BC Blockchain VC Newsletter
Welcome to the BC Blockchain VC Newsletter, your dedicated source for insights on web3 startups (seeking funds) presented my members of BC Blockchain. Please reach out if interested & for any intros!
DATE: January 7, 2024
Project: Shaga
(DePIN)
🖥️ Website | 🐦 Twitter | 📡 GitHub
Summary:
Shaga is a platform that seamlessly integrates with Solana, leveraging its DePIN cloud gaming technology to revolutionize the $385B gaming industry. Aimed at democratizing high-quality gaming experiences, Shaga's mission is to provide the 3 billion gamers worldwide with access to high-performance gaming PCs, thereby eliminating latency issues. Shaga's protocol creatively modifies the Moonlight protocol, automating the server-client pairing process by replacing manual PIN inputs with a more secure, automated system using cryptographic key pairs. The user experience is further enhanced by allowing gamers to access session accounts listed by the Shaga Program, choose based on latency, and initiate gaming sessions effortlessly. Shaga also introduces the feature of private pairing with an optional public access setting, adding a layer of flexibility and security. The synchronization between the frontend and backend, facilitated by the Sunshine Server, ensures a seamless update and session management process. This coordination is crucial from the moment the user validates payment to the termination of the gaming session. While this made for a great MVP, Shaga will be releasing an entirely new approach and platform in the new year as they gear up for their Q1 seed raise. Originating from a Solana Hyperdrive Hackathon submission, Shaga uniquely combines advanced cryptography and user-friendly gaming infrastructure, establishing itself as a standout new project in the cloud gaming sector.
Team:
Guido Rocco Pardini: Co-founder & CEO. EECS @PolitecnicoDiMilano Dropout
Daeshawn Ballard: Co-founder & COO | prev. product @Metaplex
Thomas Meta: Co-founder & CPO | prev. founder of Questify | DS @Berkeley
Round:
Shaga plans on raising a seed in Q1 2024
Project: Fluent
(Infra)
🖥️ Website | 🐦 Twitter | 📡 GitHub
Summary:
Fluent is a Layer 2 that blends zero-knowledge technology with WebAssembly to enhance blockchain scalability and developer capabilities. At the core of this zkWASM rollup is Wasm itself, which allows developers to use languages like Rust and TypeScript for Ethereum-based programs. This capability is something that traditional rollups do not offer, thereby expanding the design possibilities for developers who are always seeking the most suitable tools for their projects. Fluent introduces new programming languages while remaining compatible with the EVM, supporting Solidity and adhering to EVM standards. This dual approach eases Solidity developers' transition to Fluent, simplifying and broadening blockchain development as the project heads towards a testnet launch.
Fluent's core mission is to democratize access to Ethereum's blockspace. The platform empowers developers to create decentralized applications effortlessly, without needing in-depth knowledge of blockchain-specific languages & zero-knowledge cryptography. Through its early builders program and active engagement with the community via Twitter, Discord, and GitHub, Fluent is fostering a robust dialogue and nurturing a community-centric ecosystem. By bridging the gap between traditional programming and Ethereum blockchain development, Fluent positions itself as a new player in enhancing the capabilities and diversity of the Ethereum ecosystem.
Team:
Dmitry Savonin: Co-founder & CTO | prev. Chief Architect @Ankr
Dino: Co-founder & CEO | prev. Co-founder @ModularMedia
Round:
Fluent is currently raising their seed round
Project: Cede.store
(CeFi/DeFi Infra)
🖥️ Website | 🐦 Twitter | 🤝 LinkedIn
Summary:
Cede.store is a chrome browser extension that aggregates and manages your centralized exchanges, providing a seamless interface for tracking, trading, and transferring assets. The platform streamlines a diverse range of activities, from asset swapping on Coinbase to executing withdrawals from Binance and connecting with various dApps. All these actions are unified under a single, user-friendly interface, offering a comprehensive digital asset management experience. Cede.store maintains a non-custodial approach by securely storing all API keys directly on the user's device, ensuring that users have exclusive control over their CEX assets. Cede.store seeks to bridge CeFi and DeFi ecosystems: merging CeFi's enhanced liquidity and user-friendly framework with the transparency and efficient governance of DeFi. Centralized exchanges are the main entry point for most crypto users, so by bringing CeFi liquidity to the DeFi ecosystem, Cede.store can onboard the next wave of crypto curious newbies and further grow the web3 community.
Team:
Cede Labs is based at Station F, a renowned incubator in Paris, and was founded at the start of 2022 by four co-founders, each bringing a rich engineering and crypto/DeFi background to the table. The founding team includes:
Pierre Ni: CEO
Gabriel Begazo: COO
Nikita Terekhov: CTO
Round
Cede.store is planning on raising their seed round Q1 of 2024