GM from CreatorDAO
We’re excited to finally be able to announce our $20 Million seed round led by a16z crypto and Initialized Capital.
Jonathan and I have long believed that creators (Youtubers, TikTokers, Snapchat, podcasters, etc.) have a lot in common with startups. However, the investment world hasn’t treated them as real businesses. While in 2021, venture capitalists invested over $300B in the tech industry, spurred by the tech and crypto boom. Creators, however, received <1% of that amount in funding.
Investing in creators requires doing things differently; the “equity” of a creator is in their brand and not in a company. Additionally, the support that creators need is very different than what a startup would need. DAOs are set up in away that can uniquely address the needs of creators.
CreatorDAO aims to help the next generation of creators by equipping them with capital, community, and technology. We’re creating a decentralized community that invests in creators and gives them the tools and operational support they need to accelerate their careers. We aim to build on top of decentralized standards and contribute to the larger web3 ecosystem to push the ball forward on decentralized communities.
In addition to our lead investors, a16z crypto and Initialized Capital, we’re thrilled to have the support of some of the most influential creators and investors in the creator economy and web3, including Liquid 2 Ventures, Mantis Ventures (The Chainsmokers), M13, 11:11 Media (Paris Hilton), Audacious Ventures, 6th Man Ventures, Abstract Ventures, SV Angel, Hack VC, Fika Ventures, Fuel Capital, Goldhouse, Soma Capital, CRCM, Wing Ventures, LYVC, Alliance DAO, Shima Capital, Kygo's Palm Tree Crew, Niche Capital, Position Ventures, Tribe Capital, Alchemy Ventures, Braigel Brothers, Investo, Olive Capital, Hawktail, and top angels and creators around the globe, such as Michael Ovtiz (Founder of CAA), Kevin Hartz (Founder of EventBrite), Josh Buckely (Founder of Hyper), Qasar Younis (Founder of Applied), Bryan Frist (Founder of Yoshi), Nick Alexander (Founder of Vibe), Paul Veradittakit (Partner at Pantera), Aviv Nevo (Time Warner), Jude Gomila (Founder of Golden), Desmond Lim(Founder of Workstream), Ella (Founder of Trendsi), Abe Burns, Julien Zachary Reneau-Wedeen, Ali Sabeti (CEO of Zerocater), Elizabeth Yin (Hustle Fund), Jiake Liu (CEO of Outer), Avish Bhama (Founder of Klinic), Shiv (Founder of Zuma, Nick Raushenbush (Founder of Shogun), Proud Limpongpan (Founder of Zipmex), Nitesh Banta (Founder of B12), and Liam Payne (One Direction).
Leading creators (with over 50M+ communities) have joined our mission by joining the DAO, including Paris Hilton, The Chainsmokers, Shawn Johnson, Andrew East, Joma Tech, Swaggy Wolfdog, and many more. Top creators will devote their time, expertise, and a portion of their earnings with the CreatorDAO community treasury.
Y Combinator (and angel investors and early-stage VCs) provided the world’s most technically-talented people an alternative path outside of traditional careers. We want to do the same for the most creatively-talented people in the world.
If our mission resonates with you, join our incredible team. If you’re a creator, apply to join the DAO. We’d love to hear from you.
Check out our coverage on https://fortune.com/2022/08/09/creatordao-raises-20-million-in-a16z-led-seed-round/.