Hello 👋
Welcome to the 28th edition of Sfermion’s Collider where we highlight the latest & greatest news in the world of web3 and gaming!
Weekly, we aim to drop a curated list of the most exciting stories & updates that we believe are enabling the emergence of the metaverse.
If you're looking forward to reading this edition of Sfermion’s Collider, please don't forget to subscribe below, share within your network, and follow Sfermion on Twitter to get the latest! Check out our Seam (💰) bio here :)
Web3 Updates
DeSantis promises to protect bitcoin in presidential campaign launch event. (link)
Fahrenheit wins bid to acquire assets of insolvent crypto lender Celsius. (link)
New YouTube CEO Is bullish on web3 tech like NFTs and the Metaverse. (link)
Adobe launches beta version of Generative Fill, the world’s first co-pilot in creative and design workflows, powered by Adobe Firefly. (link)
Solana blockchain integrates ChatGPT plugin, launches AI accelerator. (link)
Coinbase-backed Base targets mainnet launch after Optimism’s Bedrock upgrade. (link)
Ledger responds to social recovery feature concerns. (link)
Professional Bowlers Association Is putting bowling awards on-chain with avalanche NFTs, targeting about 300K+ league members. (link)
Web3-friendly browser Brave introduces NFT-Gated video calls. (link)
Nifty Gateway launches collector rewards program to reward previous collectors and incentivize platform usage. (link)
ENS App v3: The next generation of ENS. (link)
Ava Labs launches 'No-Code' web3 launchpad AvaCloud. (link)
Binance enters NFT lending space, starting with ETH loans. (link)
Magic Eden rolls out “Chapter II” with rebates, open APIs, NFT aggregation, and more. (link)
Pro-trading Solana marketplace, Tensor, integrates Magic Eden listings and begins offering rebates as well. (link)
Hyperspace (💰) and Mysten Labs partner to bring next-level web3 gaming and NFT yrading to the Sui blockchain. (link)
Bitcoin's hot ordinals economy is getting a dollar-backed stablecoin. (link)
Chinese city launches gov’t-backed metaverse platform. (link)
Gaming Updates
StepN (💰) | In-App NFT Trading Live : StepN users will be able to buy, sell and trade the game’s NFT sneakers without having to leave the app. StepN also announced a new integration which will allow users to purchase digital assets using traditional debit and credit cards linked to Apple Pay. Huge unlock for web3 as more projects look to launch on the App Store. See more here.
Steam bans gambling with new conduct changes. (link)
The Epic Games Store Launches Epic Rewards. (link)
Activision-Blizzard is utilizing generative AI in game design. (link)
Twitch star Amouranth launches an AI virtual avatar of herself for avid fans. (link)
Sorare works with French authorities on a framework for players who face tighter NFT regulations. (link)
Gordon Ramsey’s Hell’s Kitchen enters the metaverse with Sandbox. (link)
Gala Games to launch Web3 poker platform with PokerGO. (link)
NFT Champion’s Celestia Ultimate slated to go live on Epic Games Store. (link)
Research & Interesting Reads
Outlier Ventures | The Open Metaverse Thesis
1kx | zkML: Evolving the Intelligence of Smart Contracts Through Zero-Knowledge Cryptography
Ancient8 | Treasure: The $MAGIC of Interconnected Gaming Metaverses
Sino Global | Bored Ape and Beyond: Part 2
Decentralised | On-ramp Everybody
Defiance Capital | Liquid Venture Investing in Crypto
Naavik | Fall Guys & The Rise Of Live Service UGC
NFT Drops & Updates
Atmos (💰) : Exordium Chapter 03 is available now on Amazon and Kindle Unlimited, featuring cover art by Michael Cho. The Digital Collector’s Edition of Atmos: Exordium Chapter 03 is a is a fully-tradeable asset that is readable from within the Atmos Portal. 1,750 copies of the Chapter 03 Digital Collector's Edition will be randomly airdropped on the Polygon network. To be eligible for the airdrop, wallets must hold an Atmos Collectible when a snapshot is taken on Tuesday, May 30th at 10 AM PT.
Mojito (💰) Insider mint and other Mojito collectibles grant access to members-only resources, insider talks, exclusive events, and early access to brand leader workshops. This time, Mojito partners up with gmoney to allow fans to collect an exclusive interview as an earned NFT. Claim free and try the Mojito platform in the process. (link)
FabeeoBreen launches metaverse-ready avatars in partnership with MetaMundo (💰), and live on Spatial. (link)
RSTLSS and Claire Silver partner to drop a 2,136 collection of rigged game-ready garments. (link).
Digimental Studio (creators of 3D fashion brand HAPE) is set to merge with Vertex Labs via a $12M acquisition. (link)
$APE accelerator for IP expansion and integrations are on the horizon, and all web3 projects should be paying some level of attention. (link)
Nike OF1 NFT sale surpasses $1M despite delays and tech issues. (link)
World-renowned photographer Chen Man featured Grimes in an iconic NFT collection “Silent Noise: Episode 01” on May 24th at 3pm UTC exclusively on LiveArt. (link)
DourDarcel launch a generative open edition mint exclusively on OpenSea. (link)
New Paris Hilton-themed NFTs of 5,555 avatars launched on The Sandbox on May 24th. (link)
Notable Raises
MoonfireVC, a data-driven early-stage VC, raises $115M across 2 vehicles. They will back pre-seed and seed-stage companies in Europe using AI, Web3 and AR/VR in four sectors: health, work, finance and gaming. (link)
Polygon, Solana, Algorand Join Forces for $50M Cross-Chain Investment Fund. (link)
Dispersion Capital launches a $40M venture fund to “bring web3 to the masses.” (link)
Anthropic, an artificial intelligence startup competing with OpenAI in building AI foundation models, raises $450M from investors including Alphabet Inc's Google and Spark Capital. (link)
Worldcoin, a decentralized open source protocol for human identity and UBI, raises $115M led by Blockchain Capital with participation from a16z, Bain Capital Crypto and Distributed Global. (link)
Story Protocol, web3 story creation and IP management protocol, raises $29.3M led by a16z crypto. (link)
Azteco, the only provider of vouchers for small amounts of bitcoin for everyday use, raises $6M led by Jack Dorsey. (link)
Airstack, the AI-powered web3 developer platform with cross-chain, cross-dapp, on-chain/off-chain APIs, raises another $4M led by Superscrypt to close its $7M pre-seed. (link)
PYOR, a pioneer in enabling high-fidelity data and insights for the digital assets industry, raises $4M led by Castle Island Ventures. (link)
LabDAO, a decentralized autonomous organization focused on open-source drug discovery, raises $3.6M co-led by Inflection.xyz and Village Global. (link)
Openfort, web3 gaming wallet-as-a-service infrastructure provider, raises $3M co-led by Gumi Cryptos Capital and Maven 11. (link)
Arena of Faith, a web3 MOBA gaming startup, raises $1.75M led by Chain Hill Capital. (link)
BoomLand, the Web3 game publisher known for its debut title Hunters On-Chain, raises $1M from Polygon, Game7, Magic Eden, Hyperithm and a number of private investors. (link)
Mo & Andrew's Curated
Metaverse Live Ep. 16 - Metaverse Trends: Why Asia Is in the Lead
FOG Cast #44 | Unleashing Interoperability With Petaverse (💰)
Web3 Tweets
Not saying past predicts the future. And not financial advice.
tv.cctv.com/2023/05/23/VID…
24K
Lots of policy work to do to ensure America isn’t left behind.
youtube.com/watch?v=SkuzKQ…
1/7
Next week's milestone is v0.11.2 – hitting Testnets Mon, then Mainnet soon after.
Key feature? The activation of Cairo 1 in v0.11.2. Get ready for Cairo1's capabilities on Mainnet
Speedball v0.12, we're coming!
NFT Tweets
Known for working with brands like Overwatch, Valorant, Batman, and more, he is an important first step in establishing ourselves as a Triple-A storytelling brand.
0n1forceofficial.medium.com/announcing-our…
Today marks the end of the first phase of IZUMO's Initiation phase.
Before we unveil what we have planned next, we'd like to take some time to appreciate the journey we've gone on so far.
Astaria is a novel NFT-backed lending protocol
Here are the 9 best moments we had in the NFT space
(1/11)
Gaming Tweets
"BLIGHTBREAKER BUFFET"
MEAL PREP STARTS NOW
LET 'EM COOK: DISCORD.GG/EVERSEED
ALPHA SNAPSHOT 5 IS HERE! Gear up Tycoons! A vibrant new world of farming, building & crafting adventures awaits
Packed with fresh content, exciting rewards & game updates, this isn't just an alpha - it's a whole new playground!
Start NOW
paradisetycoon.com/play
Came to find where the swamp ends? Tag your ape friends looking for the Otherside.
@BoredApeYC @OthersideMeta
BREAKING: Former Activision Blizzard VP of Community Michael Lee has been hired by Matter Labs as their new VP of Growth. His focus will be on bringing gaming to zkSync!
At Activision, Lee led the 400 million-strong community across major games such as COD and Overwatch.
AI Tweets
Random Tweets
It's the world's 6th largest company. $NVDA
💰 = Sfermion Portfolio Company
Curated by @mopat1214 + @AndrewSteinwold
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Sfermion does not offer investment advice/analysis and makes no recommendations on how to act. Information regarding any company or investment in this Newsletter, including any links to information on our website, should not be viewed as an endorsement or recommendation of that company or investment for any purpose whatsoever. Any person receiving this Newsletter is encouraged to consult with their own financial advisor, or relevant personnel, before making any investment decision.
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