June 2, 2024
Pi Squared, a company aiming to revolutionize verifiable computing through zero-knowledge technology, has secured $12.5 million in a seed funding round. Led by Polychain Capital, the round saw participation from prominent investors including ABCDE, Bloccelerate, Generative Ventures, Robot Ventures, Samsung Next, and angel investors like Justin Drake (Ethereum Foundation) and Sreeram Kanaan (EigenLayer).
Project | Latest Raise | Latest Raise | Stage | Total Raise | Lead Investor | Category |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pi Squared | June 2, 2024 | $12.5M | Seed | $12.5M | Polychain Capital | ZK |
This influx of capital will fuel the development and launch of Pi Squared's products. Their initial offering, the "Universal Settlement Layer," settles blockchain transactions – referred to as "claims" – using any programming language, according to Grigore Rosu, CEO of Pi Squared. Rosu, a computer science professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, leveraged his academic expertise to lay the foundation for Pi Squared.
Beyond the Universal Settlement Layer, Pi Squared is also building a "Universal ZK Circuit." This utilizes zero-knowledge proofs to enable a paradigm shift: "trustless remote computing, AI, and interoperable smart contracts for any blockchain or dApp". The company claims their technology creates "a universal and disarmingly small ZK circuit" that verifies the integrity of mathematical proofs. This translates to verifiable computing correctness guarantees across all programming languages and virtual machines, directly derived from their formal semantics, without the need for translation to a common language or platform.
While Pi Squared is currently in the proof-of-concept phase, Rosu anticipates a testnet launch by the end of 2024. This development signifies a significant step towards a future where secure and verifiable computing becomes a reality across the blockchain ecosystem.
About Pi Squared
Pi Squared harnesses zero-knowledge (ZK) technology in a fundamentally unique and correct-by-construction manner. This allows a universally applicable, surprisingly compact ZK circuit to offer verifiable computing correctness guarantees to all languages and virtual machines alike without requiring any translation to a common language, virtual machine (VM), or instruction set architecture (ISA).
Pi Squared aims to create a Universal Settlement Layer (USL) that simplifies blockchain/language/application interoperability and completely eliminates the need for traditional, often error-prone language implementations, such as compilers, transpilers, or interpreters. Pi Squared's USL is grounded in recent advancements in ZK technology, formal semantics, and logic reasoning techniques.
Pi Squared is spearheaded by UIUC professor Grigore Rosu, founder of the K framework and Runtime Verification. The PI Squared team comprises researchers and founders with successful track records in formal methods, blockchain, and AI/ML.
Website: https://pi2.network/
X Account: https://x.com/Pi_Squared_Pi2
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About Investors
Investor: Polychain Capital
Description: Polychain Capital is an American investment firm based in San Francisco, California. Founded in 2016 by Olaf Carlson-Wee, the company focuses on investments related to cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.
Polychain manages actively managed portfolios of blockchain-based digital assets, leveraging software to create, issue, and transmit these assets. Notable investors in Polychain include Andreessen Horowitz, Sequoia Capital, Union Square Ventures, and Founders Fund. The firm has invested in companies such as Coinbase, Kik Messenger, and Tezos. While they considered an initial public offering (IPO) in 2018, they ultimately decided not to proceed. Polychain’s assets fluctuated significantly due to market dynamics, but their focus remains on innovative projects within the crypto space.
Location: San Francisco
Website: https://polychain.capital/
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