Saga has completed a $5 million funding round led by Placeholder - a venture capital firm that invests in decentralized protocols and web3 services. The layer-1 protocol and ecosystem developer has now raised $13.5 million in total to date. The extended seed round also saw participation from Longhash Ventures, Com2uS, Dispersion Capital, Red Beard Ventures, Tykhe Ventures, and AVID3, among others. Placeholder, 

According to the announcement, Saga will use the funds to continue growing its team and building its community and ecosystem through strategic partnerships, as well as its Innovator Program. The company already has 295 projects building on its protocol and anticipates over 300 when the Saga Mainnet launches in early 2024. The protocol also boasts partnerships with some of the leading web3 companies including Polygon, Avalanche and Celestia, positioning itself strategically for accelerated growth.

Saga recently unveiled its Pegasus incentivized testnet. This release marked the initial stage in Saga's carefully planned roadmap leading to the Saga Protocol V1 Mainnet, scheduled for an early 2024 launch. Saga's Pegasus testnet offers a glimpse into the potential of blockchain technology in the gaming industry. Initially introduced in August at the Saga Multiverse Summit, Pegasus has undergone rapid development to meet the demands of both developers and partners.

Central to the Saga Protocol is a stack of automated, high-performance, gasless, interoperable, and customizable chains called Chainlets. The Saga Chainlet Realm, the primary realm, will soon be joined by Realms for partners like Ethereum, Polygon, Avalanche, Celestia, and XPLA. The launch of Pegasus introduces configurable Realms from the outset.

Saga’s vision is to unblock developers from the high barriers to successfully building in web3. We're thrilled to have Placeholder lead this round, as they, along with our other amazing investors, are helping to empower and accelerate our support of projects with the Integrated Stack - what developers have been waiting for to easily create consumer apps for broad adoption.

Rebecca Liao, Co-founder & CEO of Saga.

Following the successful launch of its Incentivized Testnet (ITN), Pegasus, Saga has achieved impressive metrics. Pegasus logged over 150,000 transactions and opened 30,000 wallets within two weeks. Airdrops of Saga tokens are planned for Pegasus participants, showcasing Saga's commitment to community engagement and performance rewards. It's important to note that the token airdrop will not be available to U.S. persons, in adherence to regulatory guidelines. Detailed terms and conditions for participation will be provided as part of the claims process, ensuring a transparent and compliant distribution.

As the Saga protocol evolves and the web3 gaming landscape expands, the launch of Pegasus stands as a milestone for the San Francisco-based company. As Saga continues to explore the possibilities of blockchain technology, the full-featured Saga Protocol V1 Mainnet, set for a 2024 release, provides a promising future for web3 gamers and developers alike.

We expect blockchain architectures in the coming years to be much more reminiscent of cloud architectures, with Saga purpose-built to help usher in that future. On-demand blockspace provisioning, paired with cutting-edge validator orchestration, sets Saga up to provide blockspace as it's needed in a horizontal, scale-out fashion akin to the cloud environments of today. The Saga team has roots going back to the earliest days of Cosmos, alongside power players in research, engineering, and politics, setting Saga up to lead a major movement within web3.

Chris Burniske, Partner at Placeholder.