Web3 Foundation, the entity behind the blockchain project Polkadot, has been trying to push the initiative forward to accelerate the adoption of the network in the crypto-verse. Polkadot is slated to launch in the latter stages of 2019.
Now, Polychain Capital has announced it will be collaborating with Web3 Foundation to fund projects that will be built on the back of the Polkadot network. Ethereum co-founder and Parity Technology’s Gavin Wood designed Polkadot to enable other blockchain networks to communicate with each other, providing smoother interoperability between systems, CoinDesk reported.
As for the amount that Polychain Capital has invested in the fund, which will be jointly launched by the partnering entities, Web3 didn’t disclose such information as of this writing. However, Web3 Foundation communications lead Zeke Turner said that the figure is hovering on the millions.
He added that investments from the fund may require a certain percentage of equity from participating startups.
Projects that Web3 is interested in
Web3 has already been issuing grants to projects that are using Polkadot’s blockchain application framework, Substrate. To date, it has granted over 40 initiatives with varying backing ranging from $3,000 to $100,000.
And while Web3 is eager to provide funding for projects that may pique the interest of the team, its initial goal is to prioritize projects that involve Polkadot and Substrate.
In the blog released by the Web3 team last December, it listed a general overview of what sort of projects they’re interested in. They are new chains and runtime modules, second layer protocols, monitoring (e.g. explorers), tooling (e.g. UI, deployment), hardware wallet / HSM integration, parachain development kit, protocol integrations, and testing tools (e.g benchmarking, security).
Polychain Capital sees a bright future for Polkadot
“There’s a track record of successful collaborations that we want to continue. The investment committee is looking for projects that will add long-term value to the Polkadot ecosystem,” Turner said.
Polkadot is one of the most anticipated blockchain projects that are launching this year and it certainly caught the attention of people with big pockets. Indeed, Polychain Chief Investment Officer Olaf Carlson-Wee has expressed his excitement for the network’s future, adding he’s thrilled to be working with talented individuals to push Polkadot forward.
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