On June 16, 2022, the Draper Decentralized Studio hosted a demo day for its accelerator candidates to pitch solutions to an invited group of over 60 investment funds, angel investors, and media. With Tim Draper, Alyse Killeen of Stillmark, and Nic Carter of Castle Island forming the panel of investors, this was a passionate opportunity for start-ups to share their work helping drive bitcoin adoption in the world. global scale.
According to the website, Draper Decentralized Studio is a “three-month program for teams working to make Bitcoin not only a firm asset class, but also a global payments network, a global monetary network, and eventually a network. world society”.
This program is evolving into what they call a “Bitcoin Club”, a work and presentation format for start-up startups, where experienced investors, advisors and operators focus on a certain mission that supports the companies in the club. . The club hosts events, podcasts, and other ways to publicize participating businesses.
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In participating in the program, startup founders worked closely with relevant industry experts from Advanced Blockchain AG, BDO, Texas Blockchain Council, Sovryn, HODL Capital, Galoy, Mimesis Capital, Fulgur Ventures, a41 Ventures and NGO Bitcoin Argentina, received advice on strategy, compliance and fundraising.
DraperX Bitcoin Studio launched its pilot program in February 2022 with 11 teams on board. After completion of the program, the candidate companies presented their products to a panel of investors: Draper, Killeen and Carter, along with private equity firms, family offices, venture capitalists and angel investors in the public.
Below are 10 companies that have participated in the program and some brief information about what they do.
lightning deposit
Lightning Escrow is a fast, secure, affordable, non-custodial trusted third party built on top of the Lightning Network.
Geyser
Geyser is a crowdfunding platform native to Lightning. They offer rewards-based crowdfunding along with a host of services for a global audience of creatives and supporters.
The Bitcoin Company
The Bitcoin Company is a private, easy-to-use application that combines native Bitcoin tools with traditional financial tools aimed at creating the native Bitcoin bank of tomorrow.
Tension
Voltage is a leading infrastructure provider for the Bitcoin and Lightning network. They offer cloud hosted node services.
Oshi
Oshi is a Lightning-native, node-agnostic, hyper-verticalized local promotions marketplace that introduces businesses and consumers to Bitcoin commerce and rewards.
Diba
Diba is an open and organized marketplace for NFTs on Bitcoin using the Really Good For Bitcoin (RGB) smart outsourcing network. The product offers a market-supporting gateway wallet.
Coinplus
Coinplus is a ready-to-use secure physical wallet for gifting and storing bitcoins.
ShockNetwork
ShockNetwork is a way for users to receive bitcoin through a next-generation application stack for the Lightning Network using the ShockNetwork advertising platform as a proof of concept for the larger stack.
egg string
Eggschain is the first biotech company on the Bitcoin blockchain with patented blockchain-integrated inventory management and chain of custody technology for tracking biological samples.
BlockSurvey
BlockSurvey is a decentralized, end-to-end encrypted data collection network that provides the ability to conduct private surveys (with sensitive data retained by the respondent). It allows users to create wealth from the data they share with companies.
Global Residency and Citizenship Group
Global Residency and Citizenship Group is a platform of mobility assets (passports, residence permits, digital nomad visas, virtual residences) in 50 countries in the world allowing individuals to be sovereign.
Summary
Although the pitch day did not conclude with final investment deals, these companies had the chance to share their exciting products built on Bitcoin. After attending the presentations, it’s hard to say that there aren’t exciting things happening in the Bitcoin ecosystem. These companies have original and innovative business models that are likely to produce big waves in the years to come with the adoption of bitcoin.
In his closing remarks, Draper noted that he was “thrilled and excited to learn more about the teams. People have watched a lot of things happening on other channels. Now builders are clamoring and moving their best to Bitcoin.
Killeen concluded, “Having met these teams, it’s impossible not to be optimistic about the space and the impact everyone can have.”
Carter highlighted the role of Lightning Network in “opening up a big design space.” Exposure to demo day startups is further proof that Lightning is a key enabler for creating solutions that aren’t custodial, but have an element of monetization. I am very impressed with the quality of the teams today.
DraperX Bitcoin Studio will begin accepting applications in mid-July for its next cohort. Upon acceptance, teams will work closely with industry experts to receive advice on strategy, compliance and fundraising. The most successful startups will be showcased at the Bitcoin Club to benefit from the resources it has to offer.