252: Meet the Techstars Web3 Class of 2024

This episode features an introduction to the 12 founding teams that form the Techstars Web3 accelerator class of 2024, with each of their founder/CEOs giving you a quick look inside what they're building.

Show Notes

In this episode, I’m introducing you to the Techstars Web3 Class of 2024, made up of 12 fantastic founding teams building the decentralized internet, tokenized economies, and helping to onboard the first one billion users of web3.

It feels different this time.

We're now well into the next bull cycle in crypto, but the experience of having lived through the last four cycles puts my mindset firmly in the category of 'restrained optimism' for the long-term growth of the decentralized internet, rather than wild speculation.

Putting your head down and building for users, focusing on the fundamentals and building for the long term is the space we play in. We sought out founders who signaled that they were prepared to build for the long term, and we looked at over 600 teams to find our top 12.

This year, I’m thrilled to have the support of the team behind Aleph Zero as a Techstars Web3 Innovation Member. Aleph Zero is a layer 1 blockchain that enables teams to deploy scalable, secure, low-cost, and ZK privacy-enhanced products across multiple verticals—from DeFi and gaming to enterprise.

While the program is largely online, we will be taking the show on the road twice more! We’ll descend on London in April (22nd-26th) and New York City in the first week of June (3rd-6th). If you would like to connect in any of these locations, we would love to hear from you.

Meet the companies!

Artizen - Match-funding platform for breakthroughs in human creativity.

Founder locations: USA / UK | Featured Founder/CEO: Rene Pinnell

The Colony - Shaping the future of collectibles through blockchain technology.

Founder locations: USA / Canada | Featured Founder/CEO: Andrea Miele

Ember AI - AI DeFi companion that understands what you want and helps you do it securely, without new apps or hardware.

Founder locations: USA / Colombia | Featured Founder/CEO: Tom Daniel

FairAI - Fueling democratized open-source AI through a decentralized marketplace with digital property rights.

Founder locations: Portugal / USA | Featured Founder/CEO: Tiago Ferreira

FileMarket - Multichain data tokenization protocol for storage and P2P digital goods trading.

Founder location: Hong Kong | Featured Founder/CEO: Ilya Orlov

GenoBank - Ensuring the privacy and data ownership of your genetic information.