Hyy.pe Raises $2 Mn Funding Led By Elevation Capital The funds will be used to scale the platform, strengthen the product and grow the team
Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.
You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.
Hyy.pe, a social platform for NFT communities, on Tuesday, announced to have raised $2 million in its latest funding round led by Elevation Capital. The round also saw participation from several leading angel investors, including Ryan Adams and David Hoffman (Bankless), Santiago Roel Santos (Ro Capital), Matt Kalish (DraftKings), Cuy Sheffield (Visa), and Farid Ahsan (ShareChat).
Previously, the company had raised $1.5 million from Electric Capital.
"With Hyy.pe, a user can curate their NFT collection to serve as a main medium of self-expression. It really pushes forward the idea that collectively the media you own, in the form of NFTs, can establish your individuality on the internet and help you connect deeper with communities. Hyy.pe wants to be a cohesive space for a million communities," said Supriyo Roy, co-founder, Hyy.pe.
Hyy.pe is building a platform for NFT communities to connect, share stories, and collaboratively build their history. For instance, users will be able to share what made them buy a certain NFT, the collectible's origin story or collaborate on derived artwork. While the owners may change, those stories will continue living with the NFT. The company plans to launch with 13 popular collections initially—including CryptoPunks, Bored Apes, Cool Cats, Avastars, Loot, and Punk Comics—before expanding to include all the collections for everyone.
Hyy.pe was founded in 2021 by Supriyo Roy and Scott Lewis. At present, most NFT communities are spread across existing social media platforms like Twitter and Discord.
"I don't like posting pictures of myself, but I still want people to "know" me. The art I like speaks to me because it addresses the points at which I connect to current and past cultural zeitgeists. That version of me is something I want to share," shared Scott Lewis, co-founder, Hyy.pe.
Hyy.pe's "first build" (version sub-zero) will allow NFT holders to link their holdings on the platform, disclose their reason to buy, and publish "lores" around the NFT. As an "invite-only" platform currently, Hyy.pe will be accessible to holders of some of the most popular NFT communities. The company's vision is to build the platform into a complete marketplace for all primary and secondary transactions of NFTs.
"NFTs are very inherently social. The value of NFT is bolstered by the stories, interactions, derivatives, and provenance around them. We are at the cusp of new forms of social interactions and community formation that NFTs will enable. We are thrilled to partner with Supriyo and Scott to build such a social network," added Vaas Bhaskar, principal, Elevation Capital.
Hyy.pe plans to launch its version sub-zero on October 27, 2021 with 13 NFT collections, including CryptoPunks, Bored Apes, Cool Cats, Avastars, and Loot. The company will continue to hire product engineers to strengthen the platform by engaging directly with the communities and integrating feedback on user experience.
