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Animoca Brands unit invests US$50M in Brinc’s metaverse accelerator programme

Manav Gupta, Brinc Founder and CEO, with Yat Siu, Executive Chairman and Co-Founder of Animoca Brands

The Sandbox, a decentralised gaming metaverse owned by Animoca Brands, has committed US$50 million to Hong Kong-based Brinc, which runs The Sandbox Metaverse Accelerator programme.

With applications now open and the first cohort scheduled to start in Q2 2022, the programme is a dedicated track within Launchpad Luna — the accelerator launched in mid-2021 as a partnership between Brinc and Animoca Brands.

The new programme aims to accelerate 30 to 40 startups a year over the next three years. The programme will invest in, mentor, educate, and support the development of promising startups and projects while also providing access to potential partnerships and business development opportunities across the growing networks of The Sandbox, Animoca Brands, and Brinc.

The new programme is looking for startups that can enhance the open metaverse, which will be evaluated on their traction, technical expertise, and ability to deliver unique experiences.

Also Read: “We want to facilitate organisations’ Web3 transition from bits to atoms”: Brinc CEO Manav Gupta

Startups accepted into the programme will receive an initial investment of up to US$250,000 each. The Sandbox will also provide further grants of up to US$150,000 in SAND tokens to the best performers, as well as LAND grants. Startups that demonstrate meaningful traction post-program can also apply for follow-on investment from The Sandbox, Animoca Brands, and Brinc.

The core directive of The Sandbox Metaverse Accelerator Program is to support the launch of new startups that can contribute to the growth and expansion of The Sandbox ecosystem by building unique experiences and populating the platform with fresh creativity and new content. Pioneering blockchain startups in art, collectibles, culture, entertainment, gaming, media, content, and streaming, are encouraged to apply.

Accelerated startups will be empowered to contribute to The Sandbox’s rapidly growing ecosystem and actively engage with its existing and growing user base. Online applications are now open at: brinc.io/metaverse.

High-profile mentors supporting the programme are:

  • Yat Siu (Animoca Brands)
  • Sebastien Borget (The Sandbox)
  • Manav Gupta (Brinc)
  • Cathy Hackl (CEO of Futures Intelligence Group)
  • Holly Atkinson (lead blockchain developer at The Sandbox)
  • Holly Liu (co-founder of Kabam)
  • Janine Yorio (CEO of Republic Realm)
  • Leah Callon-Butler (director of Emfarsis and columnist at CoinDesk)
  • Pavel Bains (co-founder of Bluzelle)
  • Serena Tabacchi (director and co-founder of Museum of Contemporary Digital Art)
  • Susan Cummings (CEO of Petaverse Network)
  • Yam Karkai (co-founder of World of Women), and
  • Yingzi Yuan (founder and builder of Metaverse Summit). 

Web 3.0 leaders from Altitude Games, Binance, Dragonfly Capital, Republic Crypto, and True Global Ventures will also provide mentorship.

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