RBV Weekly Newsletter🧔📖Week of 12/20/24

Team RBV Open Deals, Portfolio Updates, Crypto News, & More

Author

Joshua Howard
December 20, 2024

Subject: RBV Weekly Newsletter 🧔📖 Week of 12/20/24: Open Deals, Portfolio Updates, Crypto News, & More

—-------------------------------------------------------------------

Welcome to the latest edition of the Red Beard Ventures newsletter, where we dive into exciting updates and insights from all over blockchain, frontier tech, and the angel investing landscape. 


📣 As a reminder, Red Beard Ventures has a syndicate, fund, and a tokenomics accelerator:

  • The Red Beard Ventures Syndicate is stage agnostic and invests in Frontier Technology with a focus on Web3, Space, FinTech, Sports, Robotics, Biotech, and Climate. We invest anywhere between $100k - $1.5M.

  • The Red Beard Ventures Fund I invests $100k - $1M in Pre-seed and Seed blockchain-based companies.

  • Denarii Labs is a tokenomics accelerator where we invest $100k into companies interested in designing and launching a token, over a twelve-week hands-on program. 🚨Applications are now open for Wire Accelerator, apply here! 🚨

—------------------------------------------------------------

PWR Labs has built a layerzero technology that separates validation and processing for efficient chain operation. Applications on PWR Chain run independently without affecting network performance. It supports over 300,000 transactions per second, instant finality, and a fixed fee model for predictable costs, offering a solid foundation for decentralized applications.

PWR Wallet now supports the Bitcoin Mainnet, allowing users to send and receive BTC directly through the wallet. This addition integrates Bitcoin into the PWR ecosystem and expands its functionality. Upcoming features include the ability to bridge Bitcoin between its native blockchain and PWR Chain’s Bitcoin+ EVM sidechain. Additional enhancements like compatibility with EVM and SVM and multichain connectivity will further expand the wallet’s capabilities and its role in the Web3 ecosystem.



Congrats to the team!

 —------------------------------------------------------------

Portfolio News

  • Beyond is an infrastructure that connects Bitcoin Layer 1 with over 80 blockchain networks, including Solana, Base, and Arbitrum, enabling users to interact with multiple chains seamlessly.

  • Mintify is a trading platform for digital assets, Mintify has partnered with Wanderlust to enable trading of these NFT blocks. It offers a user-friendly interface for trading on Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other blockchains, focusing on speed, usability, and a comprehensive ecosystem for digital asset trading and development.

  • Through this integration, Mintify users will be able to explore and interact with Bitcoin L1 and 80+ other blockchains directly within the Mintify platform, enhancing their multichain experience.

  • Slingshot specializes in space situational awareness and data-driven solutions for managing satellite operations and space traffic. By leveraging advanced analytics and technology, Slingshot supports safer and more efficient operations in Low Earth Orbit (LEO).

  • Slingshot has been selected to present at the 11th Annual Space Traffic Management Conference at the University of Texas at Austin. Their presentation, titled Photometric Analysis of 100,000,000+ Observations across 10,000+ Objects in LEO and Implications for STM, will highlight key findings from large-scale photometric data analysis.

  • The conference will take place on March 4-5, 2025, and registration is now open for attendees interested in the latest advancements in space traffic management.

  • Altered State Machine (ASM) is a decentralized platform that enables the creation and ownership of AI-driven agents, known as Non-Fungible Intelligence (NFI). These agents can be integrated into various digital environments, enhancing interactivity and personalization within the metaverse.

  • ASM has launched a new tool in collaboration with Cool Cats, allowing users to create memes featuring the popular Cool Cats character, Blue Cat. By inputting a text prompt or uploading an image, users can generate and share personalized memes in the distinctive Cool Cats style.

  • This initiative encourages community engagement by providing an accessible platform for creative expression. It also showcases ASM's capabilities in integrating AI with digital art, offering fans a fun and interactive way to engage with the Cool Cats brand.

  • Dfns, a Wallets-as-a-Service (WaaS) platform, has integrated the Aptos blockchain as a Tier-1 supported network, enhancing its ecosystem for developers and users.

  • This integration offers features such as automatic asset detection, on-chain transfer history, transaction management, and webhook notifications, streamlining operations for applications built on Aptos.

  • Developers and financial institutions can now leverage Dfns' secure and compliant wallets for various services on the Aptos network, including trading, payments, banking, and tokenization.

  • Dapper Labs, the company behind NBA Top Shot, uses blockchain technology to bring NFTs and new forms of digital engagement to fans around the world. NBA Top Shot allows users to own, trade, and showcase iconic basketball highlights as digital Moments.

  • This holiday season, NBA Top Shot is celebrating with exciting updates, including giveaways and rewards from December 23-25, exclusive airdrops for set collectors, and leaderboards offering access to rare Moments and memorabilia.

  • Fans can also look forward to upgraded collecting and gameplay features, enhancing their experience and making it easier than ever to immerse themselves in the world of NBA Top Shot.

  • Peapods Finance is a decentralized platform focused on on-chain volatility farming, enabling users to optimize yield opportunities from crypto market fluctuations. It combines simplicity with powerful features for liquidity provision, yield generation, and leverage.

  • Peapods Finance introduces Leveraged Volatility Farming (LVF), simplifying liquidity management on platforms like Uniswap V3. LVF enables single-sided liquidity that auto-rents downside liquidity to keep positions in range, auto-compounds yields, and offers up to 3x the concentration of typical full-range liquidity, boosting profitability.

  • LVF allows users to borrow against liquidity positions, enabling ongoing yield generation without needing to sell assets. It offers potential tax efficiencies and supports 1-click leveraged exposure to chosen tokens, providing a seamless way to maximize returns with minimal complexity.

—------------------------------------------------------------

🔔 Active Investment Opportunities:

Webacy: Building the "Norton" for Web3 | Backed by Quantstamp, VaynerFund, and Soma | SAFE + Token Warrant $WBCY

  • Webacy is redefining blockchain security with its SafetyScore™ APIs and Safety Suite, empowering users and developers to protect assets and assess wallet safety in real time.

  • Platform secures $2B+ in assets, scans 10M+ wallets monthly, and generates 2M wallet safety notifications/month, with projected $3M ARR by 2025.

  • Positioned to dominate the $58.86B blockchain security market by 2032, with tools embedded in partners like Etherscan, OKX Explorer, and Revoke.cash.

  • Operating as a consumer-first, chain-agnostic platform, Webacy outpaces competitors like Blockaid by integrating proactive wallet management and risk monitoring.

  • Led by CEO Maika Isogawa (Stanford CS, Forbes 30 Under 30, ex-Microsoft cybersecurity) and CTO Vincent Chan, the team combines technical excellence with a focus on Web3 safety innovation.

  • Link to invest

Seasats: Autonomous Maritime Vehicles for Ocean Monitoring and Defense | Backed by Shield Capital and L3Harris

  • Seasats is redefining ocean operations with Lightfish, a cost-effective, autonomous surface vehicle trusted by high-profile clients like the U.S. Navy and Scripps Institution of Oceanography. 

  • Revenue projected to grow from $1.7M in 2023 → $4M in 2024 → $12M by EO’25, with a clear path to $30M–$50M annually and upside to surpass $100M/year through DoD contracts

  • Trusted by customers including Navy Special Warfare, Task Force 59, and NIWC, with multiple deployments in the Middle East

  • Operating costs at just $1,604/day, significantly undercutting competitors like Saildrone ($5,338/day) and traditional vessels

  • Against legacy defense and maritime players like Huntington Ingalls Industries ($8B) and innovative upstarts like Saildrone (valued at $1B), Seasats offers substantial upside from our $70M post-money valuation entry price.

  • Link to invest

Dentity: Consumer-First Digital Identity on Web3 Infrastructure | Backed by Blockchange Ventures and Kleiner Perkins

  • Dentity is building a secure, consumer-controlled digital identity solution on Web3, using open standards to empower individuals to manage their online credentials independently. 

  • $3M Seed extension financing via SAFE with a $30M post-money valuation cap and token warrant

  • Backed by top-tier investors: Blockchange Ventures (Solana, Filecoin), Kleiner Perkins (Figma, Snap), Capital Factory, Nural Capital, and AARP

  • Expanded from 5,000 to 50,000 identity wallets in 2023; targeting 500,000 wallets in 2024, with projections for 5 million wallets and over 60 million verified attributes and attestations by 2025

  • Led by experienced founder: CEO Jeffrey Schwartz, who has founded, led, and been a director at over a dozen public and private companies, including Autobytel, Autoweb, and CarParts.com. He also serves as ambassador chairman of the Decentralized Identity Foundation

  • Dentity’s infrastructure is already being used by 100+ enterprises, creating a consumer-controlled identity ecosystem that fosters trust and data security across digital platforms.

  • Link to invest

Travelswap: Exclusive Expedia Crypto Partner Disrupting Travel

  • TravelSwap, an Expedia exclusive, combines travel booking with 100+ crypto payments, tokenized reservations, and rewards.

  • Impressive traction since July 2023 launch: 1,000+ bookings, 50+ B2B partners, 10k+ users (50% MoM growth), 12%+ repeat bookings.

  • 2024 plans: $TRAVL token, last-minute DEX, V2 B2B platform, expanded offerings.

  • Link to invest

SatRepublic: Leading Ordinals Studio Launches tool for collectors and developers

  • SatRepublic, the Ordinals Studio behind Pizza Artifacts, SatScribe is launching Runevo, a mobile-first infrastructure designed to enable users to transact, monitor, trade, and snipe Runes, Rare Stats, and Ordinals.

  • Pizza Artifacts, the first historical collection of Ordinals fully inscribed on the exotic 'pizza' Sats from the pizza transaction of May 22, 2010, trading at 25x mint; SatScribe, the first public platform for inscribing on rare and exotic Sats, which has done over 150k paid inscriptions for users; and Runevo, a collection of 6.025 pre-rune Ordinals that sold out in under 24 hours to raise $1.4mm USD, or 17.4 BTC.

  • Link to invest: 

—------------------------------------------------------------

🥳 Upcoming Events: 

Events are a great way to stay informed in our industry, so we have had a very full 2024. We would love to hear about any other conferences you will be attending or the remainder of this year, so please let us know as we are still planning our event calendar!

Stay tuned for updates on future events, and until then, keep spreading joy and positivity in our community!

—------------------------------------------------------------

🤝 We are also looking for part-time syndicate vertical leads in the following categories - if you are interested please reach out and we can discuss the opportunity in greater detail:

Biotech 

Space 

Robotics & Automation

Climate 

Fintech & SaaS

—------------------------------------------------------------

Onwards 🚀 

Drew, Elana, Joshua, and Lauren