Last week, several startups, including Andrena, Vessel, Cartridge, and Pentagon Games, secured substantial funding.
Andrena, $18 million
Last week, U.S. internet service provider Andrena secured $18 million in a major Series A funding round, led by Dragonfly Capital.
Prominent venture firms such as Castle Island Ventures, ParaFi, Wintermute Ventures, CMT Digital, and 6th Man Ventures also participated in this round.
To date, Andrena has raised a total of $33 million, with $15 million coming from a previous round, also spearheaded by Dragonfly Capital.
The company is pioneering a decentralized autonomous network protocol called DAWN, designed to allow users to sell excess internet bandwidth to a network of providers.
DAWN will utilize decentralized physical infrastructure networking, relying on a network of wireless base stations installed on rooftops to provide mesh internet access, independent of any centralized provider.
Andrena has yet to announce a specific launch date for DAWN.
Vessel, $10 million
In a successful seed funding round on Aug. 8, Zero Knowledge-based decentralized exchange Vessel secured $10 million.
Leading the round was Sequoia Capital, with strong support from Scroll co-founders Sandy Peng and Ye Zhang, the Avalanche Foundation, Algorand Foundation, IMO Ventures, Folius Ventures, Incuba Alpha, and several angel investors.
The capital will be used to combine the efficiency of centralized exchanges with the transparency of decentralized platforms, enhance liquidity efficiency, and push forward zero-knowledge-proof technologies for DeFi.
Vessel Finance, an emerging decentralized exchange powered by ZK technology, is rapidly evolving into a full-fledged layer-3 network for decentralized finance. The platform is set to deliver the efficiency and user experience of centralized exchanges while maintaining the transparency and security of decentralized systems.
Cartridge, $7.5 million
Cartridge, a leading infrastructure provider for on-chain games and autonomous worlds, has successfully closed a $7.5 million Series A funding round as of August 5.
Led by Bitkraft Ventures, the round also saw participation from prominent investors like Fabric, Dune, StarkWare, Primitive, and Ergodic.
In tandem with this announcement, Cartridge introduced Dojo 1.0, an open-source developer toolset built to power provable games. The company is also backing several on-chain games slated for release this summer, including Loot Survivor, Paved, and Dope Wars.
In a conversation with GamesBeat, CEO Tarrence V. emphasized that the new funding will bolster team growth and further strengthen the ecosystem. He highlighted Dojo as the foundation for fully on-chain game development, with a clear vision to build these games entirely on the blockchain.
Additionally, Cartridge is working on two groundbreaking products: the Cartridge Controller, designed to manage player identity and reputation, and the Slot, a cutting-edge execution layer.
Pentagon Games, $6 million
Pentagon Games, backed by Animoca Brands, has secured $6 million in a successful funding round, with strong backing from Binance Labs, Polygon, Symbolic Capital, NFX, Republic, The Spartan Group, and Yield Guild Games.
Led by co-founders Emma Liu and Idon Liu, Pentagon Games boasts a team with deep expertise in the web3 sector. The Liu duo has a proven track record, managing communities and projects with up to 1.2 million players, running blockchain operations, validating Polygon nodes, and developing some of the earliest web3 games. Joining them is Hugh Behroozy, the chief publishing officer, who brings over 15 years of experience in film, games, and visual effects.
CEO Emma Liu expressed her excitement about the company’s future, stating their commitment to “leading the next generation of gaming.” Pentagon Games is dedicated to creating a platform where gamers can interact with content in innovative ways and be rewarded for their participation.
As demand for unique virtual experiences and digital assets surges, Pentagon Games is poised to become a top choice for gamers seeking cutting-edge platforms with advanced features.
DeAgentAI, $6 million
Web3 AI network DeAgentAI has confidently secured $6 million in a seed funding round, spearheaded by Web3.com Ventures and Vertex Capital. The investment was further bolstered by key players like Higgs Capital, Kernel Labs, Waterdrip Capital, Tido Capital, PANONY, CatcherVC, Goplus, and UXLINK.
DeAgentAI is at the forefront of utilizing advanced artificial intelligence to revolutionize services across multiple industries. Built on decentralized platforms such as Solana (SOL) and Ethereum, the network has crafted an AI-worker layer that seamlessly integrates AI with specialized skills to deliver cutting-edge solutions, including financial forecasting and creative writing.
Backed by strategic investors like Vertex Capital, DeAgentAI has assured its community that a series of innovative product launches are on the horizon.