O(1) Labs raises $15M to create a "succinct blockchain"

Layer 1s • April 4, 2019, 1:26PM EDT

O(1) Labs the team behind the Coda protocol has raised a new round of financing from investors including Accomplice, Coinbase Ventures, Paradigm, and General Catalyst. O(1) Labs announced the Coda protocol in May 2018 and subsequently raised a $3.5 million seed round. Today, the team announced an additional $15 million in new funding to build out its zero knowledge proof-backed blockchain.

According to O(1) Labs, the Coda protocol leverages zero knowledge proofs, the technology used by the likes of Zcash, to substitute a "traditional blockchain for a tiny, portable cryptographic proof, about the size of a few tweets." This cryptographic method enables Coda's blockchain to be small enough that it can be used and verified from websites and mobile devices.

"Through its tiny blockchain, Coda will make it possible to easily develop wide-reaching applications while being governed and validated by its users. We hope this makes a step towards allowing people to have more access and usability from a cryptocurrency," O(1) Labs' co-founder, Evan Shapiro, said in a statement.

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Steven Zheng is a researcher for The Block. He joined The Block in August 2018. Steven graduated from St. John’s University with a degree in economics. Previously, he covered blockchain and crypto at Radicle, a startup analytics firm. He also had brief stints at Cheddar, a media startup, and Bowery Capital, a venture capital firm. He owns bitcoin. Follow Steven on Twitter at: @Dogetoshi