Clockwork, a smart contract automation project built on the Solana blockchain, is set to cease its key infrastructure operations by the end of October, primarily due to "limited commercial upside." Nick Garfield, the founder of Clockwork, announced this decision on Twitter on August 27. The team will halt active development and shut down both the protocol's devnet and mainnet nodes on October 31.
Garfield explained that the primary factor behind their exit from Clockwork is the "simple opportunity cost." They have realized that continuing to develop the protocol offers limited commercial benefits, and the team is increasingly interested in exploring other opportunities.
Clockwork is a protocol designed for scheduling transactions on the Solana network and creating smart contracts that can automatically execute applications when certain events are triggered.
Garfield made it clear that Clockwork's code will remain open source and accessible online. They will offer "full support for forks and releases" to anyone interested in taking over the project.
Clockwork had raised $4 million in a seed round last August, with participation from venture capital firms like Multicoin Capital and Asymmetry, along with Solana Ventures. Garfield responded to a query about returning the seed money by stating that a significant portion of the funds is still available, but he needs time to decide the next steps.
Clockwork joins the list of Solana-based protocols that have been shuttered recently, including DeFi platform Friktion in January and Everlend Finance a month later. Cardinal, a Solana-based NFT protocol, also announced its winding down in late June, citing economic condition s.
