In the fast-paced world of blockchain and AI, Dark Research is making waves with their latest announcement. Edgar Pavlovsky, founder of Dark Research AI, took to X (formerly Twitter) to share exciting news about a new sponsorship in Solana's x402 Hackathon. They're putting up an additional $10,000 prize for the best product built on top of their open-source project, Mallory. This comes on the heels of another $10,000 allocated to open-source bounties, bringing their total commitment this week to $20,000.

For those new to the scene, Dark Research is a company focused on building AI that truly understands users. Their bio says it all: "A human company building artificial intelligence — our mission is to build machines that understand you." They've partnered with Corbits to release Mallory, their first open-source project. You can check it out on GitHub at darkresearch/mallory.

So, what exactly is Mallory? It's an opinionated React Native boilerplate designed for creating crypto-powered AI chat applications. Think of it as a ready-to-use foundation that combines embedded wallets, conversational AI, and dynamic UI elements. It supports cross-platform development for mobile and web, with features like Google OAuth authentication via Supabase, streaming AI chats powered by Claude, and secure wallet integrations using Grid for smart contract wallets. On the backend, it handles AI streaming, blockchain data from Nansen APIs, and even x402 payments for premium features.

This ties perfectly into Solana's x402 Hackathon, which is all about building on the x402 protocol. x402 is Solana's innovative solution for instant, blockchain-based payments tailored for APIs and AI agents. It enables things like micropayments and agent-to-agent transactions, paving the way for an "agent economy" where AI can handle financial interactions autonomously. The hackathon, running remotely from October 28 to November 11, 2025, offers up to $50,000 in prizes across tracks like Best Trustless Agent, Best x402 API Integration, and more. Submissions are due by November 11, with winners announced on November 17.

Dark Research's prize specifically targets builders who use Mallory as the base for their hackathon entries. To qualify, projects need to be open-sourced, integrated with x402 on Solana, and include a demo video. This sponsorship not only boosts the hackathon's prize pool but also encourages developers to explore the intersection of AI and crypto on Solana—a blockchain known for its speed and low costs, which has become a hotbed for meme tokens and decentralized apps.

Why does this matter for the meme token community? Solana's ecosystem thrives on innovation, and tools like Mallory could lead to new AI-driven chat apps for trading memes, community engagement, or even automated meme token launches. With embedded wallets and real-time AI, imagine chatbots that analyze market trends, execute trades, or generate meme content on the fly. This could supercharge the creativity and efficiency in the meme space.

If you're a developer eyeing the hackathon, head over to the Solana x402 Hackathon page for details, and dive into Dark Research's Project Open Source blog post to learn more about the bounties and how to contribute. Edgar's tweet has already sparked interest, with replies showing enthusiasm from the crypto community.

As Solana continues to push boundaries with tech like x402, initiatives from companies like Dark Research are key to fostering open-source growth. Whether you're building, investing, or just watching the space, this is a reminder of how AI and blockchain are converging to create the next wave of digital innovation.