From day zero we set out to build a company and app that combined the best of web2 with web3. We follow that inspiration every day when building our team, designing our app, and notably, with our financing strategy.

We have a big vision - one where hundreds of millions of ****people use our app every day as their home base in web3. Bringing that vision to life requires a lot of work and a lot of funding too. The types of platforms we compare ourselves to, such as Snapchat, Telegram, and Discord, all raised hundreds of millions in traditional venture capital along the way.  While mint proceeds and secondary sales are significant, we always knew we wanted to raise venture capital to see our vision through.

<aside> 🤩 That is why we are thrilled to announce that we have raised a $2.5M pre-seed round from some of the top early-stage investors and angels in the web3 space and beyond including the below:

Strategic funds include: Collab + Currency, Coughdrop Capital, Franklin Templeton Blockchain, GFR, Hannah Grey, NXP, Palm Tree Crew, Progression, and Spice Capital

Angels investors include: @solbigbrain, @peterhollens, @sainteclectic, @rickbakas, @laikasoul, @mikefraietta, @pbmilan, Tom Copeman, Waikit Lau, and several others that prefer to remain anonymous.

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What does it mean for our community?

We think a hybrid of web2 financing and web3 is the most powerful way to benefit not only our company but our NFT holders. Some of these benefits include:

• More stability: Venture investors expect returns on their investment in the 7-10 year timeframe. This longer-term thinking allows us to weather the ups and downs of crypto, culture, and the broader financial markets. It takes time to build the type of company we’re talking about, and with institutional investors, we have the necessary resources necessary to stay focused on our larger vision.
• The best brains (literally) on our team: Web3 is fast and dynamic. We always want the smartest people in the ecosystem helping us navigate the changing tides and making sure we’re one step ahead of the game. The best way to keep those folks close to us is to have them invest and align their incentives with ours. Our investor and angel roster is incredible. Read the list again. Incredible.
• Reassurance for our holders: Web3 is littered with horror stories of rugs and bad behavior. By bringing on institutional investors, we assure our community that we are not going anywhere. We’re a Delaware corporation registered with the SEC with a fully doxed team. Our finances are monitored by institutional investors.
• More resources for our community: Building software is capital intensive. So is building an exceptional community. Merch drops cost ~$500k, tokens can cost $300k to $1M. In-person events can range from a few thousand to a few hundred thousand. We have every intention of continuing to build an exceptional community, and by raising venture capital we can not only build world class software but build the most incredible community too.

As we share more of our story you’ll see that we are methodically building a company that becomes a foundational pillar in web3. Just as we embrace the new, we also believe a lot can be learned from the last 70 years of successful startups. We’ll keep picking and choosing the best plays from the web2 and web3 playbook to maximize the outcomes for our company, community and investors.

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