Outlier Ventures Announces First Cohort for Zero Knowledge Base Camp

• The Zero Knowledge Base Camp focuses on innovating infrastructure, scaling and privacy in the ZK space. 
• Ecosystem Partners include Aleo, Aztec, Immutable, Nethermind, Polygon, Starkware and zkSync and a network of over 400 mentors to support founders across all areas critical to the success of ZK projects.

LONDON, U.K. 2023 – Outlier Ventures, the leading global Web3 accelerator and founder community, has announced the first cohort for its Zero Knowledge (ZK) Base Camp accelerator program. Representing some of the most promising Web3 start-ups, the selected companies are using ZKproofs to innovate infrastructure, scaling and privacy. 

Dedicated to facilitating a new wave of ZK applications, Outlier Ventures’ inaugural ZK Base Camp will provide tailored mentorship, networking and support from over 400 best-in-class mentors and ecosystem partner organisations, including Aleo, Aztec, ImmutableX, NetherMind, Polygon and zkSync. 

The cohort of program participants is focused on driving the adoption of ZK technology, leveraging verifiable computation to scale, and bringing privacy and identity to Web3. They include zkSig, Radius, Syndr, Truffles, DataHive and vSelf. 

As the world of business begins to adopt blockchain technology, ZK Proofs will greatly help onboard the next billion users to Web3. With strong potential for global Web3 adoption, ZK technology (particularly ZK-powered authentication, identity, and compliance) helps expand the use-cases of blockchain to enable the convergence of Web3, Web2, and the physical world. 

Benjamin Meyer, Chief Product Officer, Outlier Ventures, said: 

“Though ZK Proofs are a burgeoning technology, advancements such as SNARKS, STARKS & zkEVMs (and over $1.2 billion in ecosystem funds committed to ZK grants, hackathons and accelerators) are paving the way for a new wave of applications built with ZK Proofs. As with any nascent industry, mentorship and education is crucial. Partnering with some of the greatest organisations in the industry, our accelerator will support founders across areas critical to the success of early-stage ZK projects, from business models, project refinements, legal structuring and token model designs, to making industry connections.”

Elliot Leimer, Program Manager, Outlier Ventures, commented:

“We are hugely excited to welcome our first cohort of start-ups to our inaugural ZK Base Camp program. Outlier Ventures is committed to supporting a Web3 ecosystem of entrepreneurs, developers and creators to achieve their vision. This accelerator will help the ZK Proof ecosystem scale globally and access capital from around the world.”

Meet the first cohort:

vSelf (UK) – Web3 identity platform for growth hacking and community engagement

vSelf is an Identity-as-a-Service platform that creates a trustful interaction channel between organisations and their customers and helps to increase effectiveness of digital marketing tools. Our solution includes a Web3 studio, which allows companies to issue and manage collections of digital certificates (SBTs and verifiable credentials), and an identity application for users to create their Web3 personas.

Syndr (IN) – 1st Institutional-grade crypto Options & Futures exchange powered by an app-specific rollup

Syndr enables traders to trade Options, Perpetuals & Futures on the same platform without compromises, combining a high-performance orderbook with robust cross-margining for high capital efficiency. The all-in-one decentralized derivatives exchange is powered by an app-specific layer-3 rollup & supports native block-trading for institutional clients.

Truffles (SG) – Truffles is a fraud-resistant private NFT invoice tracking platform for enterprise remittances. 

Money works faster on Truffles Neo-banking platform for comprehensive international banking, smart NFT invoicing and convenient fiat-crypto on/off ramp.

Radius (KR) .. The Rollup Sequencing Layer for a new MEV economy

Radius is fixing the centralization of transaction ordering, offering a powerful MEV-resistant, cost-saving protocol enabled by zero-knowledge proof.

Tailored to each start-up, the remote 12-week program will provide direct access to a rich network of investors, Web3 operators, and experts on token, product, legal and fundraising. The accelerator will cover topics including: hardware improvements, simplified proof generators, gaming and game tooling, DeFi and cross-chain bridges, identity and reputation, and data and financial privacy.

For more information, please visit https://outlierventures.io/zero-knowledge-base-camp/

Media Contact:

Outlier Ventures

Nicola Staines

Head of Communications nicola.staines@outlierventures.io