UX Bounty Update: Launch of the UX Audit Grants Program

1

Hey all!

We’re excited to announce the launch the UX Audit Grants Program, a new initiative from the Polkadot UX Bounty to help projects improve their user experience.

:hammer_and_wrench: What is the UX Audit Grants Program?

This program provides funded UX audits (up to $10,000) to Polkadot dApps, helping teams identify friction points and improve usability.

For this initial batch, 7 UX audits are available (3 already running as PoCs), meaning 4 slots remain. If you’re building on Polkadot and want to improve your UX, we can help!

:backhand_index_pointing_right: Read more about the program

:pushpin: What’s the process?

  1. Teams apply, defining their UX audit needs.
  2. UX Bounty curators review and approve applications.
  3. An RFP (Request for Proposal) is sent to vetted UX agencies & experts.
  4. Vendors submit proposals, which are evaluated based on expertise, cost & timeline.
  5. The selected vendor works closely with your team to perform the audit.
  6. UX findings & recommendations are shared publicly to benefit the entire ecosystem.

:white_check_mark: Who Can Apply?

To be eligible, your project must:

  • Be a Parachain, Common Good Project, or Open Source initiative based on Polkadot with end-user interfaces.
  • Clearly define which user flows need auditing.
  • Have an MVP or live product with clear value for Polkadot users.
  • Commit to implementing recommended UX improvements.
  • Disclose any past treasury funding & proposals.
  • Show alignment with Polkadot (e.g., “Powered by Polkadot” branding).

Interested? :backhand_index_pointing_right: Apply Now

–

Finally, if you are a UX profesionnal (agency or freelancer) interested in conducting UX audits, read on to learn how to participate in this program as a vetted vendor.

4 Likes
2

Hello everyone!

We have just released the first UX Audit of this batch: SubSquare’s User Voting Journey!

And here are the audits in the pipelines:

  • Mimir - In progress
    → Want to participate in the user interviews? Let us know! - 5 $DOT Reward
  • Polkassembly - Scoping
  • SubWallet - Scoping
  • Kylix and Polimec - RFP publication soon!
2 Likes
3

Hey all, here’s a fresh update from the program :backhand_index_pointing_down:

We first wanted to share a bit on our experience regarding Vendors and RFPs as this was a new initiative.

REX

Despite reaching out to 10 teams, no new vendors joined through that route. Half of those did take intro calls with us, but none of them followed up or submitted proposals. Here are some guess why: small budget, steep learning curve in a new ecosystem, limited upsell potential…

There’s one good news though! One agency (Jelly Studio) joined us organically: they came to our monthly calls, asked questions, and were introduced by @jeeper.

They are now participating in the program and are auditing Polimec.

Also to note, another vendor was close to joining but quoted a price well above the standard we’re targeting. They declined to proceed with negotiations, as they didn’t see the value in adjusting their rate.

This is then our current set of vendors:

  • Jelly Studio
  • DH3 (curator)
  • Braille (curator)

We’re fully aware that having DH3 and Braille participating as vendors raises concerns of conflict of interest. That’s why we’re being transparent with the community: we made significant efforts to bring in new vendors and create competition, but those efforts have not yet succeeded.

That said, it’s important to be pragmatic. While a perfectly competitive environment is ideal, we must also consider the actual value and impact delivered to the ecosystem. This is the balance we’re actively navigating with the other curators.

To conclude, we’ll still promote the program and welcome interest, but we’ll pause proactive outreach for now as it took significant time, energy that could have been spent elsewhere.

We’ll also open the door to solo freelancers for smaller audits, which we see as a great fit for future HUB projects.

Progress Update: Batch 1

The first batch is well underway now, with the following audits in various stages:

:white_check_mark: SubSquare — April 11th

→ Read the report

:white_check_mark: Mimir — May 20th

→ Read the report

:fast_forward_button: PolkaAssembly, Polimec, SubWallet — In Progress (delivery before end of Q2)

→ Vendors are currently conducting user interviews — reach out if you’d like to participate.

:play_or_pause_button: Kylix — Not started yet.

→ Waiting for the Polimec’s audit to be done.

Looking Ahead: Q3 and Beyond

Quarterly Batches

Moving forward we’ll be using to a quarterly cadence, with the second batch starting in July. It will follow the same structure — 6 audits, same vendors. We’ll stick to this rhythm unless we hit capacity issues (on the vendor or requester side), but for now, the balance feels right.

This structure helps us:

  • Plan and budget more effectively
  • Deliver predictable, scalable support
  • Avoid bottlenecks and last-minute requests

Some projects are already in the pipeline.
If you’re interested-> submit your request.

Audit Outcome Tracking

All recommendations are and will be tracked so the community can see the progress.

→ Check out the WIP tracker.

Call for Vendors and Freelancers

If you are interested (or know someone) to participate in this program, learn more about it here and don’t hesitate to reach out!

–

Alex - Braille
UX Bounty

1 Like