The program 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 Sandbox’s Metaverse Accelerator is a major expansion of our ongoing commitment to support the next generation of metaverse entrepreneurs. With imagination, ideas and hard work, startups from all over the world can realize their visions and drive societal impact by creating more opportunities for everyone. We’re especially eager to support underrepresented founders in their ambitions as they explore the infinite possibilities offered into The Sandbox ecosystem. — Sébastien Borget, co-founder of The Sandbox and chairman of the Blockchain Gamer Alliance.
The new program is looking for startups who will be evaluated on their traction, technical expertise, and ability to deliver unique experiences. Startups accepted into the program 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 open metaverse will not be owned by any single entity and thus presents an incredible opportunity to create a participatory and collaborative nonzero-sum environment based on openness, equitability, user governance, and digital property rights. We’re proud that our partnership with Brinc is powering accelerator programs that support founders to innovate in and scale up the creator economy.” — Yat Siu, executive chairman and co-founder of Animoca Brands
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 the fields of 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.
The program will support the open metaverse built on shared values and through open, transparent, decentralized governance. This will replace the current paradigm of closed platforms thanks to powerful network effects, creating a more sustainable digital future.
High-profile mentors supporting the program — alongside Yat Siu (Animoca Brands), Sébastien Borget (The Sandbox), Manav Gupta (Brinc) — include: 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.
