MakerDAO, a long-standing decentralized finance (DeFi) lending protocol and creator of the stablecoin DAI, has announced a $1.35 million audit contest — the largest of its kind.

The contest will be hosted on the Sherlock Platform, a Web3 audit contest provider, and will be a key element of MakerDAO’s initial phase of Endgame, which is set for summer 2024.

Set to start on July 8, the contest will continue until Aug. 5, aiming to engage security experts in the field and emerging researchers to identify vulnerabilities.

Related: MakerDAO delegate’s $11M in tokens stolen in phishing scam

Endgame launch 

Endgame refers to the final development stage in MakerDAO’s long-term plan. It aims to overhaul governance to create a self-sustaining equilibrium called the Endgame State.

“The plan is based on reorganizing much of the existing complex decentralized workforce ecosystem into new self-sustainable DAOs called ‘MetaDAOs’.”

Rune Christensen, co-founder of MakerDAO, explained the importance of thoroughly tested security for the Endgame launch:

“Rock solid security has always been a priority for MakerDAO. Over time, it’s become one of the defining features of the project. It only makes sense that the team would work with the market leader, Sherlock, to create a program to pressure test the system we’re building as Maker moves toward Endgame.” 

In a written Q&A with Cointelegraph, a spokesperson for MakerDAO stated:

“The Endgame products and features [...] have been audited numerous times by multiple reputable auditing firms. The audit contest is an additional way to test the system. It underscores Maker’s commitment to open source and security while giving integrators and builders a chance to get familiar with Endgame before it gets launched.”

Related: Web3 security expert challenges AI for audit competition: Here’s the result

Sherlock collaboration

Jack Sanford, co-founder of Sherlock, noted MakerDAO’s commitment to security on the basis of the launch of the record-breaking $1.35 million audit contest. 

Sanford spoke about the details of the upcoming four-week bug hunt, saying:

“Sherlock has reserved some of the top security experts in the world for this contest, but many up-and-comers will undoubtedly make a name for themselves and show a strong performance in this historic contest.” 

Discussing the decision to host the contest on Sherlock, the MakerDAO spokesperson told Cointelegraph:

"Sherlock is a pioneer in auditing contests for crypto projects and they have a deep network of reputable security researchers. It only makes sense that Maker would seek to work with the best in the space."

Related: MakerDAO and Aave’s DeFi conflict reopens over DAI’s perceived risk growth

Pre-contest debugging

On the week of July 1, the top MakerDAO bug bounty hunters will provide an educational breakdown alongside the MakerDAO team and “crypto legends” providing a “code walkthrough.” 

Magazine: SEC drops Ether probe but still seeks billions in penalties from Ripple: Hodler’s Digest, June 16-22