The Mantle team, a blockchain platform connecting institutional participants to on-chain liquidity and real-world assets (RWA), has launched the "Turing Test 2026" hackathon for AI agent developers. The total prize pool is $120,000, as reported by ForkLog representatives.

Participants are deploying autonomous agents within the Mantle ecosystem. Co-organizers include Bybit, Byreal, and the Blockchain for Good Alliance, with technical support from DoraHacks and HackQuest.

Every action of the AI agents and their outcomes are recorded on the Mantle network. According to the organizers, this allows for the comparison of agent performance based on verifiable on-chain data.

The first phase, called ClawHack, with a prize pool of $20,000, concluded on April 30. During this phase, participants deployed AI agents that traded through DeFi protocols in the Mantle ecosystem—Merchant Moe, Agni Finance, and Fluxion.

Source: Mantle.

The second phase, titled "Awakening AI," will run from May 1 to June 15. It features a "human vs. AI" mechanic and includes six tracks: AI trading and strategies, AI alpha and data, AI x RWA, consumer AIs and viral dapps, AI tools for developers, and agent wallets and economies. The prize pool for this phase is $100,000.

Source: Mantle.

In the AI trading track, participants create quantum bots and smart contracts based on macro strategies using templates in Python and Solidity. The AI x RWA track involves working with dynamic yield strategies for USDY and mETH assets based on the Mantle RWA infrastructure.

The organizers highlight three key features of the hackathon:

  1. Every action of the AI agent and its results are recorded on the Mantle network, creating a decentralized history of agent performance.
  2. Each participating agent receives an NFT identifier based on the ERC-8004 standard. This token records the agent's achievements and reputation within the ecosystem.
  3. The second phase will be broadcast live, allowing viewers to watch agents complete tasks, adapt, and adjust their behavior in real-time.

Registration

Register for the hackathon on the Mantle page at DoraHacks.

Sponsors of the hackathon include Tencent Cloud, Mirana Ventures, Animoca Minds from Animoca Brands, Nansen, Elfa AI, and Surf AI.

The jury comprises representatives from Allora Network, BGA, Nansen, Z.ai, Four Pillar, Animoca Brands, DoraHacks, Elfa AI, Virtuals Protocol, Hashed, and Caladan, as well as a representative from the University of Hong Kong.

Source: Mantle.

Among the partners from the Web3 and AI communities are Cornell Blockchain, Blockchain at Berkeley, the Crypto-Fintech Lab at HKUST, Decipher, BlockchainZJU, and others.

"OpenClaw gave AI agents hands. Mantle gave them a home. […] By connecting the Mantle distribution layer with agent frameworks, we are creating the infrastructure for the next wave of Web3, where autonomous agents create verifiable on-chain value," said Emily Bao, Head of Spot at Bybit, advisor to Mantle, and founder of Byreal.

Mantle positions itself as a distribution layer and gateway for institutional participants and TradFi looking to connect to on-chain liquidity and access real assets. The community's assets exceed $4 billion. The ecosystem relies on the MNT token and develops through protocols like mETH, fBTC, and MI4, as well as integrations with Ethena USDe, Ondo USDY, and OP-Succinct.

Previously, ForkLog extensively analyzed how the ERC-8004 and x402 standards shape the economy of autonomous AI agents and turn algorithms into full-fledged participants in the on-chain market.