Robinhood

Arbitrum

<p>The Arbitrum Foundation has partnered with <a href="https://x.com/RobinhoodCrypto" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">@RobinhoodCrypto</a> to open applications for the second cohort of the Arbitrum Mentorship Program. The 12-week initiative is aimed at early-stage startups building on Arbitrum One and Robinhood Chain, and it culminates in a Demo Day in March 2027.</p>
<h2 id="what-cohort-2-offers">What Cohort 2 offers</h2>
<p>The program combines technical mentoring, a $100K prize pool and access to investors. Organisers expect the Demo Day to draw more than 50 venture capital allocators. <a href="https://alexablockchain.com/arbitrum-and-robinhood-chain-open-second-mentorship-cohort/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">According to Alexa Blockchain</a>, the programme will select up to 15 pre-seed and seed-stage teams, who will work with investors and operators from across the Arbitrum and Robinhood Chain ecosystems.</p>
<p>The new round is longer than the first. Cohort 2 extends the programme from eight weeks to twelve, per the same report. David Garcia, Ecosystem Lead at the Arbitrum Foundation, said the program is looking for founders who already have a product live or close to launch and want to build on Arbitrum One or Robinhood Chain.</p>
<p>The first cohort ran for eight weeks from April. Thirteen teams were selected and ten pitched at Demo Day in July to more than 25 venture firms. The cohort has since raised more than $10 million in capital, the report said. In its own review of the first cohort, the <a href="https://blog.arbitrum.foundation/from-idea-to-raising-1m-in-eight-weeks-inside-arbitrums-first-mentorship-cohort/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Arbitrum Foundation</a> said four teams shared a $100,000 prize pool and two of the four winners are building on Robinhood Chain.</p>
<h2 id="why-robinhood-chain-matters-here">Why Robinhood Chain matters here</h2>
<p>Robinhood Chain is central to the program's pitch. It is an Ethereum layer 2 built on Arbitrum Orbit, which settles to Ethereum and uses ETH for gas, <a href="https://www.quicknode.com/guides/robinhood/what-is-robinhood-chain" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">according to QuickNode's developer guide</a>. Robinhood <a href="https://robinhood.com/newsroom/robinhood-chain-launches-public-testnet/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">launched the public testnet in February 2026</a>, describing it as a financial-grade Ethereum layer 2 designed to support real-world assets. Its mainnet went live on July 1, 2026, <a href="https://www.dwellir.com/blog/what-is-robinhood-chain" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">based on Dwellir's overview</a>.</p>
<p>For Arbitrum, the tie-up links two ecosystems that already share technology. Backing startups on both chains gives the Foundation a way to widen developer activity beyond Arbitrum One while giving Robinhood a pipeline of applications for its own network. Teams interested in Cohort 2 should check the Arbitrum Foundation's official channels for application details and deadlines.</p>
<h2 id="sources">Sources</h2>
<ul>
 <li><a href="https://alexablockchain.com/arbitrum-and-robinhood-chain-open-second-mentorship-cohort/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Alexa Blockchain: Arbitrum and Robinhood Chain Open Second Mentorship Cohort</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://blog.arbitrum.foundation/from-idea-to-raising-1m-in-eight-weeks-inside-arbitrums-first-mentorship-cohort/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Arbitrum Foundation: Inside Arbitrum's First Mentorship Cohort</a></li>
 <li><a href="https://robinhood.com/newsroom/robinhood-chain-launches-public-testnet/" rel="noopener noreferrer nofollow">Robinhood Newsroom: Robinhood Chain Launches Public Testnet</a></li>
</ul>

Arbitrum and Robinhood join forces to back Founders

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