DoubleZero Foundation Secures $28 Million to Revolutionize Blockchain Infrastructure
The DoubleZero Foundation, an innovative startup focused on creating a “new internet” aimed at enhancing blockchain performance, has successfully raised $28 million at a valuation of $400 million. According to three sources familiar with the matter, the foundation is now actively seeking “strategic partners” to invest further, targeting a valuation of $600 million.
Leading this initial funding round are prominent venture capital firms Dragonfly and Multicoin Capital, as confirmed by two insiders. It’s worth noting that the subsequent strategic round has yet to close, indicating ongoing interest from various investors. Venture capital firms are reportedly competing fiercely for any allocation they can secure, highlighting the demand in this rapidly evolving sector.
DoubleZero declined to provide a comment on the matter. Achieving such a high valuation in an early funding round is relatively rare; however, it is not entirely unprecedented for crypto companies proposing transformative technologies. DoubleZero aims to build a global network of private fiber optic cables, leveraging this infrastructure to enable blockchains to transmit data more efficiently than what is currently achievable over the public internet.
Emphasizing its mission, DoubleZero has adopted the motto: “Increase Bandwidth, Reduce Latency”, or IBRL. This slogan has circulated widely within the Solana community, even before the official release of DoubleZero’s white paper in December. The initiative is viewed as a crucial technology that could support Solana’s ambitious goal of processing one million transactions per second.
In an exciting development, DoubleZero is set to launch its permissioned testnet for Solana validators and RPCs, with intentions to expand its services to other blockchain networks in the future, according to a source with inside knowledge. The network will utilize fiber optic cables operated by various contributors, including Jump Crypto, RockawayX, Distributed Global, Latitude, and Terraswitch, and is open to accepting additional collaborators.
During Solana’s Breakpoint conference in September, the Firedancer team from Jump Crypto showcased its ultra-fast Solana client, achieving remarkable speeds. However, what went unmentioned at the time was that the participating validators were operating on the infrastructure provided by DoubleZero.
DoubleZero Foundation’s President, Austin Federa, previously served as the head of strategy at the Solana Foundation. The project is co-founded by Andrew McConnell and Mateo Ward, who oversee the core contributor company, Malbec Labs. Jump Crypto also plays a vital role as a core contributor, providing initial bandwidth to the network. In a light-hearted remark, Federa referred to DoubleZero as “crypto’s first infrastructure project”, emphasizing its heavy reliance on physical hardware—namely, fiber optic cables traversing both land and sea. Rather than investing heavily in building or purchasing this expensive infrastructure, DoubleZero plans to collaborate with independent communication companies that are eager to monetize their underutilized resources.
This approach draws parallels to the competitive landscape of Wall Street’s speed race, where trading firms invested significantly in specialized fiber optic lines to gain milliseconds in transaction speed.
In an insightful blog post, the infrastructure company Helius compared DoubleZero’s preferred data conduits to a private car service, contrasting it with the open internet, which is likened to an Uber. While both options will ultimately transport users to their desired destinations, the private car service offers a faster and more reliable journey.
In a recent discussion on X Spaces, Federa remarked, “I think the Solana community has very resoundingly said, ‘We would like to exceed what’s possible on the public internet.’” He also noted that DoubleZero is “completely compatible” with any blockchain, likening the system to dedicated fiber lines used by high-frequency trading firms. As he stated, “We’re just getting to the point where blockchains are fast enough to make use of that.”
