"Kelp Me": World’s first reactive Web3 account recovery earns AUS students first place at blockchain competition

"Kelp Me," an innovative project developed by a team of business students from American University of Sharjah (AUS), earned first place at the second edition of the Bybit x DMCC Crypto Centre Web3 Unleashed Hackathon. Competing against 15 teams, the AUS students impressed the judges with their groundbreaking solution to a critical challenge in decentralized finance—recovering lost private keys.

The Web3 Unleashed Hackathon brought together top talent from universities, startups and tech enthusiasts, who pitched innovative projects aimed at advancing blockchain technology and the Web3 ecosystem, a decentralized internet framework that prioritizes user ownership, privacy and security. With a total prize pool of US $160,000, participants were challenged to develop creative solutions addressing real-world issues in decentralized finance, digital identity and security.

The winning project, "Kelp Me," is the world’s first reactive Web3 account recovery mechanism. It offers users a secure way to recover access to their accounts without requiring backups, setting a new standard for decentralized security. The team was awarded US $70,000 to further enhance their solution.

The victorious team included Hashim Al Sadek, Program Manager at SuiHub and “Kelp Me” project leader, and AUS students Jash Rangwani, Abdelaziz Abdel Kader, Deema Ahli, Mohammed Alabdulkarim, Khalifa Alboqaish Alraeesi, Hamda AlHabbai, Ali Alhellow, Nasser Aljazmi, Mohammad Alkhaja, Moh'd Adnan Alkurdi, Latifa Almheiri, Noor Al-Saidi, Salem AlYafei, Faisal Al Zarouni, Hauwa'u Baru, Amina Bashrahil, May Fandy, Mohammad Hasanain Gulamhusein, Abdulaziz Halabi, Kumail Hassan, Kareem Hijazi, Diya Jain, Chris Khattar, Mithun Kumar, Sahil Lakhyani, Bassel Morcel, Hassan Mukhtar, Pouria Naderi, Niehah Niyas, Aaditya Pasari, Mehran Reshie, Juman Saleh, Iryn Sara Tony and Omar Shaikh. They worked under the mentorship of Dr. Kostas Chalkias, a Visiting Professor of Finance at AUS, a blockchain expert and a speaker at the event.

Team member Rangwani, who presented the project alongside Dr. Chalkias, shared:
"‘Kelp Me’ was born out of a desire to make decentralized finance more secure and accessible. Winning this hackathon motivates us to continue enhancing the project and bringing it to life within the Web3 ecosystem."

Reflecting on the journey and what lies ahead, Rangwani shared: "‘Kelp Me’ is just the beginning of our journey. We’re now focused on refining the solution, exploring integration with advanced blockchain systems, and bringing our vision for secure and user-friendly decentralized finance to life. The future is exciting and we’re ready to embrace it."

The AUS students’ success at the Web3 Unleashed Hackathon underscores the impact of the AUS School of Business Administration’s dynamic curriculum, which blends academic excellence with practical industry engagement. Through mentorship and hands-on learning, students are empowered to innovate, solve real-world challenges and excel in competitive global arenas. To learn more about the school offerings, visit www.aus.edu/sba.