In Brief
Web3 startups from around the world, regardless of their stages, will be able to participate in the Sony Network Communications incubator.
It will include sessions from global VC firms and web3 companies, as well as business and technology strategy sessions.
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Sony Network Communications, a subsidiary of Sony Group, has teamed up with multi-chain smart contract network Astar to launch a web3 incubation program.
According to a press release, the incubation program will be hosted by Startale Labs, a Singapore-based company that develops dApps and infrastructure and provides business consulting services based on its expertise in multi-chain protocol development.
Running from mid-March to mid-June this year, the program will incubate web3 startups from around the world regardless of their stages. It will include sessions from global web3 companies and VC firms, such as Dragonfly and Fenbushi Capital, as well as business and technology strategy sessions leveraging Astar’s development, past consulting, and R&D business expertise.
Through the incubation program, participating startups can have direct connections and feedback with world-class web3 companies such as Web3 Foundation, Polkadot, and Alchemy. Sony may also consider investing in promising startups in the program.
During the application period running from Feb 17 to Mar 6, Sony will decide on 10–15 cohorts to be accepted into the program, culminating in a demo day on Jun 18 held at Sony Group Corporation Headquarters in Tokyo during Japan Blockchain Week. About 200 people, including companies and investors participating in the incubation program, will attend.
“We are pleased to launch the web3 incubation program with Sony Network Communications, an operating company of the Sony Group, which has been involved in the NFT sector and other web3 initiatives within the Group. We hope to share the knowledge and resources of both companies to provide value to the participants selected for the program and create new use cases and projects,” said Sota Watanabe, CEO of Startale Labs.
Sony and its subsidiaries have been pushing into the web3 space over the past year. Last April, Sony Network Communications partnered with digital creative studio Sun Asterisk to launch a business in Singapore offering contract development and consultancy services on NFT-related projects.
Sony Music, another subsidiary of Sony Group, backed NFT marketplace MakersPlace in a $30 million funding round. Sony Group also invested $250 million in Epic Games’ $2 billion fundraise for its metaverse initiatives.
Sony has also teamed up with Theta to launch 3D NFTs compatible with Sony’s Spatial Reality Device (SRD). In November 2022, Sony PlayStation filed a patent that uses blockchain technology and NFTs to track in-game assets. That same month, the Japanese multinational conglomerate also unveiled Mocopi, a mobile motion capture kit that allows anyone to create videos or operate avatars in real-time with metaverse apps like VR chat.
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