Manako named overall winner of Start in Block 2026 at Paris Blockchain Week
Vision Agent platform powered by Bittensor’s Score Subnet 44 selected from more than 1,000 applicants. Paris, 17 April 2026 - Manako has been named overall winner of Start in Block 2026, the flagship startup competition at Paris Blockchain Week, selected from one of the most competitive cohorts in the competition's history with over 1,000 applicants. The final round brought a small group of finalists in front of an institutional jury of investors, operators, and senior figures from across the European ecosystem. Manako was recognised as the overall winner and also took the Bittensor track, reflecting the role of decentralised AI infrastructure in how the platform is built and delivered.
Photo: Paris Blockchain Week
"What the jury responded to is what we've been building toward from the start: Decentralised AI that runs on infrastructure organisations already have, and produces decisions they can act on in real time," said Maxime Sebti, CEO & Co-Founder of Manako Labs. _"Decentralised AI isn't a side track any more. When it wins the main stage at Paris Blockchain Week, it tells you the category has arrived. Being recognised on that basis, in this room, matters." _added Arnaud Deffuant, Head of Business Development of Manako Labs.
The outcome signals a broader shift in how AI systems are being evaluated at the institutional level. Rather than rewarding experimental models or isolated capabilities, the competition favoured companies building deployable systems that operate in real-world environments and deliver measurable outcomes. Manako's positioning as a Business Operations World Model, powered by Vision Agents running on existing camera infrastructure, maps directly onto that direction: turning visual input into real-time operational decisions, without new hardware, new teams, or long deployment cycles. Manako was joined on the podium by The Risk Protocol in second place and Sundial Protocol in third, each recognised for their contributions across the competition's other tracks.
The result reflects the growing relevance of physical AI as a category, and the increasing weight placed on infrastructure that can be deployed at scale without friction. Real-world operation is becoming the defining test of how new technologies are assessed and adopted. About Paris Blockchain Week Paris Blockchain Week is one of Europe's leading conferences covering blockchain, digital assets, and emerging technologies. Held annually in Paris, it convenes founders, investors, enterprises, and policymakers to explore the developments shaping the industry. Start in Block is the event's flagship startup competition, designed to spotlight high-potential companies building real-world applications across the ecosystem.
Read the full press release
For the official announcement, media contacts, and full company information, read the complete press release here: Official PR