Exclusive: 2 VanEck funds back Solana-based DePIN DAWN

VanEck is putting $2.5 million into DAWN, a DePIN project aiming to create a decentralized internet service provider. The investment comes from VanEck’s Digital Assets Alpha fund and VanEck Ventures.

The strategic funding round marks the first time that “multiple funds at VanEck have made a direct investment into the same company,” the firm exclusively told Blockworks. The newest raise comes after Andrena, the company behind DAWN, raised $18 million in a round back in August.*

Andrena CEO Neil Chatterjee told Blockworks that DAWN was designed to capitalize on the “transformation of our lives” as society goes from being wired into the internet to being completely wireless…

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JUST IN: MicroStrategy Buys 15,350 BTC for $1.5B, Averages $100,386 per Bitcoin

MicroStrategy has significantly expanded its Bitcoin portfolio by acquiring an additional 15,350 BTC, at an average price of approximately $100,386 per Bitcoin. This latest purchase boosts the company’s total Bitcoin holdings to 439,000 BTC, acquired for an estimated $27.1 billion at an average price of about $61,725 each.

MicroStrategy’s Bitcoin investment has yielded remarkable results, with a quarter-to-date (QTD) yield of 46.4% and an impressive year-to-date (YTD) yield of 72.4%. This performance highlights the potential of Bitcoin as a lucrative asset in today’s digital economy, bolstering investor confidence and further establishing MicroStrategy’s position as a pioneer in cryptocurrency investments. The company continues to advocate for Bitcoin, leveraging its growing digital asset base to enhance shareholder value in the emerging crypto market.

Former Coinbase Tech Chief Contrasts AI’s Reputation As Making It Easy To Fake Things With Crypto’s Tamper-Proof Technology – Grayscale Bitcoin Mini Trust (BTC) Common units of fractional undivided beneficial interest (ARCA:BTC)

Silicon Valley investor Balaji Srinivasan predicted a convergence in prestige between artificial intelligence and cryptocurrencies on Monday, arguing that while one’s reputation has suffered, that of the other has increased.

What Happened: In an X post, Srinivasan expressed his views on the contrasting origins of AI and cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin BTC/USD, Ethereum ETH/USD and Dogecoin DOGE/USD.

“AI came out of academic research and big tech, so it started with high prestige. Crypto came from anonymous message boards and internet degens, so it started with low prestige,” the former technology head of Coinbase said.

AI came out of academic research and big tech, so…

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