Circle’s founder Jack Dorsey has decided to inject some $5 million into Bitcoin non-profit Brink, providing the organization with funds to finance its support for independent BTC developers.
In a tweet, Brink thanked the entrepreneur for the funds which, as it explained will be allocated to the non-profit in five installments of $1 million each.
Funds for independent BTC developers
“Honored to receive a very generous $5,000,000 pledge to our developer funding efforts from @jack and #startsmall. Brink will receive $1,000,000 per year for the next 5 years. Thank you for supporting #bitcoin developers,” according to the tweet.
The funds will be provided by the businessman’s Smart Small funding initiative which strives to support independent Bitcoin developers via grants.
Brink says that all donations made to the non-profit are 501(c)(3) tax-deductible and 100% of donations are used to provide the necessary support to independent Bitcoin developers involved in building, securing, testing, and reviewing the Bitcoin Core software which underpins the Bitcoin network.
“Brink exists to strengthen the Bitcoin protocol and network through fundamental research and development, and to support the Bitcoin developer community through funding, education, and mentoring. We support and mentor new contributors to open source Bitcoin development through our fellowship program, and support the work of established Bitcoin protocol engineers through our grants program,” according to the non-profit.
With regards to its fellowship initiative, Brink describes it as an intensive one-year program which allows to onboard exceptional software engineers into Bitcoin protocol development.
“As a Brink fellow, you’ll spend a year working alongside our engineering team and the other Brink fellows. You’ll learn about all aspects of the Bitcoin Core system, including consensus, peer-to-peer networking, wallets and cryptography. You’ll become an effective open source contributor, and will start making contributions to the project from day one,” the non-profit says on its site.
“By the end of your fellowship, you’ll have a track record of high-quality, high-impact contributions to Bitcoin Core or other open source projects, and you’ll be very well positioned to seek funding or employment to continue your open source Bitcoin career,” according to Brink.
The awarded BTC developer grants provide funding for developers focused on building, securing, testing, and reviewing Bitcoin Core, the organization said. The non-profit says that grantees also help operate Bitcoin Optech, which is an educational resource for BTC developers, as well as the weekly Bitcoin PR Review Club. Other activities facilitated by Brink include mentoring for junior developers through Summer of Bitcoin and Qala.
Set up in 2020 with the financial support from John Pfeffer and Wences Casares, Brink says it is 100% funded by donations made by individuals and organizations.
