Seed phrases, a longstanding headache for crypto enthusiasts, are now on the verge of obsolescence thanks to the revolutionary concept of social recovery. In this innovative approach, users enlist the help of five trusted friends or family members to regain access to their crypto wallets in the event of a lost seed phrase.
Ryder has successfully secured $1.2 million in funding and introduced the Ryder One hardware wallet, a cutting-edge physical device that eliminates the need for seed phrases through its groundbreaking TapSafe recovery feature. This funding round was spearheaded by Oak Grove Ventures, the Bitcoin Frontier Fund, Muneeb Ali from Trust Machines, and SBX Capital, among others.
The Ryder One wallet leverages the well-established Shamir Secret Sharing (SSS) algorithm, a cryptographic method that distributes private keys among a group of participants. No single user possesses the capability to unveil the private key; instead, a collective effort is required to reveal the secret.
This newly launched wallet incorporates its own implementation of SSS, combining multiple devices with a user-friendly mobile app, providing a sleek and easily accessible wallet.
With the introduction of TapSafe, Ryder asserts that the onboarding process now takes less than a minute, all the while maintaining the highest level of security. This is a tool designed with the masses in mind, as stated by Louise Ivan, Ryder’s co-founder and CEO. He explained, “I realized I had eight hardware wallets, with my recovery phrases split all over the world, and thought—how is a normal person going to do this?”
“People simply dislike seed phrases,” he added. Therefore, after several years at Bitcoin smart contract protocol Stacks, Ivan recognized the need to “develop a product that addresses core issues.”
Ryder’s innovative hardware wallet is not the first to abstract keys using the Shamir Secret Sharing Algorithm. Ledger’s controversial key recovery service also relies on an implementation of SSS, and there are other companies in the market exploring similar strategies.
While SSS has faced criticism due to the increased complexity of dividing private key access among multiple devices, Ivan acknowledged the potential threat of collusion but emphasized that “one person is easier to attack than four.”
The hardware wallet market is poised to reach $1.2 billion by 2030, and while it is competitive, it has remained somewhat stagnant in recent years. Self-custody remains dominant, with seed phrases necessitating comprehensive key management setups, and a strong presence of established players that Ryder will need to contend with. According to Ivan, Ledger is the primary competition.
When approaching investors, Ivan highlighted the team’s extensive experience in the crypto industry and the human-centered design of Ryder One. He noted that despite the current emphasis on infrastructure, Ryder believes that the hardware wallet market is in need of innovative solutions.
Muneeb Ali, a prominent investor in the funding round, echoed this sentiment, stating that “bringing innovation to the hardware wallet space is a win-win for the entire industry.”
The Ryder One wallet is scheduled to launch on November 1st through Kickstarter and will initially support blue-chip tokens, including Bitcoin, Ethereum, Polygon, and Solana.