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SOSV announces spinout of the dlab startup program as a standalone fund
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Ned Desmond
Ned Desmond
January 10, 2023

After four years of building a strong portfolio of early stage startups focused on infrastructure for Web3, SOSV’s dlab startup development program has spun out as a standalone fund, effective January 1, 2023.

Former SOSV General Partner Shawn Broderick and Partner Nick Plante are the founding general partners of the newly launched dlab fund, and SOSV is pleased to be the anchor limited partner in the fund. The dlab news marks the first time SOSV has spun out an SOSV startup program to become a standalone fund. 

“Shawn and Nick have done a great job in backing pioneering blockchain companies that will really matter and side-stepping the nonsense,” said Sean O’Sullivan, SOSV Managing General Partner. “Blockchain, DeFi, and distributed apps have a wealth of applications where they provide fundamental value and will succeed. I’m proud of the dlab companies that will remain in the SOSV portfolio and I look forward to dlab earning great returns for all its limited partners.” 

The SOSV investments in dlab companies made to date remain part of SOSV’s portfolio. Broderick will continue to look after his legacy SOSV investments as an SOSV venture partner.

“After more than 4 years proving out dlab as part of SOSV, Nick and I are ecstatic to take things to the next level as an independent fund.”

Shawn Broderick, SOSV Venture Partner

In 2018, Broderick and Plante started working with founders delving into Web3, decentralization, and the blockchain. The goal was to find the earliest-stage startups that would build the infrastructure necessary to realize the vast ambitions of the Web3 universe. In 2019, SOSV launched the dlab startup development program, which offers capital and mentorship to carefully selected founders. 

Despite the swings endemic to the crypto side of blockchain, dlab’s Web3 thesis is proving out well. In the past four years, SOSV has invested in 23 dlab startups, including:

  • API3, building first-party oracles to bring data on-chain via trustless apps
  • Contango, creating a decentralized exchange for expirables without order books or liquidity pools
  • Composable Finance, engineering trustless cross-chain interoperability

As dlab took shape, SOSV also deepened its commitment to deep tech startups focused on “human and planetary health.” Although there are applications for blockchain technology in climate and health, SOSV and dlab decided that the best path for dlab’s continued success and growth was to become a standalone fund. 

“After more than 4 years proving out dlab as part of SOSV, Nick and I are ecstatic to take things to the next level as an independent fund,” said Broderick. “The promise of decentralization made possible via blockchain technologies represents a generational opportunity to create a more transparent, open, and participatory world.”

To learn more, contact dlab at dlab@dlab.vc.

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