Hedera: Claude Code - AI Skills for Hackathon Builders | Luke Forrest at ETHOnline 2026

Hello everyone. I'm Luke. I'm from the Hedera DevRel team. And today I will tell you about a few interesting things. The first of these is Hedera Docs MCP.

I'm sure most of you know what an MCP server is. But for those who don't know: it allows you to connect your AI instance to a kind of API, just for agents. It provides full access to our documentation so agents can read it, draw conclusions, and work with Hedera as efficiently as possible. We have also created a Hedera skills repository for you. This repository is a one-stop resource for everything that will help you during this hackathon.

There are many useful things there, for example, a hackathon assistant. We recommend running this assistant before starting work on your project. Even if you've already started, this is a skill that allows you to communicate with AI and it will tell you how to best integrate Hedera into your idea to create a complete PRD create a complete PRD document and start planning. Next we have Scaffold Hbar. Scaffold Hbar we have Scaffold Hbar.

Scaffold Hbar is a tool created by Hedera in collaboration with Build-A-Labs, you can see it on the screen. This is just a little test I did to show you how it works. In fact, it does exactly what it claims. This is a framework for your projects. It contains many different examples, from X 402 to native Hedera services, and demonstrates best practices for these areas.

So if you're developing something, check if Scaffold Hbar has it, and if so, that's a great place to start. If you combine Scaffold Hbar with Hedera skills and MCP, you will be in an extremely advantageous position. The very fact of your participation and access to these tools will give you a great start. I'll quickly send some chat links now so you can access them. And if anyone has any questions, please be questions, please be sure to let me know.

I'm happy to, uh, repeat anything again if I wasn't clear enough. Uh, and just to, let's say, reiterate our prizes, which you may have already read, we have four areas we have four areas . We have AI and agent payments on Hedera, $6,000 at stake. And this amount will be divided between three teams, that is, up to $2,000 per team. Uh, we have open source to improve Hedera harness, uh improve Hedera harness, uh , and Hedera harness is, uh, a tool built to interact with your AI through an API, and there two teams can get $1,000 each.

Uh, then we have tokenization of tokenization of anything, $6,000. Again, three teams of $2,000 each for using tokenization. And there is also the direction of continuity. So, if you are returning with a project that you have already built on Hedera, this is the best direction for you. Up to $1,000 and one winner in this category.

Perfectly. So, let's begin. The first link I sent you, I'll open it on the screen, it should take you to this page on our documentation site, and here you'll see that it leads straight to setting up Claude code, which is very easy to do. Uh, you can just click "copy click "copy " there, and just paste it here. And we have to see how Claude will add the MCP Claude will add the MCP server there.

So now he has access to all our documentation. Very easy to use. Uh, anything you ask Claude about Hedera now, he'll check our documentation. So this is a great way to start. Moving on to the next one, which is Hedera skills.

When installing the scaffold H bar, you will be asked if you also want to use Hedera skills. So, it can install it for you automatically. Uh, but if you don't want to use a scaffold H bar, I highly recommend doing so. We have a Hedera skills repository here. Uh, and it just says how to, uh, add it.

So if we copy this, it will be on the second or third link that I sent you in the chat. Er, I apologize for that. I really need to run Claude. So, you see that the plugin marketplace has been added . And to review the marketplace, if this is your first plugin installation, I'll make it a little bigger for you a little bigger for you .

Just type plugins { . Just type plugins { slash} plugins. And you'll see that it will take you straight to the "open installed" section, and there's also the marketplace here marketplace here . So, this is the one we just added. Look, it's updated.

So let's go here and look at the plugins. And you can see that there are five main plugins on this, this plugin, five main plugins on this plugin, sorry. Five main skills in this plugin. Hackathon assistance package. This is what will really help you.

This is what I recommend using first. Uh, so if we move over here, I'm going to install it. You can see install it. You can see that the plugin is now installed. And if we introduce Hackathon Helper, you'll see it kick in and start asking me questions about the idea.

So, it asks for a full description of the bounty full description of the bounty track you are targeting. Track title, description, requirements, prize details, uh, something specific. So if I quickly open the prizes here. Uh, let's see what we can do. So, let's get down to tokenizing anything tokenizing anything .

And all you have to do is just copy and paste this from my other screen here. And I'll paste this into the chat. You see he is now reading everything related to tokenization and stuff. You could probably copy and paste everything. You can see that he understands what the requirements are.

Uh-huh. And if you have no ideas at all have no ideas at all , if you lack inspiration, you can also let him know, and he should suggest an idea for you. Uh-huh. So, it gives you a few, uh, a few options here. Uh, so if I choose the bond life cycle.

Uh-huh. Wonderful . Markets, uh. I'm just giving him very basic information here and he still has to come up with an idea. Uh come up with an idea.

Uh , and he's going to walk around, asking you various questions about your idea, as you can see. Uh, you can see here why it has to be online? Uh, less than 5 seconds, and now let's look at atomic swaps, atomic transactions here. Uh, and then, well, I'm sure there's something like that something like that . So, this is a great place if you are hacking alone and don't have team members.

Um, um, that's kind of a great partner. Um, so if we say this is for corporate treasuries that issue bonds directly. And to add HCS. What is the Hedera Consensus Service? This is great as an immutable record of events.

Let's see if we can help build it all. Um, Does this come with Claude credits or does it work with local LLMs. So, ROM ROM reactor. So your question is: does this go with Claude credits or work with local LLMs? I'm sure, I'm sure it is.

So our entire skill is really just an MD file really just an MD file . You can take that MD file, upload it to your LLM or local LLM, and she can figure out what she needs to do to discuss it with you. Unfortunately, it doesn't come with any credits to Claude. Yes, actually, yes, context added. We created this to help you develop on Hedera.

We are a kind of partner and will help you find the best ways to integrate Hedera into your idea, not just adding Hedera for the sake of adding it. This will help you find ways to actually integrate Hedera into your idea. Um, and if you also look at the Hedera skill repository, you'll see other agents here. Um, you can just add skills through MPX. Um, there's also the Agent Kit plugin.

Hmm, this is a great repository. Um, so if you look it over, it should have everything you need. And if you're a little stuck and you're not using AI too much, we also have a documentation site—I'll show you that now. We also have this AI assistant. You can ask this AI ask this AI assistant, and it's already integrated into the documentation.

We currently have 32,000 customer contacts. You know, that's enough. Still at it. Yes, I think it might be difficult for you depending on the depth of your problem. You might find it a little difficult with this size of context.

I know that Claude 3 Opus has a million contexts. So it might be a little difficult for you. Um, but to help you out a little bit, as you can see here, we have this AI assistant. So you can ask him for information. You can shorten this information using this and then submit it to your LLM to minimize the token limit.

Additionally, we have a developer portal that I highly recommend exploring. Ahem. So, I already have an account. Let me just log in . And then I'll show you what it looks like.

Because this will again give you better chances, especially if you are working with a local model. As you can see, this is the Hedera site. There are code snippets here for everything you can think of. Here you can see the quick start. For account creation , transfers, token creation, themes, etc.

HCS, HTS. If you are engaged in tokenization, for example, there is an AI assistant here too. And the amazing thing about this amazing thing about this , Rom, is that you can actually communicate with him . Uses GPT 5.1.

You can add the code he writes directly into this window on the site and then execute it. To see success or failure. And if you're building on Hedera for the first time building on Hedera for the first time , if you're creating an account on the testnet, this is the place to go. This is through the portal, as this is where all your accounts are stored. And you can add more HBAR.

You can top up your balance. You see, I have 130 HBAR in this account here. If I top up, they will give me 1000 HBAR. You get 1000 HBAR every 24 hours. You can have up to five accounts.

So that's 5,000 HBAR in a 24- So that's 5,000 HBAR in a 24- hour period. And you will also see that the balance has been replenished. 24 hours left. There is also a tap here where you can get an additional 100 test HBARs. And if you spend that limit quickly, it's very generous.

Don't hesitate to contact us hesitate to contact us , and we can also fill you in. But everything you need is here. You also have a contract builder. So, if you're working with smart contracts, you can just click and add items, and compile and validate them. Let's quickly review some questions.

Someone says questions. Someone says they have a contract challenge scheduled. Maybe at this hackathon with other types of assets. Yes, of course, without a doubt. You are free to use the schedule contract call.

Hmm, that's quite possible. So, Rome, I had an existing AI existing AI server project. If I somehow connect Hedera Explorer to it , will that make it suitable for continuity? Yes, of course it will. If you already have a project created previously on Hedera, as far as I understand the continuity direction conditions, it will be acceptable.

Better check again. I'll send you the link here. Just check there. It seems so. I'm just looking here.

I can quickly look into this issue. In general, this should be every project should be every project that was created previously and now integrates new technologies. At least that's how we set it up, it shouldn't be limited to just Hedera, to bring in more people who haven't worked with Hedera before but have existing projects. OK. This is how we set up continuity, and I think it makes more sense than saying that the project should have been on Hedera before, because that way you're likely to attract more users.

Yes, perfect. Thank you very much for joining Thank you very much for joining . Perfectly. So, I showed you Hedera's skills. I won't show everything because it might take 10-15 minutes, but I hope after this short demonstration you will understand that Hedera skills are a great start.

To discuss and work on your idea. And now I'll quickly talk about Scaffold Hbar. Scaffold Hbar is incredibly easy to use. So, if you're creating a new project, for example, here's what you need to run. Just type npm create scaffold hbar@latest.

So if I copy this and open a new terminal window. This is something I launched a little earlier. So, all you need to do is run the command. And you have a project name. If you have a name, enter it and I will use Ether line.

Next, we have many different options. Clean startup projects, bridge via Axelar, Chainlink, Layer Zero, cross- Axelar, Chainlink, Layer Zero, cross- chain DCA. So, if you are doing cross-chain development, there is native Hedera. It's just Hedera, no Solidity or smart no Solidity or smart contracts. Oracles, on-chain cron jobs, i.

e. scheduled on-chain payments, tokenization of subscriptions tokenization of subscriptions . So, if you are new to tokenization but want to build or work towards a tokenization direction, this is a great place to start. This is an NFT NFT subscription marketplace where your subscriptions that you have, such as a gym membership, will create an NFT of that subscription, allowing you to re-gift that subscription to someone else. People can bet on him.

So, this is a fully working marketplace. And then using the X142 document. So, I see another question here. What is a facilitator folder? This facilitator folder is added to the starting templates for using document X142, Hassan document X142, Hassan .

So this is a kind of X402 facilitator that was set up for the Hedera testnet. It's incredibly intuitive and also contains an agents.md file and a Claude.md file that simply references agents.md.

You can effectively install or configure a starter template and then run Claude and do a quick demo of how the X402 facilitator works with Hedera, we can potentially take a look at that. I can also run this if you contact me after this call. We already have some great content on YouTube regarding the X402. I can send it to you so you can read it, there will be no problem with that. So, after you've set your starter template, this is X402.

You can chat with Claude. It explains everything about this project and will allow your Claude instance to take it to work. If you already have a PRD using the hackathon skills plugin, the hackathon assistant, it will be able to take the data from the agents.md file and your PRD and then combine them to give you a great foundation for the idea you are building. Okay.

Ahem. Ideally. So I can just show you what it looks like if we choose, for example, generative, which I think is one of our directions. Maybe I'm confusing this with the previous hackathon previous hackathon . Yes, I'm confused.

So I'll show you the derivative anyway. You can see here that this is exactly what I was talking about at the very beginning. As part of installing the scaffold H bar, it also asks if you want to install the Hedera Skills Marketplace. So, it's like two in one. So the scaffold H bar is definitely a great place to start.

Run scaffold yarn install. Create. Good. Well , I'll show you another option so you don't have to sit around waiting for me to install yarn. I will use paper again.

Yes, test it. We use NPM. So it's incredibly fast. It sets everything up for you. And after you have everything set up, as I said before, you need to register at portal.

hedera.com. I will also post this link in the chat for everyone. And once you register on the portal, you should be redirected to this control panel. You must have one ECDSA account with 1000 HBAR, an account ID, an EDAM address, and an encrypted private key.

You can also have an ED25519 account, but it is recommended to use ECDSA, and you can add up to three more accounts to get a total of 5,000 HBAR. Em. Then another one. A great moment to help you get started. And this is mainly for those who haven't developed on Hedera before, it's HashScan.

So when you make these transactions and you want to see them online, you can go here, enter your account ID, and view the transactions. For example, this is a transaction of sending a message to HCS, and you can see everything here: topic ID, payer account, fees charged, etc. This is exactly what we want to see. When you submit your idea, we want to see that your project actually executes transactions on Hedera. So, when you submit your idea for consideration, it's a good idea to include something like this, and during the evaluation, we'll check to see if your project works online.

It was a kind of crash course in Hedera skills. Do you have any questions about the HBAR scaffold, development platform, or skills repository? It's okay if there isn't. We are always there . So if you have any questions, we also have Discord.

Feel free to ask your questions there. We respond very quickly and are always happy to help. A. Model size. How well do models write smart contracts?

Codex too. Had quite a bit of success with Codex. I personally switched between the two. Are there any open source models? That's a good question.

Rom answered you there. Qwen. So, what projects do you expect to see at this hackathon? Um, I hope for variety, we have AI and payments on the Hedera network. Open source, improving the Hedera ecosystem.

Tokenization of Tokenization of anything, and then continuity. Um, how do I set up MCP in my ID? Okay, no problem. I can quickly go over this again . So, I'll send that to you too.

Back to the chat. Just in case you joined before I sent this. Here, Wilfred, is the link. This is incredibly easy to do. If you are using Claude code, simply scroll to the Claude code text.

All you have to do is click " click " copy" there. And then insert this. And that's if you're using Claude, of course. But we have all different AIs. See, I've already added this before.

Um, is it hedera.com/mtp or the link I dropped in the chat. Um, if you have any difficulties, feel free to contact me. Um, let's look at some questions. Which one looks interesting?

Perfectly. You help each other. Maybe you should team up and hack together. It would be really cool to see that. Ahem.

So, regarding Hedera payment tracks , do you have any advantages? Hmm, no particular advantages. What I personally like to see in submitted work and what always gets high marks are projects with a well-thought-out life cycle. They don't build something just for a hackathon. They are aiming to see the project develop and enter the market.

They want to implement it in such a way that they want to implement it in such a way that they ultimately get a live case, a live project. Um, and that's always incredible to see. Hmm, great. I see you are helping each other. Ahem.

You unite and, hopefully, become one team. That would be really cool. I look forward to seeing what you create, Roma and Sylvia. Um, any more questions? We have 2 minutes or 1 minute 34 seconds.

So, if you have any more questions, feel free to ask now. If not, I'm always here, just write to Discord. Feel free to tag me and I will respond quickly. Yes. Surprisingly.

Oh, one more question. Will you be at the feedback session? Yes. Yes, I will. Yes, I saw it on my calendar, so I'll be there.

Oh, I'm always glad to see good people there. Okay, great, Luke. Thank you very much. It was an incredible seminar. Thank you to everyone who joined and listened.

I hope you learned something new. As he said, the team is very accessible on Discord. What I always advise: don't ask if you can ask a question, just ask it right away. This way they will be able to respond faster. This seminar is recorded and will be available on youtube.

com/ethglobal. I hope everyone has a great day and we look forward to seeing what you create for the hackathon. Thanks again, Luke. Thanks again to everyone who joined. Have a nice day.

Thank you very much everyone. See you later. Thank you.