Validation Cloud, a crypto infrastructure company that uses artificial intelligence, announced that it has raised $15 million led by True Global Ventures.
Other investors in the Series A round, announced Wednesday, include Cadenza, Blockchain Founders Fund, Side Door Ventures, and AP Capital. The company’s valuation in the latest funding was not disclosed.
This is Validation Cloud’s third funding round, raising a total of $30.8 million since launching in 2017, according to business information platform Crunchbase.
Alex Nwaka, CSO and cofounder of Validation Cloud, says the company’s mission is to “be at the intersection of every transaction and every interaction in Web3.” “We do that through a singular platform that facilitates a variety of different capabilities,” he told Fortune.
Validation Cloud offers three main products to help fuel blockchains that operate on proof-of-stake consensus mechanisms. Proof of stake refers to a method of verifying transactions on blockchains by staking tokens—or offering them as collateral—for the chance to validate blocks and earn passive income. It is an alternative method to proof of work, which requires more energy consumption than proof of stake.
Validation Cloud’s products include the ability to stake tokens, software to connect computers to proof-of-stake networks, and access to data analyzed by AI. “If you just look at those things left to right, they really map the stages of development of a blockchain ecosystem,” Nwaka said.
The company offers its products on popular blockchains including Solana, Ethereum, Base, Aptos, and Binance Chain.
Validation Cloud’s revenue comes from commissions on the rewards customers earn from staking their tokens using its services and by charging a subscription for using its software. Nwaka declined to share the company’s annual revenue but said it manages over $1.5 billion in staked assets across dozens of blockchains.
Other companies offer staking services and validator software including Blockdaemon and Ankr, but Nwack says Validation Cloud’s use of AI for data analysis sets the company apart.
Validation Cloud plans to use the money raised in its latest round to grow its product engineering and go-to-market teams as well as to expand globally, Nwaka said.