Exclusive

SendingNetwork, a decentralized physical infrastructure network (DePIN) project focused on web3 communications, has raised $7.5 million in a seed extension funding round.

Several investors joined the round, including Nomad Capital, Symbolic Capital, Web3.com Ventures, Galxe, SWC Global, Balaji Srinivasan and Yield Guild Games co-founder Gabby Dizon, SendingNetwork said Tuesday.

The round was structured as a simple agreement for future equity (SAFE) and closed last October, Mason Yang, co-founder of SendingNetwork, told The Block. He declined to comment on valuation.

The seed extension round brings SendingNetwork's total funding to $20 million following a $12.5 million seed round early last year.

What is SendingNetwork?

SendingNetwork is a DePIN project that aims to decentralize communications by building a new transmission control protocol/internet protocol (TCP/IP) stack. TCP/IP is a set of protocols that govern communication on the internet, facilitating data transmission between devices.

"As we rebuild the TCP/IP stack, integrating it with application layer protocols like XMPP/SMTP/HTTP/FTP but starting from web3 XMPP [extensible messaging and presence protocol], this opens up numerous possibilities, including enhanced streaming, improved CDN [content delivery network] performance, and faster decentralized storage retrieval," Yang said.

In all, SendingNetwork aims to deliver a communication experience that's more efficient, secure and flexible for both developers and users. It is, for instance, developing a "decentralized router" that it says will replace IP addresses with wallet addresses.

Going from web2 to web3

Before founding SendingNetwork in 2022, Yang and his co-founder Joeyz Yu built MoboTap, the company behind the internet browser Dolphin, one of the earliest Android browsers, which counts over 200 million users globally. Dolphin was majority acquired by Nasdaq-listed ChangYou.com in 2014 for $91 million.

After the acquisition of Dolphin, Yang and Yu shifted their focus to web3 in 2022, "inspired by the rise of Ethereum and reflecting on the challenges faced during Dolphin browser's delisting," Yang said. Google delisted Dolphin from the app store in 2022, citing API access violations. However, user outcry led to Dolphin's reinstatement, Yang said, adding that this experience taught him how important community support is and strengthened his belief in web3's decentralization promise.

SendingNetwork is being built on Linea, Consensys' Ethereum Layer 2 blockchain, but it will technically support all Ethereum virtual machine-compatible chains, Yang said.

SendingNetwork is also building SendingMe, a decentralized application that will combine chatting, socializing and trading, giving users complete control over their social layer, Yang said.

SendingNetwork launch and plans

SendingNetwork is expected to launch several testnets this year and mainnet in the first quarter of 2025.

There are currently over 30 people working for SendingNetwork, and it looks to expand the team by hiring more developers, Yang said.

The web3 communications vertical is still in its "very early stages," Yang said, adding that it doesn't consider its competitors as rivals but "only friends or allies" and that one such ally is XMTP Labs, which is building a decentralized communication protocol.

SendingNetwork's real competitors are "the giants of web2, who control massive user bases, data, computing power, and capital. We are just taking our first steps to shake them up," Yang said.