Web3: Crypto & AI intersect in $40MM raise for Fetch.ai; PancakeSwap upgrades its DEX to V3
So many bots, so little time
Gm Fintech Futurists —
Welcome to our Web3 newsletter, covering DeFi, digital assets, NFTs, and the emergence of the financial metaverse. Today we highlight the following:
FINTECH & INSTITUTIONAL: Fetch.ai Announces Fresh Funding At A $250MM Valuation
DEFI & DIGITAL ASSETS: PancakeSwap Changes Its Recipe With The Launch Of Version 3
CURATED NEWS
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Web3 Short Takes
⭐ Fetch.ai Announces Fresh Funding At A $250MM Valuation - The Block
Fetch.ai, a blockchain-based platform that uses artificial intelligence to build automated AI agents, has raised $40MM in new funding from DWF Labs. For context, DWF Labs also invested $40MM in Tomi, a startup that aims to create a distributed alternative internet, TON, the Telegram blockchain project, and $10MM in blockchain firm Radix Tokens.
Fetch.ai operates as an autonomous machine-to-machine ecosystem, with agents acting as independent nodes directly interacting via the blockchain network. These agents — essentially bits of code — can autonomously learn, predict, and transact on behalf of users in various use cases, ranging from chatbot development to DeFi. Moreover, Fetch.ai’s Agentverse is an interface that enables developers to prototype, test, and build agents that can be integrated into apps like ChatGPT.
On the AI side, Fetch.ai’s primary product is Colearn, a protocol that enables multiple parties to build and train AI models to execute tasks on the network, and help businesses gain insights via machine learning models.
Regarding Web3, Fetch.ai has its own L1 blockchain network based on the Cosmos SDK, the Fetch browser extension wallet, the Cosmpy Python library for developing Cosmos dApps, and the Jenesis CLI tool for bootstrapping and testing CosmWasm contracts. The platform’s “Notyphi” notification feature, associated with the Fetch wallet, informs users about governance results, dApp launches, new token listings, network updates, airdrop opportunities, and ecosystem expansions.
Protocols like Atomix enables stablecoin holders to supply liquidity and receive a yearly yield of protocol-generated returns and ATMX rewards. We’ve barely scratched the surface of the ecosystem, which is powered by Fetch.ai’s native token, FET.
We are going to see more attempts to combine AI and Web3 — in some cases to do real things, and in some cases to generate hype.
Some projects that remind us of Fetch.ai include Alethea AI’s CharacterGPT, which allows users to tokenize characters featuring custom appearances, voices, intelligence, personalities, and identities via a text description. Meta, on the other hand, has been harboring plans to integrate AI with Web3 technologies for a while, intending to launch BuilderBot, an AI-powered tool that facilitates the creation of objects and backgrounds in the metaverse via voice commands. Oncyber beat Meta to it by enabling users to employ GPT-3.5 prompts to build metaverse worlds. AnChain.ai, a blockchain intelligence platform, uses predictive modeling to analyze transactions, smart contracts, and risk profiles to identify suspicious activity.
The intersection between the two technologies — which at first look opposing, but will eventually integrate — will spawn new AI-NFT projects, metaverse infrastructure, DeFi, gaming, and security solutions. If left unchecked, AI tools will amplify the sins of Web2, leading to centralization, endless dopamine content, and a lack of privacy. Digital ownership and authenticity secured onchain is one of the few possible antidotes. The question of what is real and fake will be the key one as this stuff gets built out.