Hello 👋
Welcome to the 37th edition of Sfermion’s Collider where we highlight the latest & greatest news in the world of web3, gaming & entertainment, macro, AI, and more!
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
Southeast Asia super-app Grab adds support for web3 services (link)
JPMorgan exploring blockchain-based payment and settlement system (link)
Visa’s crypto stablecoin settlement expands to merchant acquirers via Solana (link)
Swift unlocks potential of tokenization with successful blockchain experiments (link)
Race for a spot ether ETF begins with bid from Ark Invest, 21Shares (link)
MetaMask adds 'cash out' function allowing users to sell crypto for fiat (link)
Drake-Backed Crypto Casino Stake Loses $40M in 'Unauthorized' Transfers (link)
FBI blames North Korea’s Lazarus Group for $40M Stake hack (link)
Half of the People in Turkey Now Own Crypto (link)
Chinese fintech giant Ant Group launches overseas blockchain brand ZAN (link)
Robinhood Buys Back Sam Bankman-Fried’s Seized Shares Worth $600M (link)
Casio to release virtual G-SHOCK NFTs on Polygon (link)
OP Labs hires former Google exec as chief operating officer (link)
DApp store for your wallet: Consensys readying cross-chain Metamask Snaps (link)
Riot compensated $30M to shut off Texas bitcoin miners in August (link)
Vitalik Buterin co-authors paper on regulation-friendly Tornado Cash alternative (link)
Storygrounds (💰) announces Storygrounds Alpha with pre-registration now live! (link)
Avalanche and Hyperspace (💰), a leading marketplace & launchpad on SOL and Sui, forge partnership (link)
Individual loses $24M in likely crypto phishing attack (link)
ByBit Launches AI-Powered Trading Assistant (link)
Monax Labs launches Aspen to guarantee royalties for Web3 creators (link)
Kraken gradually rolling out PayPal deposits in UK and Europe (link)
Gaming Updates
Google loosens ad guidelines for NFT game providers (link)
PUBG Developers Unveil Cosmos-Based Settlus Blockchain for USDC Settlements (link)
NPixel is looking to sunset metaverse/web3 operations (link)
UAE Looks Set to Legalize Gambling (link)
Roblox Is Finally Coming to PlayStation This Year (link)
Hurley Drops Super Surfer Game NFTs on SKALE Blockchain (link)
MrBeast-Promoted 'Creator League' Postponed After Gamers Bail Amid NFT Backlash (link)
Gala Games Co-Founders Sue Each Other Alleging Corporate Waste, $130M Theft (link)
YouTube’s latest experiment is playing games (link)
TikTok wants to become mobile’s new launchpad, not a game platform (link)
Epic Games Embraces AI In Games, In Break With Steam (link)
Former PlayStation boss says Amazon, Netflix pose huge threat to the game industry (link)
Cradles is set to launch its open beta on September 10th (link)
Enjin Blockchain is finally launching on September 13th (link)
Deadfellaz announces TCG and pre-access vault sale (link)
Sorare unveils 3D and AR player cards (link)
Noonoouri becomes first digital artist to be signed by Warner Music (link)
Tom Clancy’s Rainbow Six Mobile already has 17 million pre-orders (link)
AI Updates
Elon Musk Reportedly Wants to Fold Neuralink and Tesla Into One Big Weird AI Company (link)
Arm, the Softbank Group-owned chip designer, is headed for a $52 billion IPO (link)
Google DeepMind co-founder argues US should set AI global standards (link)
OpenAI Plugs ChatGPT Into Canva to Sharpen Its Competitive Edge in AI (link)
Google's Generative AI Tools Now Turn Text Into Online Worlds (link)
Other Updates
China Bans iPhone Use for Government Officials at Work (link)
The End of Airbnb in New York (link)
Clubhouse is trying to make a comeback (link)
Research & Interesting Reads
Delphi Digital | Opportunities in Web3 Mobile Gaming
Konvoy | Distributing Games on TV
David Phelps | The Proto-App Thesis
Metaversal | Arbitrum: The Future of Gaming
Eigenlayer | Intro to EigenDA: Hyperscale Data Availability for Rollups
Polygon Labs | Lawnmower Racing, NFT-Powered Girl Capitalism and the Rise of Korean Web3 Superpower
Polygon Labs | Hang’s Guide to Next Gen Loyalty in Web3
NFT Drops & Updates
Yuga expands TwelveFold collector experience with cipher puzzle series, spanning 12 weeks with weekly BTC rewards (link)
Reddit Kicks Off Football Season With NFTs of Every NFL Team (link)
Zynga’s Sugartown will have their first NFT mint on September 13th (link)
Via AnotherBlock, Justin Bieber Producer Is Selling Royalties for the Song 'Company' as NFTs (link)
Casio to release virtual G-SHOCK NFTs on Polygon (link)
Hot Wheels Introduces New NFT Collection: Garage Series 6 (link)
“Captain Tsubasa” Tsubasa Team Collection - Sandbox Avatars (link)
Notable Raises
Podium (💰) raises 2M€ from Fabric Ventures, Sfermion, and Seedcamp to further develop fantasy sports data tooling (link)
Coinbase shares more on The Base Ecosystem Fund, and announces their first 6 investments : One of them being Paragraph (💰), an on-chain newsletter & publishing platform (link)
Story Protocol launches with $54M round led by a16z to tap IP ownership (link)
aelf Ventures Launches $50M Ventures Fund to Boost Blockchain Innovation (link)
Alpha Protocol Ventures (APV) has established a $20M fund to invest in undervalued Web3 projects and companies focused on blockchain gaming and tokens (link)
Pantera Capital leads $16.5M round for StarkWare-powered DEX Brine Fi (link)
Trident Digital Group, a newly launched startup founded by former Coinbase executives, raised $8M (led by Whitestar and New Form) for its “next generation” crypto lending business (link)
Galactic War P2E Game Receives $6M Funding from KaJ Labs (link)
Interoperability Protocol Socket Raises $5M Co-Led by Coinbase Ventures and Framework Ventures (link)
Web3 arts startup TRLab raises $5M from Hivemind Capital, OKX Ventures (link)
Gleen announces a $4.9M fundraise to push the boundaries of customer support using generative AI (link)
GAM3S raises $2M to build the #1 web3 gaming platform (link)
Helix raises $2M to connect crypto investors with private credit yields (link)
Metahorse Unity raises $1.9M to continue building the ultimate RPG horse racing game (link)
Mo & Andrew's Curated
Macro
5,357
Turkish crypto exchange CEO sentenced to 11,196 years in prison for stealing $2 billion in customer funds.
Americans are defaulting on credit cards and auto loans at the highest levels since the financial crisis.
Mexican billionaire says he only holds #Bitcoin, MicroStrategy, Bitcoin miners, oil companies and gold miners in his portfolio.
This has doubled since the pre-pandemic levels of ~$1 billion per day.
Since 2020, the US has added a historic $9.1 TRILLION to the national debt.
Meanwhile, 31% of outstanding debt is going to…
Chinese Yuan at its lowest level vs. 
the dollar since 2008 
Is the dollar wrecking ball back?
Web3
Recently, @BankofAmerica released a report predicting asset tokenization will exceed $16T in the next 5-15 years,And cited @Avax Subnets as one of the key platforms driving the future of transferring value globally.
∼9% in transaction fees and 5 minutes later my fiat withdrawal dropped into my bank.
(1/8)
storygrounds.comSG brings anyone into stories they love! Our platform allows folks of all skill levels to unleash their creativity, and together, create everyone’s fav new Webcomics!
These kinds of NFTs, with real utility in…
Where communities turn social energy into collective power.
In a few weeks, we launch an app for Collective Crowdfunding.
Exclusively on @BuildOnBase. Mobile and newbie-friendly.
Web3 gaming: Many are jaded about this vertical because we never saw actually good and fun games touching crypto, just DeFi degen games with gamified…
For me right now it’s like
Gamefi 35%
Memes 30%
Defi Again 10%
Ai 10%
Nft Main 5%
Social Fi 5%
Something Else 5%
Open and interested in any and all thoughts on this salient question
This post represents our 1st public, long-form content about EigenDA - what it is, how it works, what benefits it offers to rollups. There's too much to summarize fully, so please read at the link below!
blog.eigenlayer.xyz/intro-to-eigen…
1/5
Intro to EigenDA: Hyperscale Data Availability for Rollups
We’ll assume that you know what data availability is, and why it’s important for blockchains and rollups. For more information on data availability, see the Ethereum Foundation docs on Data Availab...
The website, protocol, and NFTs will remain operational and are stored safely.
Two years ago, we ventured into the NFT space to improve monetization for video creators. A lot has changed in the last two years, and the space has…
Web3 Jobs Report You can learn more about:
- average comp for different positions
- most popular skill sets for the most in demand jobs
- where are the hiring hotspots
Check it out here and let us know what…
After 100+ hours of deep diving, I want to explain why this partnership matters to the whole crypto world.
If you are an NFT degen or Web3 data expert, this is the unmissable ALPHA leak for you.
thread
NFTs
At some point you have to ask yourself are you here to give from the space or to take from the space. I know which side I’m on.”
@LucaNetz in Seoul
BECAUSE ITEM BID OFFERS ARE LIVE!
Make & accept offers on any Ordinals & BRC-20 listed on Magic Eden today!
These collections generated 700,000 total mints from 268,000 unique wallets
Gaming
Explore. Battle. Win. Evolve.
The Hunt begins on Sept. 7th.
We’re thrilled to announce that #GasHero will be launching exclusively on @0xPolygon
The game developed by @FSLWeb3, the makers of #STEPN is expected to launch in Dec 2023.
A thread
[1/8]
BIG NEWS from CRADLES! We're launching our Public Beta on September
th! Inviting everyone to experience our world:
Date: September 10th 
Participation: Open to all! 
Download on:
Steam (Bonus: Secure an exclusive NFT when you download via Steam!)
watch them because the game is actually fun and they’re pushing the horror genre.
1/ Taste matters
2/ Investors and founders should think big
3/ Raise more than you think you need
1/8
Introducing @cartridge_gg: an onchain gaming company
Excited to share more about our mission, funding and the games, tools and infrastructure we're building
Backed by @chapterone @dunevc @__geometry__ @fabric_vc @voltcapital @starkwareltd
Hello World - Cartridge Gaming Company
Build, deploy, and scale fully onchain games and Autonomous Worlds
Excited to announce our Mint detailsSeptember 21st, 4 pm UTC.
[5555 Supply]
[Free Mint]
Make sure to set your reminder on @opensea
opensea.io/drops
Don’t miss our Founder's message @benbaltram
AI
According to Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. in an interview with The New York Times, “it’s absolutely eligible because it was written by a human.”
Random
- Retail is rekt and normies mostly think crypto is a scam
- Funds are largely rekt and capital inflow has significantly slowed down
- Institutions are largely on the sidelines waiting for…
Apple lost $200 billion in market value over the past two days after China banned its government from using iPhones.
💰 = Sfermion Portfolio Company
Curated by @mopat1214 + @AndrewSteinwold
If you enjoyed reading this edition of Sfermion’s Collider, please subscribe below, share within your network, and follow Sfermion on Twitter to get the latest! Check out our Seam (💰) bio here :)
Note: All information in this Newsletter regarding any company or investment is the sole responsibility of the company providing the information. Sfermion, and its affiliates, makes no representation or guarantee to the accuracy or completeness of the information presented. Sfermion is not responsible for any information contained in any links outside our websites and official social accounts.
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.
- Loading comments...