What are some popular projects currently built on Polkadot, and how can one get involved with them?

Some popular projects currently built on Polkadot include Acala, Moonbeam, Chainlink, and Subscan. To get involved with these projects, one can contribute to their development, participate in their communities and governance, or explore opportunities for collaboration.

Long answer

Polkadot is a versatile blockchain platform that supports the development of interoperable decentralized applications (dApps), which has attracted numerous projects in various fields. Here are some notable projects built on Polkadot:

1. Acala: Acala is a decentralized finance (DeFi) hub on Polkadot that offers stablecoins, lending and borrowing services, and other financial primitives. Developers can contribute to the project by building on top of Acala’s infrastructure or integrating their protocols with its ecosystem.

2. Moonbeam: Moonbeam aims to bring compatibility between Ethereum and Polkadot ecosystems by providing an Ethereum-compatible smart contract platform on Polkadot. Developers familiar with Solidity or Ethereum smart contracts can leverage their existing knowledge to build dApps on Moonbeam.

3. Chainlink: As an oracle network provider, Chainlink enables the connection of real-world data with smart contracts. By integrating Chainlink into the Polkadot ecosystem, developers can access reliable off-chain data for their applications.

4. Subscan: Subscan is a block explorer specifically designed for Substrate-based chains, including those developed on Polkadot. Developers can contribute to Subscan’s development by contributing code or assisting in building new features.

To get involved with these projects and others built on Polkadot, here are some steps one can take:

1. Explore their documentation: Visit the official websites of these projects to find resources such as developer documentation, tutorials, coding examples, and libraries that help you understand how they work at a technical level.

2. Join their communities: Engage with these projects’ online communities through platforms like Discord or Telegram groups. Participate in discussions, ask questions, and learn from experienced developers already involved with the projects.

3. Contribute to their repositories: Most of these projects host their code on platforms like GitHub. By contributing to their open-source repositories, you can help improve the projects, fix bugs, or add new features. This is an excellent way to build relationships with the core development teams.

4. Participate in hackathons and bounties: Many organizations that build on Polkadot host hackathons or offer bounty programs where developers can compete or contribute towards specific tasks, earning rewards and recognition for their efforts.

5. Attend events and conferences: Keep an eye out for events and conferences focused on Polkadot and its ecosystem. These gatherings provide opportunities to network with industry professionals, learn about new developments, and potentially find collaboration opportunities.

Getting involved with popular projects on Polkadot can help expand your knowledge, contribute to the ecosystem’s growth, and potentially kickstart a career within the blockchain space.