Boardroom’s latest Web3 & Tech VC Roundup includes deals from Accenture, Synthesia, Collectibles.com, Debut, and more.
You don’t typically see mergers and acquisitions in this roundup, but this is one we just couldn’t pass up.
Sweden-based MOBA Networks is acquiring gaming company Wargraphs for $54 million. The deal is significant because Wargraphs is run by a single founder, Jean-Nicholas Mastin, who built a companion app called Porofessor for League of Legends that lets gamers track and improve their playing stats. And to make it even more significant, Mastin bootstrapped his business, meaning he doesn’t owe any investors back and will pocket the full acquisition fee. Porofessor has about 10 million downloads, and Mastin also built analytics platforms for Legends of Runeterra and Teamfight Tactics.
Alright, let’s recap some Web3 and Tech VC deals announced recently.
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Accenture: $3B AI Investment
Consulting firm Accenture announced that it will invest $3 billion into AI to better serve its clients. Over the next three years, the investment will go towards assets, tools, acquisitions, hiring talent, and research efforts. One of Accenture’s offerings is its AI Navigator for Enterprise, which lets clients use generative AI tech to determine how AI can fit into their business models long-term.
“Companies that build a strong foundation of AI by adopting and scaling it now, where the technology is mature and delivers clear value, will be better positioned to reinvent, compete, and achieve new levels of performance,” Accenture CEO and Chair Julie Sweet said in the press release.
Synthesia: $90M for AI Video Generator
Generative AI video startup Synthesia raised $90 million in Series C funding at a $1 billion valuation. Launched in 2017, the company built an AI video creation platform that allows organizations to generate content like training videos, instructional materials, and product marketing videos. The round included investments from Accell, NVIDIA, Firstmark Capital, and more. More than 50,000 companies have used Synthesia’s platform to generate over 12 million videos, which allows users to make content using stock or custom AI avatars.
With the addition of the Series C funding, Synthesia welcomed Tiffany and IHG to its client base.
Collectibles.com: $5M
Collectibles.com closed a $5 million seed round led by Blockchange Ventures, with participation from GFR Fund, Peter Thiel, Blockwall Capital, and other private investors. The pre-launched platform set to market in September will manage a portfolio of offerings for collectors and collectibles enthusiasts. Collectibles.com’s ecosystem will leverage blockchain technology, like smart contracts, to build its offerings, including a customer loyalty rewards system.
“By combining the power of the collectibles community with the promising capabilities of Web3 technology, we can fundamentally rethink how people buy, sell, trade, and manage anything they collect,” Collectibles.com Co-Founder and CEO Alex Ivanov said in a release.
Collectibles.com already offers a collection management application for trading cards, but the company will expand into comic books, coins, stamps, memorabilia, and more.
More Notable Investments
- L’Oréal’s VC arm, BOLD, led a $35 million Series B funding round for Debut, a biotech startup creating high-performance ingredients for beauty products.
- Web3 tech firm Aave raised $15 million to build a decentralized social network powered by the Lens Protocol.
- Blockchain Connext Labs raised $7.5 million from Polychain Capital, Polygon Ventures, and other prominent investors.
- Crypto gaming startup Argus Labs closed a $10 million seed funding round led by Haun Ventures. Robot Ventures, Anagram, Dispersion Capital, and Alchemy also participated in the round.
- Crypto startup Taiko Labs raised $22 million across two funding rounds, which includes a $10 million seed raise and a $12 million pre-Series A.
- Former Meta and Google AI researchers raised roughly $113 million for their startup Mistral AI, which is developing generative AI models.
- VC giant a16z led Gensyn’s $43 million Series A funding, which is a provider of blockchain-based computing resources for AI platforms.
