Labrys and Collective Campus unveil Web3 accelerator

Blockchain development agency Labrys has partners with innovation consultancy and startup accelerator Collective Campus to launch Metarise, a Web3 venture fund and startup accelerator.

This Web3 venture fund will focus on bringing web3 projects to life across Asia Pacific.

Having run numerous web2 accelerators in partnership with brands such as Microsoft, Village Roadshow, Charter Hall, and Mills Oakley, Metarise’s ANZ Launchpad will be run in partnership with DAO Under - a community of Web3 enthusiasts from across Australia and Asia and Metavise - a Web3 agency helping traditional brands get into the metaverse.

The accelerator program, ANZ Launchpad, will be incubating two cohorts of web3 startups. Cohort 1 will focus on NFTs, the metaverse, and gaming, while cohort 2 will focus on DeFi, DAOs, and tooling startups.

The program will provide startups with education and coaching on market validation, project design, token economics and minting, community building, and more, and has recruited mentors and coaches from the likes of Dapper Labs, Harmony, Enjin, MintGate, and The Sandbox.

Lachlan Feeney, Founder and Executive Director of Labrys said, “Today is an extremely exciting day for not only Labrys, but everyone who - like us - is extremely excited about web3 and its potential.

“We’ve not even scratched the surface of the technology’s immense potential, but through initiatives like this we’re helping to turn theoretical potential into practical reality. We’re hugely privileged to be involved with so many leaders in the space, and can’t wait to help Australia establish itself as a true global leader.”

Despite the current market turmoil, Web3 is tipped to become a multi-trillion dollar industry by 2030, and Metarise co-founder Steve Glaveski said he sees the talent crisis in Web3 as a problem worth solving.

DAO Under’s Abhi Maran says, “DAO Under is excited to partner with Metarise in incubating the next generation of Aussie web3 startups. We've already seen large protocols emerge from Australia through Immutable and Synthetix. The timing is perfect for the next generation of builders to make their mark on the world and we want to help them do what they do best."

Glaveski said Metarise is using token economies and its accelerator model to differentiate itself from accelerator programs more broadly.

He said, “All of our accelerator contributors - startups, coaches, mentors, advisors, and so on - will receive our native token, which will give them exposure to our participating startup token pool, and a share in the upside. Web3 is at its core about aligning incentives in a way that better coordinates capital and resources towards common goals, and Metarise is true to that ethos.”

Since 2017, Metarise’s parent company Collective Campus has incubated and mentored 90 startups that have subsequently gone on to raise a combined US$185 million, at a combined portfolio valuation 3X greater than at program admission.

Earlier this year, it helped ASX-listed Creso Pharma navigate its way into the metaverse. It has also been the recipient of several Department of Infrastructure Entrepreneur Programme grants to support the development of Australia’s startup ecosystem.

Applications for the Launchpad open on May 16 for startups across Australia and New Zealand, and the first cohort is set to kick off in Q3.