Aptos Foundation and OKX Ventures have announced the launch of a $10 million accelerator fund to support projects building on the Aptos blockchain. This initiative aims to foster growth in areas including infrastructure, decentralized finance (DeFi), real-world assets (RWA), gaming, social applications, and artificial intelligence.

Jeff Ren, a partner at OKX Ventures, commented on the announcement: “As we witness the next wave of adoption – spurred not only by the Ethereum and Bitcoin networks but beyond – we’re enthusiastic about the prospect of Aptos becoming a major player in the blockchain space.”

OKX and Aptos Launch $10 Million Blockchain Accelerator

$10M Blockchain Accelerator

The fund will be used to develop an accelerator program, operated in partnership with Ankaa and intended to bolster the growth of quality projects and applications built on Aptos - a scalable Layer 1 Proof-of-Stake (PoS) blockchain that uses the Move programming language to make on-chain transactions more reliable, easier-to-use, and secure. The accelerator will provide selected Aptos ecosystem projects with venture support, focused mentorship, go-to-market exposure, and access to the extensive network of experts from the team, Ankaa and Aptos Foundation combined.

Bashar Lazaar, Aptos’ head of grants and ecosystem, commented: “The team’s commitment to fostering a conducive environment for innovation and growth aligns perfectly with our vision for Aptos. We’re excited to leverage their insights and resources to further foster the development of the Aptos ecosystem, and get some incredible projects off the ground.”

Key Focus Areas and Final Thoughts

A panel of judges from the Aptos Foundation, the investment arm OKX Ventures and Ankaa teams will kick off the program by choosing five promising projects to include in this September’s inaugural accelerator cohort. Ankaa will serve as the initial investor in accepted projects and run the accelerator’s daily operations. The accelerator’s key focus areas will initially include, but are not limited to, infrastructure, DeFi, RWA, gaming, social, AI, and other dApps critical to the growth and evolution of the Aptos ecosystem and web3 in general.

Over the past two years, OKX Ventures has invested in over 300 projects across five continents with a fund size of approximately USD $1 billion, covering almost all investment tracks. Through the partnership with Aptos Foundation, OKX Ventures aims to double down its support and exploration of cutting-edge blockchain innovation and high-quality projects, committing to driving long-term value for the ecosystem. Projects interested in participating are encouraged to apply in August, with the program set to start in September.