to lower gas costs.

Read more about the history of Uniswap [here](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-history).

# The benefits of Uniswap: decentralization, liquidity, and accessibility
Decentralized exchanges (DEXs) like the Uniswap Protocol offer several benefits over traditional centralized exchanges (CEXs). Key benefits include decentralization, self custody, transparency, improved liquidity, and greater accessibility.

**Decentralization and Self-Custodial**: One of the Uniswap Protocol's main benefits is that it is decentralized. Unlike centralized entities that operate CEXs, the Uniswap Protocol operates on a decentralized network, with no single entity controlling the exchange. Decentralization has two main advantages. (1) The smart contracts that make the Uniswap Protocol cannot be changed once deployed, meaning no one can change the rules. (2) Funds are completely self-custodial. You always remain in control of your assets. No third party can take or misuse them.

**Transparency**: DEXs are significantly more transparent than other exchanges. Not only is all the code open source and publicly available, but the Uniswap Protocol operates on public blockchains where all transactions and smart contract interactions are recorded on a transparent and immutable ledger. Anyone can access and verify these transactions, ensuring transparency and accountability.

**[Improved liquidity for cheaper swaps](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-v3-dominance)**: The Uniswap Protocol can offer improved liquidity over CEXs. By allowing anyone to create and provide liquidity to a pool, the Uniswap Protocol can tap into liquidity from retail users without relying on traditional market makers or order books, making swaps cheaper.

**Greater accessibility**: Another benefit of the Uniswap Protocol is greater accessibility. Anyone can trade any token or create a market for any token. In this way, DEXs are more accessible to a wider range of users, including those who may not have access to traditional banking services.

# How to use Uniswap
Anyone can swap on the Uniswap Protocol. One of the easiest ways to do this is on the [Uniswap web app](https://app.uniswap.org/).
### Step 1: Go to the Uniswap Web App
Navigate to [app.uniswap.org](https://app.uniswap.org/#/swap). This web app is hosted and maintained by Uniswap Labs. It is one of the most popular ways to exchange with the Uniswap Protocol.
### Step 2: Connect your wallet
To start using Uniswap, you'll need to connect your Ethereum wallet to the platform. Uniswap supports a range of wallets, including the Uniswap Wallet, Metamask, Coinbase Wallet, and WalletConnect.

If you do not have a wallet, you can learn more about wallets [here](https://support.uniswap.org/hc/en-us/articles/8699353449229-What-is-a-crypto-wallet-) and download the Uniswap mobile wallet [here](https://wallet.uniswap.org/)!

Once you've connected your wallet, you can choose which network to swap, like Ethereum, Polygon, Arbitrum, Optimism, or others.
### Step 3: Choose the tokens you want to trade
Once you've connected your wallet, you can choose the tokens you want to trade. You can select from a wide range of tokens, either by navigating to the [token details page](https://app.uniswap.org/#/tokens/), or entering the token directly. As always, do your own research when trading tokens.

![image1(1)](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/6zUN0dm1vFirh7MxBZ0pPY/8a608eb2f42a08fc272ce76655e21ed2/image1_1_.jpg)

Select the 'Select a token' icon and browse the list to find your token. You can also search by token name or token contract address.

![image6](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/5fa8K1Q79SKlk1CmcdbPt0/1abc83f6ca516cf0220906cb6a6c7c84/image6.jpg)

### Step 4: Enter the amount you want to trade
Once you've chosen the tokens you want to trade, you can enter the amount you want to trade. You can buy or sell one token for another based on the current exchange rate. Additionally, you'll see a network fee, which is the gas cost you can expect to pay to perform the swap. If you are unfamiliar with gas fees, please read [this](https://support.uniswap.org/hc/en-us/articles/8672184917005-How-is-a-network-fee-determined-).

![image5](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/5fYrpLdvPFWFCSZWQNX0F7/3ea8b8b68193a4b36ace44b883b64647/image5.jpg)
### Step 5: Review and confirm your swap
After you've entered the amount you want to trade, the Uniswap [auto router](https://blog.uniswap.org/auto-router-v2) finds the best price and automatically calculates the amount of the other token you'll receive. You'll then need to confirm the trade by clicking "Swap" and approving the Ethereum wallet transaction.

![image4](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/11x6WDMxZlNh9rqvvB9KGe/7b1e719f6e97d9338d1d526cb0e3f41e/image4__1_.png)

If this is your wallet's first time trading this token with the Uniswap Protocol, you need to approve the token first. This additional approval is an extra layer of security to protect your funds. Read about approval transactions [here](https://support.uniswap.org/hc/en-us/articles/8120520483085-What-is-an-approval-transaction-).
### Step 6: Wait for the transaction to be processed
After confirming your trade, you'll need to wait for the Ethereum network to process the transaction. Swaps are often completed within seconds but can take longer if the network is busy.
# Frequently Asked Questions About Uniswap
### What is Uniswap Labs?
Uniswap Labs is a company that develops software products that work on top of the Uniswap Protocol. Uniswap Labs was founded by Hayden Adams, who developed the Uniswap Protocol. Uniswap Labs builds and maintains products like the [Uniswap web app](https://app.uniswap.org/), [NFT aggregator](https://app.uniswap.org/#/nfts), and [Uniswap mobile wallet](https://wallet.uniswap.org/).
### What is the UNI token?
The UNI token is the Uniswap Protocol's governance token. The Uniswap Protocol is not controlled by a single entity, but rather a community of individuals and organizations is responsible for stewarding the world's biggest AMM protocol. Users and organizations that hold UNI can use it to vote on decisions related to the Protocol. 
### Is Uniswap safe?
The Uniswap Protocol is one of crypto's safest and most secure protocols. The protocol has processed over $1.5 trillion in trading volume over hundreds of millions of transactions without incident. All contracts have been [audited](https://github.com/Uniswap/v3-core/tree/main/audits) by world-class professional security teams.
### Does Uniswap charge fees?
Uniswap Labs does not charge fees to use its platform. But swappers do pay two types of fees: (1) Network Fee and (2) LP Fees

* **Network Fees**: Every transaction on the Ethereum blockchain requires a network fee, also known as a gas fee. Validators use their own computers to verify and process transactions instead of relying on a central authority. In return, validators are compensated through network fees. Network fees are determined by the supply and demand of block space. When there is a lot of traffic on a network (high volume of transactions), the network fee is higher. When there is low traffic on the network (low volume of transactions), the network fee is lower. You can also swap on Layer 2 chains, which are built on top of Ethereum and have lower costs. 
* **LP Fees**: LP fees are split between liquidity providers within a specific pool as compensation for providing liquidity. These fees can range between 0.05% to 1%. This money goes directly to individual LPs and not to Uniswap Labs.
# How to get started with Uniswap
We have several resources to help you get started with the Uniswap Protocol.

* Trade on the [Uniswap web app](https://app.uniswap.org/#/swap)
* Follow up on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/uniswap)
* Explore our [Help Center](https://support.uniswap.org/hc/en-us)
* Chat with [customer support](https://support.uniswap.org/hc/en-us/requests/new)
* Ask questions in our [Discord community](https://discord.gg/FCfyBSbCU5)
* Dig into the [code](https://github.com/Uniswap)
* Read the [docs](https://docs.uniswap.org/)

Learn more about the Uniswap Protocol, an Ethereum based exchange, with our complete guide. Explore more ways to trade crypto on our decentralized protocol.

Uniswap 101: What is Uniswap? | Uniswap Labs

It's Tuesday in New York City. The birds are chirping, the grass is green, and Uniswap Labs is headed to the eighth annual [NY Computer Science Fair](https://www.csfair.nyc/). The NY Computer Science Fair is the state's largest career inspiration event with over 2,000 high school students interested in pursuing a career in computer science.

Before we set up shop, our team gathered in the Uniswap Labs office to ensure we had all the materials for our booth:

*Tablecloth. Check.*

*Computer monitor. Check.*

*300 bags of cotton candy. Check.* 😎

Of the hundreds of companies present, Uniswap Labs was one of only four Web3 companies to attend the fair. Our goal wasn't to recruit any high schoolers - there are only a handful of [t11s's](https://www.paradigm.xyz/team/transmissions11) in the world. We were there to educate and introduce them to Web3.

![File](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/2aYWq3YbGGQgYO1pso9so4/918628719d90c0d90f7c02a6c527844f/File.jpg)

# What’s a blockchain?
Most students who came to our booth had heard the words “crypto” and “NFTs” before but didn’t understand their use cases. Instead of teaching students about elliptic curves, the double spend problem, and byzantine fault tolerance, we focused on the benefits blockchains unlock. 
One example that resonated with students was buying and selling Fortnite skins. Players grind hard to earn items like skins, weapons, and accessories, but cannot buy or sell them without secondary markets. In Web3, players own their digital assets. They can be bought, sold, moved, and traded without asking for permission from anyone else.

# So then, what is Uniswap?
Students were quick to understand the value of digital ownership and exchange. After all, these kids are internet natives. The natural next question was, even if digital assets could be owned, how could they be traded?
We talked a bit about how Uniswap was a marketplace for digital assets. However, unlike centralized marketplaces, we explained how any could create a market for a token without needing permission. Uniswap is built on a blockchain, and blockchains don’t discriminate. They aren’t controlled by anyone and allow you to participate as equals.

# Educating the next generation
Reinventing the financial system to remove intermediaries, increase transparency, and move onchain will require decades of hard work. A long-term approach means recognizing the work doesn’t end with us.

The next generation of developers, designers, writers, and more will go on to create financial, economic, and data infrastructure on the internet. To cultivate that future, we must educate students about how blockchain lays the foundation for a better financial system — one that is inclusive, fair, transparent, and self-custodial.


Uniswap Labs attended the NY Computer Science Fair, where we spoke with high schoolers about crypto, DeFi, NFTs, and more.

Uniswap Labs at the NY Computer Science Fair

At Uniswap Labs, we're building the best products to onboard people directly to DeFi. To do that properly, we need to know what motivates our current and future users. Earlier this year, we surveyed these groups and found that many US-based CeFi users are interested in experimenting with DeFi. However, they would feel more comfortable overcoming the learning curve with educational material, improved UX, and support.

DeFi is an objectively simpler, more accessible tech stack for financial markets. DeFi is transparent, self-custodial, and runs on publicly verifiable code instead of middlemen who oftentimes are more interested in profits than consumers. However, DeFi is as unfamiliar to the average person as the internet was in the 1990s. Bridging to L2s feels like dial-up networking and exploring Etherscan parallels surfing the web before search engines.

As AOL did with the early web, centralized finance (CeFi) platforms often offer content and onboarding that helps beginners feel more comfortable exploring crypto. But these CeFi products still suffer from the same lack of accountability and transparency that plagues the legacy financial system. FTX, Celsius, and Voyager are all examples of centralized custodians that wiped out customer deposits and prompted a [major uptick](https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-11-18/billions-of-dollars-flee-ftx-woe-to-crypto-s-decentralized-roots#xj4y7vzkg) in DeFi usage.

Uniswap Labs builds products to onboard people [directly to DeFi](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-mobile-wallet-release). To do that, we want to better understand current and future users. So, we conducted a large survey of US retail users, segmented into non-crypto, CeFi, and DeFi users

- __DeFi users__ traded via a wallet or DeFi trading platform in the last 12 months

- __CeFi users__ bought, held, or sold crypto in the last 12 months

- __Hybrid users__ include both CeFi and DeFi users

- __Non-crypto__ users did neither

We received 1,860 responses whose demographics closely reflected US Census Demographics.

These are our biggest takeaways.

![image3](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/7kSv6FS2HtfninSUiSrl38/f5900bbf1f5323dd68dc7ef876b986f9/image3.png)

# CeFi users are excited to experiment with DeFi
Our most encouraging finding was that, despite the backdrop of a bear market, nearly half of surveyed CeFi users were motivated to experiment with DeFi protocols in the next 12 months. 

We asked CeFi users, “*What would be the main reasons you’d trade on a decentralized cryptocurrency platform over the next 12 months.*”

![image4](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/2vVzltfklU7vA2iYQBUOWz/2cf56e41c9bff0187e9ec1a870138e7d/image4.png)

CeFi users are willing and eager to learn and explore the possibilities of onchain activity. Experimenting can mean using a self-custodial wallet, swapping on Uniswap, or minting an NFT. These activities, which can seem routine to many of us, are imbued with excitement and novelty for first-time users.

Building for this group means focusing on UX and thinking about the first steps as a gateway into the broader crypto ecosystem.

# CeFi users see complexity and cost as barriers

If CeFi users are willing to experiment, what’s stopping them? Our survey shows their main concerns are complexity, lack of understanding, and costs as barriers to using DeFi.

We asked, “*What are the main reasons you don’t use decentralized cryptocurrency platforms for all your cryptocurrency trades?*”

![image1](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/3XVYaARkZZB3STnHmDN3m/2bc6d436ecd1968d54a329e52b2e5c95/image1.png)

Concerns about the complexity of DeFi aren’t new but underscore the need to build with the user experience front of mind. Products must focus on designing applications that simplify and abstract complexity unique to crypto, like switching between chains, key management, and reading onchain data. At Uniswap Labs, we refuse to compromise on the ideals of self-custody and transparency.

Transaction fees and costs were also notable barriers to entry. As Ethereum continues to scale and L2s see greater adoption, DeFi will become more economically accessible for these price-sensitive users.

# Improved support will boost comfort with DeFi
If complexity was a major concern, we asked what we could do to reduce complexity for these CeFi users. They cited “Better educational resources” and “Increased user support” as improvements that would increase willingness among CeFi users to trade on DeFi platforms.

We asked, “*What would increase your willingness to trade cryptocurrency on decentralized platforms over the next 12 months.*”

![image2](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/3IDrUZdRe5e3ga0zs17jTT/819d9676dce2e18f5ab4708ad50c7356/image2.png)

Products that target this CeFi segment have already invested in these educational resources. At Uniswap Labs, we’ve assembled one of the few customer support teams in crypto — and one of the best. The entire industry now must work to help educate users about how to use DeFi and the benefits of self-custody. These resources can have a measurable impact in helping users build their knowledge base and grow their confidence.

# Conclusion
At Uniswap Labs, we're building useful tools for crypto-native and crypto-curious users, whether using a [wallet](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-mobile-wallet-release), [purchasing crypto](https://blog.uniswap.org/web-fiat-on-ramp), [swapping tokens](https://blog.uniswap.org/safety-simplicity-uniswap-marketplace), or [buying NFTs](https://blog.uniswap.org/uniswap-nft-aggregator-announcement). Surveys like these help us better understand who our customers are and how we build for them in the future. We hope these findings can help other builders in crypto, too.

Uniswap Labs surveyed US-based CeFi users and found that many are interested in DeFi but need better educational resources, improved UX, and support.

Going from CeFi to DeFi

A few months ago, a new channel appeared in the Uniswap Labs Slack server. The excitement was palpable as engineers attending [ETHTokyo 2023](https://ethglobal.com/events/tokyo) trickled in. Emojis and reactions flew across the screen while some employees exclusively joined to disclose their FOMO.

Still months out from the hackathon, the team started brainstorming on projects. Proposals ranged from onchain poker with zero-knowledge proofs and ChatGPT transaction parsers to protocol hacks like exploring blob data with EIP4844 and sponsoring bundled transactions with EIP4337.

As April rolled around, Uniswap Labs engineers boarded flights to Tokyo. Schedules were packed with hacking, side events, sightseeing, and birthday celebrations. Amidst all the activity, they shipped two hackathon projects and won the Ethereum Foundation’s `Best Account Abstraction` rewards.

![eng at tokyo](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/52x2ox6yKgDwZG6gNj8feD/48010aaab188fda23b450453db83e8f5/IMG_8206__2_.jpg)
<div align="center">
  <font size="2">
    (◡ ꒳ ◡)
  </font>
</div>

# Enthusiasm for Ethereum in Japan
Since 2017, most [ETHGlobal hackathons](https://ethglobal.com/events/hackathons) have been in The Americas or Europe. ETHTokyo was one of the few events in East Asia and the first in Japan. It was a [massive success](https://twitter.com/ETHGlobal/status/1648330540833972227). Over 1,000 hackers attended the event with 30% new to the Web3 scene.

Despite the backdrop of a bear market, attendees were excited to hack on new ideas. The two most prominent themes at ETHTokyo were account abstraction and ChatGPT/AI-inspired projects.

# ETHTokyo 2023 hackathon projects

## Project 1: UwU Link
Team: [Tina](https://twitter.com/patagucci_girl), [Daniel](https://twitter.com/dcwj), [Chelsy](https://twitter.com/chelsy_wu), [Mark](https://twitter.com/MarkToda), [Noah](https://twitter.com/NoahZinsmeister)

[UwU Link](https://ethglobal.com/showcase/uwu-link-v9exf) lets users sign transactions without connecting their mobile wallets to an app. Instead, they scan a QR code with a mobile wallet app, initiating a transaction that can be signed directly within the wallet. This eliminates the need for users to go through the cumbersome "Connect Wallet" flow and for creators to build elaborate app sites for one-off projects, such as NFT mints. UwU Link is especially useful for IRL events where codes can be shared in person to collect, mint, or claim digital artifacts.

Watch the [demo](https://ethglobal.com/showcase/uwu-link-v9exf) and try the [MVP](https://uwulink-demo.vercel.app/) yourself and view the [source code](https://github.com/tinaszheng/uwulink-demo). Remember to use a fresh hot wallet like the [Uniswap mobile wallet](https://apps.apple.com/app/apple-store/id6443944476?pt=123625782&ct=Announcement%20Blog&mt=8).

## Project 2: Universal Paymaster
Team: [Eric](https://twitter.com/_ericzhong), [Riley](https://twitter.com/rileydcampbell), [Mark](https://twitter.com/MarkToda), [Sara](https://twitter.com/saraareynolds), [Pote](https://twitter.com/willpote)

_Winner: Ethereum Foundation Best Account Abstraction_

[Universal Paymaster](https://ethglobal.com/showcase/universal-paymaster-a2fyy) is a smart contract that allows anyone to deposit ETH to sponsor transaction fees. Users submit EIP-4337-style transactions that sponsors execute on their behalf. In exchange for paying transaction fees, users compensate sponsors with another token, like USDC or any token the sponsor specifies. For example, Elon Musk could use the Universal Paymaster contract to sponsor Twitter Blue subscriptions paid in DOGE. Sponsors could charge users a premium for this service as well. In addition, the Universal Paymaster allows sponsors to earn yield through automated depositing and rebalancing unused ETH into yield-bearing protocols like Lido, or Aave.

The team went on to win the Ethereum Foundation's Account Abstraction prize due to the crowdfunding mechanic of the paymaster contract. Typical paymaster designs are managed by a single party, but the Universal Paymaster is permissionless for retail, just like the Uniswap Protocol. Dig into more implementation details of Universal Paymaster by brushing up on the [ERC-4337](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-4337) standard and checking out our (very hacky) [repo](https://github.com/marktoda/hackathon-paymaster) here!

Uniswap Labs engineers hacked at ETHTokyo this year and won the Ethereum Foundation’s Account Abstraction reward.

Uniswap Labs at ETHTokyo 2023

_By [Zach Pomerantz](https://github.com/zzmp)_

The Unix philosophy, popularized in the 1980s, emphasizes breaking down complex software systems into smaller, interchangeable pieces of code that developers can easily reuse. While it may seem like conventional practice today, it was revolutionary when developers were far more focused on monolithic systems. This approach became popular among developers, allowing them to ship better code faster and get new technology into the hands of users without delay.

Web3 applications, which generally exist in a public and open-source ecosystem, have embraced this philosophy to develop software. By sharing useful code across developers and building on emerging standards, Web3 developers create increasingly sophisticated software at a rapid pace. I see this directly with how quickly we can ship code at Uniswap Labs.

In drawing from the Unix philosophy, Web3 developers have been able to work in real time with developing technology to solve challenging problems. This approach has revolutionized how software is built and is a testament to the power of collaboration and shared standards.

# Unix Philosophy and Web Development

The Unix philosophy emerged with the development of the Unix operating system. Later summarized by [Peter H. Salus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Peter_H._Salus), the Unix philosophy was distilled to:
1. Write programs that do one thing and do it well. 
2. Write programs to work together. 
3. Write programs to handle text streams, because that is a universal interface. [^1]

[^1]: I propose modernizing this to “Write programs to handle domain-specific languages.”

These three brief principles result in simpler code that can be easily combined to perform more complex operations. For example, copying and pasting text from one file into another:

```
cat file1.txt | pbcopy
pbpaste > file2.txt
```

 Each CLI command is a tool whose combined inputs and outputs can be piped together for more useful actions. String together enough commands, you can build scripts or create new and reusable tools to perform more sophisticated tasks, elevating the playing field for all developers. From Unix came the POSIX specification, a standard library to maintain compatibility between operating systems. It was a big step that allowed us to focus on our applications without worrying about tasks delegated to these foundational tools, like file system access and permissions.

Fast forward a few decades, and we see the Unix philosophy break new limits. Node.js and its package manager, npm, gives JavaScript developers better tools for more sophisticated software. Instead of coding smaller tasks, npm provides foundational libraries like [left-pad](https://www.npmjs.com/package/left-pad). These allow programs to delegate smaller tasks and keep their application code focused.

When something gets too big, it becomes harder to think through. Design doc reviews often boil down to paring a project to its constituent parts, scoping them, and then building it back up. By treating each constituent as a black box, teams only need to reason about how to “do one thing and do it well”, and not the myriad of requirements necessary for the final product. In this way, every developer is standing on the shoulders of giants.

# Unix Philosophy and Web3
As I learned more about web development and Web3 applications, I realized that this type of development eventually consolidates around open standards. Blockchain code is publicly callable, and developers use this to their advantage by rallying around standards that let them focus on the applications they want to build.

The Request for Comments-style [Ethereum Improvement Proposal](https://eips.ethereum.org/) (EIP) process encourages discussion around new standards and facilitates broader adoption with new foundational libraries. In 2018, Web3 applications did not have a standardized way to connect to user wallets. Each wallet API implementation was slightly different. Writing your own Web3 application meant accounting for how a user's wallet might connect. [EIP-1193](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-1193) solved that. The proposed Ethereum Provider JavaScript API introduced basic functionality like connection and request logic between apps and wallets. With a standard API to follow, app developers could spend more time on core functionality and less time accommodating conflicting connection methods.

As with Node.js and npm, each new standard library gives developers a new tool to work more precisely by using them to abstract important logic unrelated to their core application and create more sophisticated software. String together enough of these libraries and developers can unlock powerful new tools.

We built one of these new tools with [Permit2](https://uniswap.org/blog/permit2-and-universal-router). When users interact with a Web3 application, they must give the application permission to send tokens from their wallet. Permit2 allows these approvals to be shared across multiple applications instead of each application requiring its own approval.

But Permit2 was only possible because we built on already-existing standards like ERC-20, ERC-1155, and ERC-712. [ERC-20](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-20) defined the token standard. [ERC-1155](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-1155) extended the token standard to "approve" spending by another contract. [ERC-712](https://eips.ethereum.org/EIPS/eip-712) extends EIP-1193 with a way for wallets to sign data to verify user permission.

Permit2 extends the ecosystem further by taking a token's approval and a wallet's signatures to prove that a user has permitted it to spend a token across other applications resulting in a more unified, cost-efficient, and safer user experience. In turn, we wanted developers to use Permit2 to manage token access control list functions, so we made it easy for developers to integrate with it.

***

Developers can steadily enhance their capabilities by leveraging existing EIPs and foundational libraries, codifying and abstracting these patterns into even better libraries. Whenever this pattern repeats itself, it elevates the baseline of what is possible, making Web3 an exciting space to work in.

Web3 intrinsically operates in public. We don't just build applications; we create the building blocks with tools and libraries that make them easy to use. I'm excited to participate in this ecosystem by building at Uniswap Labs. If you think you'd like, consider [joining us](https://boards.greenhouse.io/uniswaplabs)!

Uniswap Labs’ front-end engineer draws parallels between the Unix philosophy and Web3 applications, which creates interoperable, extensible, and reusable code, allowing us to ship better code faster.

The Unix Philosophy at Uniswap Labs

_By [Jon Fink Isaksen](https://dk.linkedin.com/in/jonisaksen)_

I am a firm believer in technology and financial innovation as tools for societal good.

I have spent my career working in government promoting an open approach that enables responsible innovation -- from establishing the Danish financial regulator's innovation hub and regulatory sandbox, to drafting and negotiating digital asset [regulation](https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/press/press-releases/2022/06/30/digital-finance-agreement-reached-on-european-crypto-assets-regulation-mica/) for Europe at the European Commission. Now, as Head of Policy for Europe, Middle East, and Africa at Uniswap Labs, I am excited to continue this work at the very forefront of financial innovation.

A [report recently supported by the European Commission](https://finance.ec.europa.eu/system/files/2022-10/finance-events-221021-report_en.pdf) notes that the "openness and transparency [of DeFi] bear promises to remove threats of abusive market power, promote innovation and facilitate financial inclusion." The transparency of DeFi will solve many of the information asymmetries that plague centralized financial systems. DeFi has the potential to "alleviate demand-side concerns such as financial exclusion, market manipulation and opacity."

DeFi allows users to have complete control over their assets, without relinquishing custodial control of assets to intermediaries. DeFi can be used by anyone with a smartphone and internet connection, opening the doors of the financial system to those who have been historically shut out of it.

While DeFi solves many of the problems in traditional and centralized digital asset markets, ensuring that all DeFi is safe and secure is a top priority. After developing a Protocol that has never seen a significant hack despite over $1.2 trillion in volume, Uniswap Labs has a valuable perspective in pursuit of that goal. We are well-positioned to make the idea of a more inclusive digital financial system a market reality and make it safe -- and possible -- for consumers to transact with each other, and I am incredibly excited to be part of the journey with a team that shares this mission.

I look forward to engaging with policymakers, regulators, and industry participants globally and finding ways to mitigate potential risks and empower consumers and build a safe and inclusive digital financial system.

---

To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team 🦄

Jon Fink Isaksen joins Uniswap Labs as Head of Policy for Europe, Middle East, and Africa, bringing an extensive history of digital asset regulation from the EU.

Welcome Jon Fink Isaksen as Head of Policy, EU

Web2 and web3 contrast philosophically across many lines, like censorship, security, and ownership. One crucial difference between the two is privacy. Ahead of several exciting upcoming releases, we’ve released [Uniswap Labs’ Privacy Policy](https://uniswap.org/privacy-policy) to explain how we protect user privacy and data.

With innovations around blockchain, web3 aims to reclaim users’ privacy and choice after decades of internet businesses that have eroded it. Uniswap Labs shares these values and is working to be a leader in this effort. That’s why we’re releasing a new Privacy Policy today – we want to be crystal clear about what data we’re protecting and how we use any data we collect. Transparency is key. We never want our users to be surprised.

### What's our commitment to privacy?

First and foremost, we do not collect and store personal data, such as first name, last name, street address, date of birth, email address, or IP address.

We are committed to making iterative improvements to our privacy and security practices. For example, we recently released a reverse proxy server that sits between user devices and any third-party tool. This prevents third-party tools from reading user data, adding an additional layer of protection.

We will continue to apply these policies to existing and future Uniswap Labs products.

### What data do we collect and why?

Our first priority is to protect user data and privacy while also making data-driven decisions that improve user experience. That includes public on-chain data and limited off-chain data like device type, browser version, etc. Because Uniswap Labs does not collect personal data, any vendors we work with do not have any personal data either.

Uniswap does not share your data with any third parties for marketing purposes.

Uniswap Labs takes measures to protect user privacy and data

Uniswap Labs’ Commitment to Privacy

_By [Hayden Adams](https://twitter.com/haydenzadams)_

When I built the Uniswap Protocol in 2018, it was an experiment to see if I could create something that fully embodied the values of Ethereum: transparent, secure, and accessible. Since then, it has grown and evolved in ways I never imagined. It’s supported $1.2 trillion in trading volume to date and has become critical public infrastructure for exchanging digital value.

Now, Uniswap Labs is bringing the powerful simplicity and security that has defined the Uniswap Protocol to even more people across the world by investing in our web app and developer tools, launching NFTs, moving into mobile — and more!

To support this growth, I’m so excited to announce that we’ve raised $165 million in Series B funding, led by Polychain Capital and with participation from longtime investors a16z crypto, Paradigm, SV Angel, and Variant.

As Uniswap Labs focuses on products, a much broader ecosystem continues to grow and thrive beyond what any one company can do on their own. As an example, the governance community recently voted to create the Uniswap Foundation, which will contribute to the Protocol’s decentralized development and give at least $60 million in grants to community projects over the next few years.

I’m so grateful for the support of our incredible community, users, investors, and team. And I can’t wait to share more in the months ahead!

Bringing Web3 to Everyone

_By [Noah Zinsmeister](https://twitter.com/NoahZinsmeister)_

Today, I'm pleased to announce that I've transferred ownership of [web3-react](https://github.com/Uniswap/web3-react) to Uniswap Labs. For the uninitiated, web3-react is a simple, maximally extensible, dependency minimized framework for building modern Ethereum dApps. The repository’s new home is now [Uniswap/web3-react](https://github.com/Uniswap/web3-react), though distribution will still be under the `@web3-react` npm organization. This is the culmination of a multi-year, ongoing integration, and I'm thrilled that my fellow engineers at Uniswap Labs will be able to take an ownership stake in one of the most widely used web3 frontend libraries — with the goal of leveling up the library in the long run.

When I first became interested in Ethereum in late 2017, I started a side project called [ProveIt](https://github.com/NoahZinsmeister/ProveIt). I had tons of fun brainstorming use cases for a public, immutable ledger, and writing my first smart contract. But I struggled to create even a rudimentary frontend for my project (though in the end, it [turned out okay](https://noahzinsmeister.github.io/ProveIt/)).

![proveit](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/5E4ASenvc2b5wCGYSgeKYd/3415d4ffab78fe70858e554b5d8a9438/proveit.png)

I quickly realized that I wasn't just a bad frontend developer — or at least that wasn't the only problem... Frontend tooling for dApps was in a sorry state, so in 2018 I set out to build what became [web3-webpacked](https://github.com/NoahZinsmeister/web3-webpacked), a "drop-in web3 solution for single-page Ethereum dApps". This experience quickly brought me to the boundaries of my technical knowledge, and while the library was beginning to pick up steam, I realized that a more elegant approach built on stronger foundations was warranted. This approach was the beginning of [web3-react](https://github.com/Uniswap/web3-react), which is still in use today and has nearly 4k stars on Github and over [300k monthly downloads](https://npm-stat.com/charts.html?package=%40web3-react%2Fcore&from=2020-01-01&to=2022-06-30).

![downloads per month](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/vblhpCaumIqjzVNPdiH7Z/5b34ce7b8dc5392dace955aa27b4cf7d/downloads_per_month.png)

web3-react was actually (indirectly) responsible for landing me my role at Uniswap, and my first official project was updating the Uniswap interface to use my library (which I completed in commit [#4e41391](https://github.com/Uniswap/interface/commit/4e413915f8fa3bfdda98c6d623dd35d207cda150)). This effort neatly separated the majority of wallet connection logic from app logic and offered easy access to a user's address and web3 connection throughout the codebase. This migration represented a big DevEx/UX improvement (at a time when dApps were regularly blocking interaction behind a required MetaMask popup!), and I was proud to have contributed, albeit in a small way, to the improvement of web3 developer tooling.

However, as the years went on, and wallet standards came and went, I was only able to give intermittent support to web3-react. Because I'd dogfooded the library, I always made an effort to keep it functional, but I occasionally fell behind the state of the art, as more and more of my time went into smart contract development.

Recently, I felt compelled to modernize the library in a v8 release, which is currently in a fully functional beta. This release dramatically improved performance and reduced developer friction, but it also included some breaking changes, and I quickly realized that as a solo maintainer I wasn't going to be able to offer the level of support and backwards compatibility that's required for a library used by applications with Uniswap's level of scale. By transferring ownership of web3-react to Uniswap Labs, we now have a much larger and more talented team dedicated to maintaining the library.

Being able to write and maintain open-source, copyleft code has always been a pleasure and an honor for me, and I'm excited for what this new chapter will bring to web3-react.

Download the repo [here](https://github.com/Uniswap/web3-react).

Engineering Lead, Noah Zinsmeister, transfers ownership of GitHub repo, web3-react, to Uniswap Labs

A New Chapter for web3-react

I’m a big believer in the transformative potential of web3. Blockchain technology has unlocked the ability to own and exchange exponentially more types of value. While critical pieces of infrastructure like the Uniswap Protocol are in place to bring this vision to reality, there is more work to be done to unlock the universal exchange of value on the internet and to build the best gateway to web3 for everyone.

We’re just at the beginning of the tokenization of everything. I believe Uniswap is perfectly positioned to make everything digital tradable and to build consumer products that bring the promise of fair, accessible markets to everyone on the internet. I’m thrilled to be joining this team as the VP of Product.

I’ve always been interested in the ways we interact with technology and how we can evolve it to improve our social and economic lives. It’s not enough to just build the pipes and rails of web3. We need to think about the best ways to make it simpler, safer, and more secure for the next 100M+ users to navigate. We can’t unlock universal ownership or make the global financial system more inclusive if we don’t have simple, high-craft user experiences built on top of web3 protocols. Uniswap Labs is at the center of this effort, and I’m excited to bring my experience building consumer products at scale – especially on mobile – to this exceptional team.

Most recently, I worked at Coinbase, where I led the teams responsible for a number of web3 and social discovery experiences across the Coinbase and Coinbase Wallet apps, including the recent Dapp Wallet and Browser launch. My time at Coinbase strengthened my belief in the transformative potential of crypto and the value of building simple, safe experiences that make it easy for millions of new people to discover the space.

Prior to Coinbase, I led Instagram’s Feed and Relevance organization and was responsible for Instagram’s content ranking algorithms as well as key product launches like Reels, Suggested Posts, and Interest Search. During my nine years at Meta, I led the development of many new mobile products and supported teams across Facebook, Instagram, and the company’s Creative Labs efforts (including the Moments app). Like Instagram, Uniswap places a huge emphasis on simplicity and craft in the product development process – something I have found rare in the web3 world.

After a decade at larger tech companies, I’m drawn to the challenge and opportunity of leading somewhere smaller and more entrepreneurial with tremendous potential to grow over the next decade. As a native New Yorker, I think there’s no better place to build this future than right here in New York City, alongside Hayden, MC, Cal, Chad, and Uniswap Labs’ talented team. We’re still growing, so please [reach out](https://boards.greenhouse.io/uniswaplabs) if you’re interested in joining us!

---

To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Subscribe to the Uniswap Labs [blog](https://uniswap.org/rss.xml)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team 🦄

Will Ruben joins Uniswap Labs as VP of Product

Welcome Will Ruben as VP of Product


In pursuit of our mission to unlock universal ownership and exchange, today we're expanding our products to include both ERC-20s and NFTs. We’re excited to announce that we’ve acquired [Genie](https://www.genie.xyz/), the first NFT marketplace aggregator, which lets anyone discover and trade NFTs across most platforms.

NFTs will be integrated into our products, starting with the Uniswap web app, where soon you’ll be able to buy and sell NFTs across all major marketplaces. We’ll also integrate NFTs into our developer APIs and widgets, making Uniswap a comprehensive platform for users and builders in web3.

<Video source="//videos.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/2KYTfjSXYMvgwhzq2Sr2jJ/f9506d7a1dfda80c5ca22a3b332c0a01/genie.mp4" description=" " />

This isn’t our first foray into NFTs. In Spring 2019, we launched [Unisocks](https://unisocks.exchange/), the first instance of NFT liquidity pools, and of NFTs backed by real world assets. Our work on [Uniswap v3 NFT positions](https://twitter.com/haydenzadams/status/1390042372709486592)  helped pioneer on-chain generative SVGs. We see NFTs as another format for value in the growing digital economy—not a separate ecosystem from ERC20s—and they’re already an important gateway to web3.

Consistent with the web3 ethos, we’re sharing some of the value with historical Genie users through a USDC airdrop. The airdrop will launch in August and be claimable for up to 12 months, based on a snapshot that has already been taken. Stay tuned for more details.

As the world’s largest decentralized exchange protocol, Uniswap is a simple and safe place to access the benefits of digital ownership, offering deeper liquidity than leading centralized exchanges. We’re excited to bring what we’ve learned building DeFi products to NFTs, giving even more people access to digital ownership and value.

![screen](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/7Ax9j0lNkHNClA8O6gtn3A/d42f6260bbfb91e61aac70511a132d1d/screen.png)

---

To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team
🦄

---

*This acquisition was made by Uniswap Labs and has no impact on the Uniswap Protocol, Uniswap Governance, or the UNI token. Genie users will continue to have uninterrupted service to the Genie website until the new Uniswap NFT experience is available.*


Uniswap Labs acquires Genie, the first NFT marketplace aggregator

Gm, NFT Frens - Uniswap Labs Has Acquired Genie

_By [Salman Banaei](https://twitter.com/salmanbanaei)_

I’ve committed my entire career to making markets work better. From my early days working in public service in the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), to leading Regulatory Affairs and Blockchain at IHS Markit (n/k/a S&P Global) and then Public Policy at Chainalysis, the common thread through my career has been a mission to make markets safer, more resilient, and more transparent – for everyone and especially the broader public.

That’s why I’m so excited to become the Head of Policy at Uniswap Labs, which shares this same mission that has motivated me for decades.

Looking back, it was the 2008 financial crisis that set in motion two chain reactions that converge in my new role at Uniswap Labs. The first was the public policy response to the global financial crisis – notably the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act– and its goal to reform the markets that had failed the public during the crisis. These regulations aimed to democratize markets, increase investor protection, and reduce systemic risk. At the CFTC, I led Dodd-Frank teams implementing reforms to the US derivatives markets, introducing rules to increase their transparency, competitiveness, and stability.

My contributions were recognized by the then-Chairman, who awarded me the Staff Excellence Award. In my final years at the CFTC, I helped negotiate a number of financial reforms as Senior Counsel and Policy Advisor to the late Commissioner Bart Chilton.

The second chain reaction was the technological response to the crisis, particularly Satoshi Nakamoto’s Bitcoin white paper, which set a blueprint for more inclusive and frictionless financial services. I was intrigued by the potential for trustless finance to reduce the reliance on opaque, rent-seeking middlemen while empowering innovators and individuals. Bitcoin was the first decentralized finance (DeFi) protocol, as it consciously created decentralized payments relying on no trusted intermediaries. Subsequent DeFi protocols have shown the potential to reduce barriers to entry while addressing long-established financial policy goals of investor protection, fair competition, market integrity, transparency, and financial stability. Over the next decade, DeFi may also play an essential role in the merger of digital assets and traditional finance.

Uniswap Labs is situated right at the heart of it – reflecting Dodd-Frank’s goal to democratize markets and Nakomoto’s goal to reduce the frictions in transferring value. The Uniswap Protocol, which Labs helped create, has been a breakthrough invention that can accomplish what we tried so hard to implement at the CFTC across a range of Dodd-Frank reforms. Like internet protocols before it, the true potential of this technology can only be realized with constructive and engaged public sector leadership.

At Uniswap Labs, I’m excited to engage with policymakers and others worldwide to establish clear rules of the road so that we can realize the common goals of the public sector and innovators like Satoshi Nakomoto and Hayden Adams. Policymakers and innovators must work together to build a more inclusive, competitive, democratic, resilient, and secure financial system – one where markets work better for everyone.

---

To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Subscribe to the Uniswap Labs [blog](https://uniswap.org/rss.xml)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team 🦄

Salman Banaei joins Uniswap Labs as Head of Policy

Welcome Salman Banaei as Head of Policy

Uniswap Labs develops products we hope have a positive impact on people’s lives. 

For years, the App has blocked addresses on the OFAC sanctions list. Now, with the help of [TRM Labs](https://www.trmlabs.com/) and as part of our ongoing risk management, we are blocking wallet addresses associated with illicit activity, such as stolen funds or ransomware, from interacting with the Uniswap Labs App. Though these addresses make up a miniscule percentage of users, we intend to limit harmful activity.  

Given the Uniswap Protocol’s decentralized and open-source nature, we do not control users’ access to it via any portal other than our own app. For more information, check out our [Help Center](https://help.uniswap.org/en/articles/6149816).

---
To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Subscribe to the Uniswap Labs [blog](https://uniswap.org/blog)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team 🦄

Uniswap Labs Address Screening Update

Today, we’re thrilled to announce the launch of Uniswap Labs Ventures.

At Uniswap Labs our goal is to unlock universal ownership and exchange for everyone, starting with bringing millions of people into the emerging web3 economy. We’re proud of the foundational products and infrastructure we’ve built so far and are excited for the journey ahead.  But, we know that no team can achieve this mission alone.

Uniswap Labs Ventures will invest in teams at different stages and levels of the web3 stack, from infrastructure to developer tools and consumer-facing applications. We’re also focused on investing in projects that are closely aligned with our values: building for the long term, collaborating openly with communities, and putting users first. 

As a crypto-native development team, we’re uniquely positioned to support the teams we invest in as they launch and grow. We’re excited to leverage our experience to help these teams build and scale across strategy, product, partnerships, engineering, and design. 

Additionally, as members of the Uniswap Protocol community, we’re acutely aware of the importance of responsible protocol governance. So, our Ventures team will actively participate in on and off-chain governance when relevant, collaborating with the communities that have formed around the protocols we invest in to support their evolution. So far, we plan to participate in the governance systems of the MakerDAO, Aave, Compound and Ethereum Name Service protocols.

Teo Leibowitz will drive our efforts as Ventures Lead alongside our Chief Operating Officer, MC Lader.

We’ve already been fortunate to invest in 11 companies and several native protocols across the web3 ecosystem—here are a few: 

**[Tenderly](https://tenderly.co/)** <br />
As a best-in-class Ethereum developer platform, Tenderly is a key entry point for developers experimenting with web3. Their success will drive the growth of web3 as a whole, bringing more easy-to-use and secure applications to market and ultimately more users into the ecosystem.

**[LayerZero](https://layerzero.network/)** <br />
As protocols like Uniswap continue to be deployed across different blockchains, the security and design of the bridges which bring these blockchains together will undergo growing scrutiny and become increasingly important. LayerZero is the category leader in the bridge sector and will help drive protocols towards a multi-chain future.

**[MakerDAO](https://makerdao.com/en/)** <br />
The credit facility behind the market-leading decentralized stablecoin DAI, MakerDAO is a foundational piece of DeFi infrastructure. The MakerDAO community also continues to lead the way in establishing best practices around governance, mechanism design, and smart contract security. 

**[Aave](https://aave.com/)** <br />
Decentralized money market, Aave, is an essential part of the DeFi economy, providing asset owners seamless access to passive yield opportunities and borrowers the opportunity to draw liquidity from their crypto holdings. The Aave community has set precedent for cross-chain expansion and continuously innovates on features ranging from exotic asset support to on-chain identity.   decentralized money market

**[Compound Protocol](https://compound.finance/)** <br />
The first decentralized money market on Ethereum, the Compound Protocol has since served as a pioneering force across risk management and on-chain governance design. In recent months, the Compound Protocol has been integrated by institutional products including Fireblocks and Coinbase Custody alongside leading consumer-facing applications, Argent, Crypto.com, and Zapper.

**[PartyDAO](https://party.mirror.xyz/)** <br />
PartyDAO is the decentralized software organization behind PartyBid, a platform for communities to pool funds together to collectively purchase NFTs. Sitting at the intersection between decentralized capital formation, NFTs, and social coordination, PartyBid transforms the Web3 experience from an individual pursuit into a community initiative.  

If you’re building something new and think Uniswap Labs can help, we’d love to hear from you at [ventures@uniswap.org](mailto:ventures@uniswap.org). 

---

To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Subscribe to the Uniswap Labs [blog](https://uniswap.org/rss.xml)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team
🦄

Announcing the launch of Uniswap Labs Ventures.

Uniswap Labs Ventures

*By [Chad DePue](https://twitter.com/chaddepue)*

The promise of crypto has fascinated me for years. In 2010, I was living in South America and saw early on that it could not only make the transfer of value much easier but also revolutionize the world for the better. Still, I never found the right opportunity to follow through on that passion in a professional capacity – until now. I couldn’t be more excited to be joining Uniswap Labs as VP of Engineering.

At Snap, I led engineering for several of the most popular in-app experiences, including Games, Snap Minis, Music and Messaging, which connects hundreds of millions of our users to one another every day. I also helped build out the Developer Tools team, which empowers developers to build delightful and immersive experiences within their own applications, and the Abuse team to ensure our users could enjoy using Snap safely. In each of these areas we built thinking first and foremost about the needs of the user, many of whom lead very different lives. This kind of thinking will be required for web3 to reach its full transformative potential.

There are two big reasons why I’m so excited to join the Uniswap Labs team. The first is Hayden. When you meet Hayden, you quickly realize he’s one of those rare people with the vision and intelligence required to make a huge impact, and the determination and humility to do the hard work to get there. He’s committed to building things that are good for society and building them the right way. Uniswap Labs’ values are putting people first, building to last, and collaborating with an open and motivated community. Strong leadership from people like Hayden, grounded in an inclusive vision and moral commitment, will be crucial for web3 to reach the next wave of users.

The second reason is the endless opportunity that lies before us in web3. A lot of infrastructure still needs to be built. I’ve spent years building developer tools with innovators and creators and enjoy the challenge of bringing products from zero to one. Uniswap may be a household name for crypto-natives, but the broader culture is just getting to know us. Each of us wants to make an impact with our work, but innovators in web3 today have an opportunity to affect entire industries – and the world.

I couldn’t be more thrilled to bring my experience building simple, secure, and seamless products (including mobile 👀) to the Uniswap Labs team.

---

To get involved and stay up to date:

- Join the Uniswap community [discord](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5)
- Follow Uniswap Labs on [Twitter](https://twitter.com/Uniswap)
- Subscribe to the Uniswap Labs [blog](https://uniswap.org/rss.xml)
- Register as a delegate on [Sybil](https://sybil.org/#/delegates/uniswap)
- Participate in Uniswap [governance](https://gov.uniswap.org/)

Uniswap Team
🦄

Chad DePue joins Uniswap Labs as VP of Engineering!

Welcome Chad DePue as VP of Engineering


2020 was a breakout year for the Uniswap protocol. As it comes to a close, we wanted to review some key accomplishments from the past 12 months and share some insight into our roadmap for the coming year.

# 2020 Review:

### V2 launch introduces new primitives and efficiency gains

- [Uniswap v2](https://uniswap.org/blog/uniswap-v2/) launched in May, bringing support for arbitrary ERC20/ERC20 pairs, robust time weighted average price oracles, flash swaps, and significant architecture improvements.

- Flash swaps have generated $4.8bn volume since May, producing $14.4m in liquidity provider fees.

- Uniswap's TWAP implementation continues to see adoption as key oracle infrastructure, counting integrations across over 50 protocols including Compound, Augur v2, and Empty Set Dollar — second only to Chainlink.

- While ETH remains the dominant pair numeraire, Uniswap v2 supports over 4,400 non-ETH pairs, including 7 of the 25 most liquid pairs at the time of this post.

### Volumes surge to new heights

![volume](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/1M9ncTgnn0aew8fnxrj0s3/9cce7f9ca177e07f780b375b8287da90/volume.jpeg)

- The Uniswap protocol supported more than **$58bn** volume over the course of 2020, up **15,000%** from $390m in 2019.

- In September, the protocol briefly surpassed Coinbase on weekly volumes. Today, Uniswap is the 5th largest venue for crypto spot trading in the world.

- The protocol has averaged over 54% volume market share among trading protocols since January.

### Uniswap's liquidity rivals that of centralized counterparts

![liquidity](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/7kMBtfB0wiVrwmeOa3KWxY/1a3b03b9e0d74a65e4949839c9e3d894/liquidity.jpeg)

- The Uniswap protocol currently commands over $2bn in liquidity, up 17,000% from $12m at the start of the year.

- Over 68,000 unique addresses are currently providing liquidity across 27,000 unique trading pairs.

### Users gravitate towards decentralized trading

![addresses](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/7k31fskU60OFtEEh31mcrT/0baf42da3fb15575aa799e4f476683ed/addresses.jpeg)

- The protocol's MAU figures have grown month-on-month since the launch of v2, with December surpassing 300k unique addresses.

- Uniswap trades regularly account for 25% of Ethereum network transactions.

- Meanwhile, the protocol's median trade size in 2020 was just $634.

### Uniswap as neutral, robust exchange infrastructure

![integrations](//images.ctfassets.net/oc3ca6rftwdu/jqdS6FXmez9HPWBa85XxF/feb87ff5edb37a275b11b7028dfb9974/integrations.jpeg)

- Uniswap now counts over 200 integrations across protocols, data analytics services, advanced interfaces, wallets, and more.

- Highlights include Uniswap LP shares serving as collateral in MakerDAO; Uniswap flash loans being used for execution in Aave v2 collateral swaps, and Fireblock's integration of Uniswap into its institutional-focused DeFi API.

### Christmas comes early with UNI token

- As part of the launch of Uniswap's governance token, 150 million UNI — accounting for 15% of supply and currently worth approximately \$630 million — was distributed to historical users and liquidity providers.

- An additional 20 million UNI were distributed to liquidity providers between September 16 and November 16.

- Over 110,000 addresses currently hold UNI, making UNI one of the most widely distributed tokens on Ethereum.

### Uniswap's governance brings the protocol closer to self-sustainability:

- Uniswap governance counts roughly 5,000 unique delegates and 6,000 unique delegators, including active participation from many of the crypto community's leading ambassadors.

- The Uniswap [community treasury](https://etherscan.io/address/0x1a9c8182c09f50c8318d769245bea52c32be35bc) currently holds over 47m UNI, which can be distributed through votes by token holders on a discretionary basis.

- The first successful governance proposal [was executed](https://etherscan.io/tx/0x1348b107d951b7ceeb7d934f463d5f862464ff93988e73f3d8052f358fa2411c) on December 27th, establishing a [grants program](https://gov.uniswap.org/t/rfc-uniswap-grants-program-v0-1/9081) to invest in the ecosystem's future.

### Token Lists improves ERC20 discoverability:

- In August, the Uniswap team launched [Token Lists](http://tokenlists.org/), a community standard for creating lists of ERC20 tokens.

- [Token Lists](https://uniswap.org/blog/token-lists/) improve discoverability and trust in ERC20s in a manner that is inclusive, transparent, and decentralized.

- Token Lists has emerged as the industry standard for off-chain token discovery and counts support from industry-leading firms, including Coingecko, Coinmarketcap Messari, Set Protocol, Kleros, and Wrapped.com, and has been integrated into projects including Matcha.

### Sybil makes delegating easy:

- In December, the Uniswap team launched [Sybil](http://sybil.org/), a cross-platform tool for improving the discoverability of governance delegates

- [Sybil](https://uniswap.org/blog/sybil/) uses third party authentication platforms (Twitter, GitHub etc.) and digital signatures to map Ethereum addresses to digital identities.

- Sybil-verified identities work cross-platform: Sybil supports Compound governance out of the box.

## 2021 Roadmap

### Improve automated market making

- The Uniswap team continues to research and develop market leading AMM technology, making considerable progress on v3.

- V3's design is driven by a desire to drastically improve the AMM experience for both swappers and LPs, increasing capital efficiency and flexibility while introducing superior execution.

### Explore scaling solutions

- Scaling solutions present a path to lower latency trading, faster settlement, and cheaper transaction costs.

### Emphasis on governance

- Uniswap's long term success is closely tied to its ability to attract the best available community talent and to engage in effective long-term, decentralized decision-making.

- Expansion of governance requires both improved tooling (see Sybil) and focused initiatives like governance's Uniswap Grants Program.

- As a result of the active participation in governance by thousands of delegates, the Uniswap core team members plan to participate more directly in governance in their personal capacity over the course of 2021: this includes publicly advocating for or against proposals.

- Additionally, the core team may delegate votes to others or themselves, although they will vote with no more than 10% of their own UNI. Governance efforts will continue to be community-led.

We're eternally grateful to the Ethereum community for helping us achieve so much over the past 12 months and are enormously excited for the year to come.

Happy holidays to all, and see you in the new year!

Uniswap Team
🦄

---

_To learn more and get involved in the Uniswap ecosystem, join the project's_ [_Discord_](https://discord.com/invite/FCfyBSbCU5) _channel, participate in Uniswap's governance discussions on the_ [_Uniswap forum_](http://gov.uniswap.org/)_, and register as a delegate via_ [_Sybil_](http://sybil.org/)_._

As 2020 comes to a close, we wanted to review some key accomplishments from the past 12 months and share some insight into our roadmap for the coming year.

Uniswap's Year in Review: 2020

Just over a year ago, we raised a seed round from Paradigm in order to advance research and development of the Uniswap protocol and other decentralized products on Ethereum.

The Uniswap protocol is now one of the most widely-used platforms on Ethereum, with approximately $1.5B in volume in July 2020 alone. While this indicates initial protocol-market fit, we are even more excited for what comes next.

Today, we're thrilled to announce that we have raised $11M in Series A funding led by Andreessen Horowitz with additional investments from USV, Paradigm, Version One, Variant, Parafi Capital, SV Angel, and A.Capital.

This investment round will help us grow our team to build Uniswap V3, which will dramatically increase the flexibility and capital efficiency of the protocol.

We can't wait to present our design to the Ethereum community in the coming months.

# We are hiring!

Job postings for engineers and a community manager are already up, and more will be posted over the coming months.

[Join us!](https://boards.greenhouse.io/uniswaplabs)

Series A

Uniswap changed my life and today is its birthday. To celebrate this, I want to tell its story from the beginning.