Sei Foundation Unveils $65M Venture Fund Targeting Investments in Decentralized Science (DeSci) Ecosystem

In an announcement first published by The Block, the Sei Foundation said its “Sapien Capital – Open Science Fund I” will look to invest in DeSci projects building on the layer 1 blockchain Sei (SEI).

The Sei Foundation has announced the launch of a $65 million venture fund, named "Sapien Capital – Open Science Fund I," to support decentralized science (DeSci) projects building on the Sei (SEI) layer 1 blockchain.

According to an announcement first shared with The Block, the fund will invest in DeSci startups, including those working on gamified drug discovery and wearables, with check sizes ranging from $100,000 to $2 million. The fund will deploy capital over the next three to four years and is open to both project tokens and equity.

The fund will not offer grants and is separate from the Sei ecosystem fund, which provides grants to support projects building on Sei.

Sei Foundation’s head of business development and investments, Justin Barlow, said the fund will invest in startups at various stages, from pre-seed to Series A. It will also consider follow-on investments in promising projects.

Highlighting the fund's focus on early-stage DeSci projects, Barlow noted that the fund will support startups building decentralized protocols, tools and applications for scientific research, drug discovery and other use cases.

"We're excited to see how Sapien Capital can help accelerate the growth of the DeSci ecosystem and support the development of new technologies that will benefit society as a whole," Barlow added.

DeSci has emerged as a key area of interest for crypto and blockchain startups, with several projects launching in recent months to tokenize scientific research, data and other assets.

This has also attracted the attention of VCs, with several large funds making notable investments in DeSci startups.

For instance, a16z Crypto participated in AminoChain's $10 million Series A round last September, while YZi Labs, formerly Binance Labs, backed BIO Protocol in November.