Announcing the Build with Squid contest!
We’re excited to announce the launch of our very first Build with Squid contest! This is your opportunity to showcase your project built on Squid Cloud, and you could win a $500 Visa gift card in the process. If you’re new to Squid, then you’re in luck—there’s never been a better time to try it out. Throughout the contest, we’ll be running livestream events to teach the fundamentals of Squid, so you’ll have plenty of support along the way.
What is Squid Cloud?
Imagine if your favorite backend-as-a-service (BaaS) platform could work with any data source. That’s Squid Cloud! Squid Cloud is a serverless middle-tier platform that makes it easy for developers to connect databases, APIs, and backend services to any frontend in a secure and scalable way. Developers can also build AI-enabled applications using Squid’s turnkey Retrieval-Augmented Generation (RAG) AI features.
What Should I Build?
You can build anything that uses Squid Cloud, and because Squid is incredibly flexible and un-opinionated, the sky’s the limit! Here are a few ideas to help you brainstorm:
- A full-stack app that syncs data in real-time, like our Squidnames multiplayer game.
- A backend app that automates a task using built-in AI capabilities and triggers or schedulers.
- A chatbot that integrates with Slack, Twitch, or Discord
Check out our library of sample at squid-cloud-samples on GitHub for plenty of code samples for inspiration and to help you get started.
Prize Categories
We’re offering top prizes in three categories:
- Most creative application.
- Best usage of Squid.
- Most Squid features used.
The top prize for each category wins a $500 Visa gift card, second place wins a $200 Visa gift card, and third place wins a $100 gift card. The Squid Crew will be judging your submissions, so the best way to maximize your chance of winning is to join our Discord server and chat with us about your project. We’ll be available along the way to provide suggestions and feedback.
Submissions
To qualify for submission, first join our Discord server. Submit your projects using the contest form on our website. Feel free to submit more than one project—just fill out one form for each project. The more, the merrier! And remember: while you’re developing, you can chat with the Squid Crew on Discord to get help or feedback so when you’re ready to submit, you’ll be confident that you’re putting your best foot forward!
Timeline
Contest entries are due August 2nd. Contest winners will be announced August 20th. Building on Squid is designed to be quick and intuitive, so even if the contest deadline is just around the corner, you should give it a try! You’ll be amazed how quickly you can go from app idea to full implementation.
Interactive Livestreams
To help you get up and running quickly, we’re hosting livestreams on different Squid topics. These livestreams will take place on YouTube, so if you can’t make it, you can always check out the recording. Come back to this post for updates as we add more events!
June 19 4:00 PM ET Zero to app: creating a full-stack CRUD app: Follow along to build a full-stack application with create, read, update, and delete capabilities.
Resources
Here are some great resources to get started on your journey with Squid Cloud:
- Our welcome blog post where we walk through the best ways to get started based on your learning style.
- The Squid Cloud YouTube channel includes conceptual and how-to videos to teach you the basics of Squid.
- This quickstart builds a React app and adds CRUD functionality in a matter of minutes.
- The Squid Cloud Discord server is where you can connect to members of the Squid Crew and share your project progress.
- This list of Squid tutorials covers a variety of different scenarios.
- A blog on understanding environments in Squid so you know where to connect your resources.
Get Started Today!
You probably have plenty of project ideas that you’ve been wanting to build, so why not dust one of them off and bring it to life with Squid Cloud? Get started today and see how fun and easy development can be with Squid! We can’t wait to see what you build!
