# Istanbul PSE ZK Hacker House

### **Why the ZK Hacker house**

Creating a ZK hacker house during Devconnect and ZuConnect in Istanbul provides a dual advantage of cost efficiency and enhanced collaboration. The aim is to continue the in-person momentum from the Funding The Commons Residency that builders and PSE projects experienced. By housing individuals under one roof, we not only save on accommodation costs but also establish a nexus for intellectual exchange and collaborative efforts around ZK projects. This convergence of diverse talents and minds will expedite innovation, offering a real-world testing ground for projects and amplifying the outreach and impact of ZK projects. Moreover, by establishing an intimate container for trust and rapid prototyping, a hacker house can support the depth needed to innovate ideas and create trust for building critical tools.

0xPARC has proven that residencies create long-term value — we are excited to help PSE harness the creativity from many projects and oss contributors as well. A house for 10-20 people can create a Schelling point at a similar cost to what individual accommodations for each person would have cost, while creating a schelling point for activity at zuconnect. An experiment with a small scale hacker house can help validate in person hacker houses as a tool for PSE to further ZK projects, and creating an operational playbook with Sara and Aayush can be a meaningful start.

At least half will already be PSE affiliated/funded, as this will primarily be a zk house. A few talented external oss devs are invited too — we’ll send a blurb out to axioms halo2 learning group and japan’s zk program; it’s important to continue to engage those people in interesting projects. People without ideas yet can source projects from aayushg.com/ideas > crypto and github.com/zkemail > projects, as well as whatever the existing PSE projects want help with.

### Goals

- Continue to ship novel public goods-related projects built off of new cryptographic tech like zk email, zk nfc, plumes, etc
- Create a focused and collaborative working environment for open-source builders, especially those with PSE
- Strengthen PSE zk dev community
- Build greater shared alignment via in-person collaboration for decentralized teams
- Validate a culture around hacker house/residency-style projects for PSE, and help PSE test if these can be effective for ecosystem growth
- Create a space for talented builders to visit and build during the days (with the potential to stay in a room) and provide feedback to hackers working on projects
- Get targeted feedback for rapid iteration for zk email, zk regex SDKs
- Get real-world experience and exposure for the newest PSE devrel Elo, and exposure for potentially continuing a culture of PSE hacker houses
- Create light emergent programming host workshops) to attract other researchers, developers into the container. Be a nexus for zk devs to build rapport, and feel comfortable and supported in the wider container of zuconnect and devconnect.
- If hackers are in favor of one, host an online demo day post hacker house showcasing progress on projects (dependent on sara / aayush availability, and proportion of projects already presenting at ProgCrypto etc)
- Imbue values of co-living into the community: self sufficiency, taking agency, care, kindness and collaboration.

### **Details of the Hacker House**

- **Diverse Occupancy:** The house, with around eight bedrooms, will host PSE affiliates and invite external open-source developers and researchers to foster diversity and creativity.
- **Hackers:** Hackers will be directly recruited and sourced from our personal networks.
- **Community Building:** The establishment aims to be more than just a living space - it will be a focal point for activities at ZuConnect, with Sara (FTC) playing a crucial role in building community and culture engagement.
- **Space:** Beyond a traditional hacker house, our space is going to be aimed at tailored to nurture and accelerate the development of innovative projects, offering both working space during the day and accommodation at night.
- **Real-World Exposure:** The program will serve as a platform for real-world experience and feedback collection for ongoing projects, and promote the culture of PSE hacker houses.
- **Location:** We are aiming for housing in the Cihangir neighborhood in the Beyoglu district to be in close proximity to Dev Connect.

### **Budget($50K)**

- **Hacking Materials:** Estimated at ~$1,000, for brainstorming and strategic planning (white boards, pens, collaboration materials).
- **Travel Stipends:** Allocated ~$10,000, to facilitate the arrival of diverse talents from different locations, for people who are not already PSE grantees.
- **House Cost:** Projected at ~up to $25,000 for 20 people
- **Insurance:** Approximately ~$1,000, ensuring the safety and security of all occupants.
- **Food:** Budgeted around ~$5,000
- **Organizer Stipend:** ~$5K for administration, programmatic, and operations time