Applications have officially opened for the second season of Cypher Tank, a Bitcoin-focused pitch competition. The event, which follows an inaugural season that drew over 4,000 participants from 64 countries, is promoted and funded by the Plan ₿ VC Fund and the Plan ₿ Foundation.
The competition utilizes a negotiation format inspired by "Shark Tank" alongside a documentary-style production. Real pitches, deals, and judge deliberations are filmed for release as an online series.
For the upcoming edition, the finalist field has expanded to 12 projects—comprising eight for-profit and four nonprofit ventures. Founders will compete to negotiate direct investment from a panel of judges referred to as the "honey badgers," as well as one of three $100,000 prizes covering incubation, acceleration, or relocation services.
Selection Criteria and Phases
A committee selects finalists based on three primary criteria:
- Alignment with individual freedom, privacy, decentralization, and resilience
- Execution ability, sustainability, and market feasibility
- Integration within the broader Plan ₿ ecosystem
The competition consists of four distinct phases. Applications opened on August 13 and close on September 25, with finalists scheduled to be notified starting September 30. The finals will take place from October 25 to 27 at PoW Space Lugano, immediately following the Plan ₿ Forum.
The event opens with a coaching day on October 25 where finalists rehearse their pitches alongside communication experts. Live pitching and negotiations occur in batches across October 26 and 27, at which point the winners are chosen.
Following post-production through the end of the year, the episodes are scheduled to air online in January 2027. Incubation and acceleration support for the winners is set to begin at the end of February, once nondisclosure agreements lapse.
Background and Season One
The show's first season featured over $850,000 in total prizes and a judging panel that included Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, Blockstream’s Adam Back, Ten31’s Matt Odell, Lightning Ventures’ Mike Jarmuz, and Ego Death’s Preston Pysh. The episodes premiered at the Plan ₿ Forum El Salvador in January 2026, and winners were honored in Lugano in March 2026.
With the launch of season two, organizers aim to build on the visibility of the initial event and further position Lugano as a global hub for Bitcoin and freedom-tech innovation.
