AWS Activate Program for Web3 Startups

What is AWS Activate? AWS Activate is Amazon Web Services' flagship program designed to help startups build and scale on the cloud easily, with a $100,000 funding pool in cloud credits. Eligible Web3 projects receive up to $10,000 in AWS cloud credits for each team, technical support, and training resources to accelerate their infrastructure without upfront cloud costs. Eligibility To qualify, your project must meet the following requirements: Requirement Detail Registered Company Must be a legally registered entity (any country) Funding Background Has received external funding over $10,000 (seed, angel, VC, grants, hackathon prizes, or accelerator-backed) Current AWS Spend Monthly AWS usage under $1,000 USD Projects at any stage — from pre-launch to growth — are welcome to apply, as long as the above criteria are met. Credit Tiers by Sub-Industry Tier 1 — Up to $10,000+ in AWS Credits For infrastructure-intensive and high-compute Web3 projects: Infrastructure / Middleware — Validator nodes, matching engines, low-latency trading systems Layer 1 & Layer 2 Chains — Consensus mechanisms, block production, RPC endpoints DePIN — Distributed physical infrastructure networks DEX (Decentralized Exchanges) — Order books, AMMs, liquidity aggregation CeFi (Centralized Finance) — Exchange platforms, custody, lending Derivatives & Perpetuals — Perpetual futures, options, structured products These projects typically require significant compute, networking, and storage resources — making higher credit allocations essential for meaningful development and testing. Tier 2 — Up to $5,000+ in AWS Credits For application-layer and consumer-facing Web3 projects: AI Agents — Autonomous on-chain intelligence and automation GameFi — Game engines, virtual economies, player infrastructure RWA (Real-World Assets) — Tokenized real-world assets and compliance tooling NFT Platforms — Minting, marketplaces, metadata services Social / SocialFi — Decentralized social networks and community tools Wallets — Key management, multi-chain support, transaction services DAOs — Governance frameworks and treasury management These projects leverage AWS for backend services, AI/ML workloads, content delivery, and user-facing applications. How to Apply Simply Submit your application via DoraHacks and answer a few quick questions in the form. Once you’re qualified, the AWS representative will reach out to you. What You Get Beyond credits, AWS Activate provides a comprehensive support package: Benefit Description AWS Credits Applied directly to your AWS bill — use on any AWS service (EC2, S3, Bedrock, SageMaker, Lambda, etc.) Technical Support AWS Business Support included during the credit period Architecture Guidance Access to AWS Solution Architects for infrastructure design reviews Training Free access to AWS training resources and certification programs Ecosystem Access Introductions to AWS partner network, VCs, and enterprise customers