ChainML, a pioneering Web3-enabled AI platform, has secured a substantial investment, revitalizing the Web3 funding landscape. The Silicon Valley-based AI and ML development firm raised $6.2 million (approximately Rs. 51 crore) in its latest investment round, led by Hack VC. This strategic funding aims to democratize access to artificial intelligence (AI). The investment comes amid a resurgence in Web3 funding, which saw significant growth in the first quarter of 2024 after a dip in late 2023.
Headquartered in San Francisco, ChainML offers an open-source framework designed to develop production-level AI protocols, enabling scalable AI applications to advance Web3 solutions. In a significant move, the platform has introduced ‘Theoriq’, a foundational layer designed to support AI-powered Web3 initiatives. These foundational layers, known as agentic base layers, function as agents to bolster advanced technology protocols.
ChainML’s innovative approach to integrating AI and Web3 has earned the trust of numerous venture capital firms.
The Super Seed funding round for ChainML attracted investments from Foresight Ventures, Inception Capital, HTX Ventures, Figment Capital, Hypersphere Ventures, and Alumni Ventures. According to HTX Ventures, this funding highlights “the confidence and excitement surrounding ChainML’s vision to seamlessly integrate AI into the decentralized world of blockchain and revolutionize the AI landscape.”
ChainML co-founder and CEO Ron Bodkin hailed the investment as “a pivotal moment” for both the company and the broader AI and Web3 fields. “With Theoriq, we’re not just launching a product—we’re spearheading a movement towards a transparent, community-governed AI ecosystem,” he stated in the press release. Bodkin emphasized that the new funding will enable the firm to explore additional AI applications within the decentralized sector.
Web3 projects have attracted significant investments this year. A Crunchbase report from April noted that 346 funding deals for Web3 firms were finalized in the first quarter of 2024, raising a total of $1.9 billion (approximately Rs. 15,867 crore). This marks an increase from the fourth quarter of 2023, where $1.2 billion (approximately Rs. 10,021 crore) was raised across 263 deals.
Notable funding rounds in the first quarter of 2024 include London-based Exohood Labs ($112 million or approximately Rs. 935 crore), Seattle-based EigenLabs ($100 million or approximately Rs. 835 crore), and Hong Kong-based Freechat ($80 million or approximately Rs. 668 crore).
According to Crunchbase, New York-based Monad Labs secured the largest Web3 funding of the year so far, raising $225 million (approximately Rs. 1,879 crore) in a round led by VC firm Paradigm in April.