Key Takeaways
- • Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) announced its fourth crypto fund, totaling $4.5B, bringing its total crypto/web3 funds raised to over $7.6B.
- • Of the $4.5B, approximately $1.5B is dedicated to seed investments and $3B to venture investments.
- • a16z argues blockchains will power the next major computing cycle, which it calls crypto or web3, and that the sector is entering a "golden era."
- • The firm has invested in crypto since 2013 and plans to invest across every stage in areas including web3 games, DeFi, layer 1 and layer 2 infrastructure, and ZK proofs.
- • a16z is expanding its operating teams in research and engineering, security, talent, legal and regulatory, and go-to-market to support portfolio companies.
Summary
Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) has announced its fourth crypto fund, totaling $4.5B, according to the firm's published statement. Approximately $1.5B will be deployed into seed investments and $3B into venture investments. With this vehicle, the firm says its total crypto and web3 fund commitments now exceed $7.6B. a16z has been investing in crypto since 2013.
The firm frames the announcement around its thesis that blockchains will drive the next major computing cycle, following PCs in the 1980s, the internet in the 1990s, and mobile computing in the 2000s. It argues that the sector is entering a "golden era" comparable to the 2009-11 mobile period, which produced companies such as Uber, Venmo, Snap, and Instagram. The firm cites sufficiently advanced programmable blockchains, applications reaching tens of millions of users, and a growing wave of talent entering web3 over the past year as reasons for its decision to "go big."
The fund will invest in web3 startups at every stage. Target areas named by the firm include web3 games, DeFi, decentralized social media, self-sovereign identity, layer 1 and layer 2 infrastructure, bridges, DAOs and governance, NFT communities, privacy, creator monetization, regenerative finance, ZK proof applications, and decentralized content creation.
Alongside the capital commitment, a16z said it will expand its operating functions: research and engineering (cryptography, mechanism design, protocol design, tokenomics), security (key management, smart contract auditing, formal verification), talent and people, legal and regulatory support for navigating regulatory uncertainty and DAO structures, and go-to-market services covering marketing, growth, and strategic partnerships.
The announcement is a primary-source statement from the firm; the figures reflect the firm's own disclosure and were not independently verified in this summary.
The firm frames the announcement around its thesis that blockchains will drive the next major computing cycle, following PCs in the 1980s, the internet in the 1990s, and mobile computing in the 2000s. It argues that the sector is entering a "golden era" comparable to the 2009-11 mobile period, which produced companies such as Uber, Venmo, Snap, and Instagram. The firm cites sufficiently advanced programmable blockchains, applications reaching tens of millions of users, and a growing wave of talent entering web3 over the past year as reasons for its decision to "go big."
The fund will invest in web3 startups at every stage. Target areas named by the firm include web3 games, DeFi, decentralized social media, self-sovereign identity, layer 1 and layer 2 infrastructure, bridges, DAOs and governance, NFT communities, privacy, creator monetization, regenerative finance, ZK proof applications, and decentralized content creation.
Alongside the capital commitment, a16z said it will expand its operating functions: research and engineering (cryptography, mechanism design, protocol design, tokenomics), security (key management, smart contract auditing, formal verification), talent and people, legal and regulatory support for navigating regulatory uncertainty and DAO structures, and go-to-market services covering marketing, growth, and strategic partnerships.
The announcement is a primary-source statement from the firm; the figures reflect the firm's own disclosure and were not independently verified in this summary.
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