UPDATE (22nd August 10:56 EST): This article has been updated with new statements from Zcash Foundation senior program manager Josh Cincinnati.

The non-profit overseeing development of the zcash blockchain is offering $80,000 in new grants to innovators and technologists who can help advance the platform.

In a blog post to be issued today, the Zcash Foundation intends to outline how the grants will be used to fund "novel, underserved ideas" in software development, science and research and community outreach. It is not, however, looking to fund projects that can be "obviously monetized," such as startups seeking venture funding.

Project ideas

put forth by the foundation itself range from the technical, such as building software that will allow users to send zcash over the social messaging app WhatsApp, to the educational, like launching a meetup focused on the cryptocurrency.

Zcash Foundation senior program manager Josh Cincinnati told CoinDesk:

To apply, grant proposals must be submitted on GitHub by September 15, at which point they will considered by a notable group of reviewers, including cryptographer and University of Luxembourg professor Alex Biryukov and Ethereum Foundation researcher Vlad Zamfir.

Launched late last year, zcash is touted as a privacy-oriented cryptocurrency protocol in that it allows users the option to transact more anonymously using a bleeding-edge cryptography technique called zk-SNARKS.

Though it has not enjoyed quite as much attention since its splashy launch last October, development has continued behind the scenes. Zcash is currently working on a big software upgrade, called Sapling, with more updates expected in the coming months.

Disclaimer: CoinDesk is a subsidiary of Digital Currency Group, which has an ownership in the Zerocoin Electric Coin Company, developer of zcash.

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