Web3 growth in 2024: Over 100 startups have raised over $1 billion

Original author: SAFARY

Original translation: TechFlow

Web3 Growth Landscape: Interactive Map and Database

Insight Summary

• 101 Web3 Growth and Social Startups That Have Raised Over $1 Billion¹

• 23 startups raised $277 million in new funding since last year

• There aren’t many new Series A rounds; VCs are investing more in successful projects

• Attribution/analytics, loyalty, and social startups received the most new funding, accounting for 80% of funds raised across all 10 categories

• Messaging was the second most funded category at $245 million, behind Social and Publishers ($400 million), but the category only received $7 million in new funding.

• Ad Networks and Community Tools are the most crowded categories with 19 teams, followed by Messaging and Loyalty with 18 teams each.

• The loyalty category has shrunk dramatically from more than 40 teams in 2023 to 18 surviving teams today

• The 2023 breakout category “Recommendations and Referrals” has dropped from 17 teams to 9, with the 2 most funded teams closed

¹ Note: Not all of these rounds are public — more than 10 teams privately shared their funding details with us for inclusion in this report.

Introduction

• You can be right about where the next 10 years are going, but if you’re a few years early, you might not succeed. This is the story of those first two years.

The growth of the Web3 ecosystem seems inevitable — Web3 companies need to gain a deep understanding of their users, engage deeply, and attract new users. Today, more than 160 companies are building the future of this emerging digital media industry, and 101 startups have raised nearly $1 billion in funding.

This report takes a deep dive into this rapidly evolving industry, providing a comprehensive overview of the most promising Web3 growth companies. It includes both publicly announced and privately shared funding data, providing a detailed snapshot of where the industry is today.

In many ways, the Web3 growth industry parallels the rise and fall of digital marketing in the 2010s. The MarTech space has expanded dramatically, from 150 companies in 2011 to over 14,000 in 2024.

Chief MarTech’s Marketing Technology Landscape in 2024 ( Source )

But as the 2020s began, privacy regulations like GDPR and CCPA disrupted this carefully constructed ecosystem. It was during this era that Web3 emerged as a more community- and privacy-focused marketing environment. Consumers began interacting on “dark social” channels like Discord, Telegram, and Reddit, which were notoriously difficult to track. Suddenly, marketers could no longer rely on traditional targeting methods, which led to the rise of new companies aiming to rebuild our digital media landscape.

The first two years of this new digital media industry were challenging. Most companies faced difficulties and more than half did not survive. We will examine why certain categories failed to gain traction and what we expect for the 2024-2025 cycle.

This report builds on the lessons learned from last year’s analysis , highlighting the continued evolution of the Web3 growth ecosystem and the innovative companies driving it.

About Safary

Safary is the home for Web3 growth leaders. Our platform enables the best teams to unlock deep user insights and build more direct relationships with their users; our community provides the knowledge and networks needed to succeed.

We are proud to help evangelize the Web3 growth ecosystem by connecting the best growth leaders in crypto and sharing their insights with the wider industry.

Category Insights

This market map includes 160+ teams building Web3 growth and social platforms, from mission to analytics, attribution, CRM, loyalty, publishers, and more

Ad Network

Note: Each category is divided into: Definition → Challenge → Opportunity

Ad networks connect publishers and advertisers and simplify the ad buying process. They aggregate ad space from multiple publishers and provide advertisers with a single platform for ad placement.

There are currently 19 ad networks, 9 of which have raised a total of $51 million:

While Web3 ad networks have significant potential, they face significant challenges in navigating the competition and acquiring quality publishers:

1. Competition for publishers and advertisers

Although we are still in the early stages, competition will be fierce. New players such as Relayer and Spindl are entering the market to compete with category leaders such as Coinzilla and Hyperlab.

New networks must solve the classic market dilemma – creating demand (low-cost conversions for advertisers) and acquiring supply (paying publishers for more ad inventory).

To compete, they may offer guarantees to publishers and attract advertisers through a cost-per-action (CPA) model, where they pay only when a user completes a desired conversion event.

Advertisers like the CPA model because it guarantees results, but publishers are unhappy with it because they prefer to pay for the traffic they generate rather than for the users that pass through their funnel. This forces new ad networks to take all the risk, and the longer it takes to build a marketplace, the faster they run out of capital.

While this is a tough situation for new ad networks, increased competition is great news for publishers and advertisers who take advantage of this channel early on!

2. Unlock high-quality publishers

In Web2, publishers relied on advertising as their primary source of revenue, so the value exchange was simple — revenue for attention. However, leading publishers in Web3 (e.g., Wallet, Opensea, Uniswap) have alternative revenue models and are generally unfavorable to advertising. Category winners need to provide them with an attractive value proposition to change this mentality.

These challenges present a unique opportunity — to make the CPA model work for publishers, which is unique in Web3, even if it is still theoretical at this point.

Imagine your favorite crypto media site like Blockworks or Messari, which shares news and research about trading data. If they require a wallet login, they could embed a Frame-like widget that lets you buy the tokens you’re reading without leaving the article.

This setup incentivizes publishers to share the risk, since conversions happen on their sites. It also benefits advertisers, especially in the DeFi space, who may not need users to visit their sites to generate revenue.

In this arrangement, publishers provide ad space, ad networks provide embedded ad units, and decentralized exchanges (DEXs) provide trading, with all three receiving a revenue share from the trading volume generated.

This approach can be extended to any wallet-aware channel beyond media sites, such as Discord, Telegram, or other decentralized applications (dapps) with a large user base!

Publishers and Social

Note: Each category is divided into: Definition → Challenge → Opportunity

Publishers and social platforms aggregate Web3 creators and information in specific fields.

This category includes 32 platforms: 20 social platforms (11 raised $375 million) and 12 publishers (8 raised $25 million), with a total of $400 million raised, of which $180 million was new funding:

Web3 social faces user retention issues

New social apps face the challenge of convincing users that they can persist, making the effort of building a presence worthwhile. While tokens have helped attract crypto natives and facilitated the launch of networks, long-term retention relies on these platforms providing real value beyond mere speculation.

These platforms have the potential to become the largest crypto publishers (see the section on aligned incentives for ad networks)

If they can create new, differentiated ways to interact online, they could become major hubs for on-chain communities. This would mark a shift away from platforms like Twitter, where on-chain natives interact through games, streaming platforms, and social apps. Wherever users gather, there are opportunities for growth — not just for crypto-native applications, but for the ecosystem as a whole by extension.

Attribution and analytics

Note: Each category is divided into: Definition → Challenge → Opportunity

Attribution Analytics aggregates on-chain, in-app, and social data to provide detailed insights into user profiles and consumer behavior.

There are now 14 Attribution Analytics companies with a total of $70 million in funding, including $25 million in new funding:

Despite the potential of on-chain analytics and attribution platforms, they face challenges in fully realizing their potential:

1. Pure on-chain analysis is interesting but not actionable enough for growth leaders

In Wave 1 (2022-2023), the need for generalized Web3 growth analytics was largely negated, as evidenced by the pivots of many companies. Helika pivoted to attribution and focused on gaming, Persona became an ad network, Convrt pivoted to B2B CRM, Raleon exited Web3 to pivot to AI, and others struggled to gain market share.

2. Multi-channel acquisition and performance marketing are still immature

For attribution to be effective in crypto marketing, companies need to be running multi-channel strategies simultaneously (e.g., Twitter, blogs, ads, referrals, and tasks). However, most companies don’t operate this way. Instead, they jump from channel to channel — running tasks one month, referral programs the next, and then ad campaigns — with little overlap in these efforts. This makes apples-to-apples comparisons difficult, limiting the effectiveness of attribution.

• The long-awaited Web3 growth capabilities are finally here

Teams can now build rich user profiles by combining first-party data with on-chain identity, social graph, and wallet analytics. The best teams are building direct relationships with their users. No longer is it about tracking nothing and hoping that users keep coming back. Creating a unified customer data layer to get a comprehensive 360° view of on-chain users is becoming the norm.

Alliance and Referral

Note: Each category is divided into: Definition → Challenge → Opportunity

Affiliate and referral platforms simplify discovery, tracking, and rewards for B2B partners and B2C advocates. While new Web3 products often use waitlists to drive referrals, “referrals” usually refer to active users who actively refer their friends.

There are currently 9 affiliate and referral companies, 5 of which have raised around $7 million in funding — about half of what they raised last year:

Affiliates Referrals, once the fastest growing category in 2023, has seen significant consolidation. The two most well-funded companies, Chainvine and Qwestive, ceased operations and returned funds in 2023. We believe that Web3 referral platforms face several key challenges:

1. Referrals require an established and growing user base to be effective

Referrals can bring in the highest quality users for your product, but they rely on having an initial user base to drive further growth.

For example, assuming an existing user base of 500 real users (a common situation for many DApps):

• Typically, 2% to 30% of users are likely to refer a friend. At a 15% referral rate, 75 of these 500 users are likely to make a referral.

• If each referrer brings 3 friends, and 30% of them convert, this will generate 68 new users.

2. Web3 recommendations are not a “set it and forget it” channel

While gaining 68 new users (+13%) from the initial referral program may have an impact, challenges will arise in maintaining momentum.

If you acquire 100 new users per month, referrals might only add 13 users, making it hard to justify even modest platform spend. To keep the plan attractive, you need to innovate constantly, and from a platform perspective, that means frequently adjusting customers’ plans — which limits the ability to scale.

3. Rewards are often not generous enough for Web3 users

The promise of Web3 referrals is that referrals can earn more by sharing revenue with the protocol. For example, referrals might earn 25% of the referral’s transaction fees or a fee based on transaction volume.

In practice, most referral rewards are disappointing, often lower than their Web2 counterparts. For example, Hashflow (decentralized exchange) launched a referral program that offers 1 ARB ($0.80) per $1,000 traded by the referee. If a friend trades $10,000 on Hashflow, you will only earn $8. No wonder evangelists still mention GMXs successful referral program in April 2022.

This is not to say that Web3 referral platforms cannot succeed, but at the current scale of crypto, they face significant challenges. DApps need to acquire thousands of new users per month to generate enough transaction volume to justify the investment in referrals as a growth channel.

As with any incentive program, success depends on targeting the right user groups and providing rewards meaningful enough to drive action. Rather than using the referral program as a broad user acquisition strategy and giving small rewards, it is better to focus on high-quality users of the protocol and provide more generous incentives. These users are more likely to bring in equally valuable users, thereby increasing the quality and impact of the entire program.

Task

Note: Each category is divided into: Definition → Challenge → Opportunity

Task platforms act as a marketplace for engagement, connecting a network of Web3 users with incentives provided by companies to complete specific actions.

There are currently 12 mission platforms (down from 18 in 2023), 9 of which have raised a total of $103M, including $15M in new funding driven by Layer 3’s Series A:

Missions were once effective at boosting metrics through airdrops and social attention, but these strategies are falling out of favor as the market matures.

These strategies are great for driving short-term engagement and quickly onboarding users. However, the industry is now more focused on real user engagement and building lasting communities. This shift reflects the growing emphasis on long-term value and real engagement, leading to the rebranding and evolution of task platforms.

Historically, task platforms have been closely tied to the points metaverse, with users accumulating points primarily by completing tasks, often with the ultimate goal of receiving an airdrop. As the effectiveness of airdrop farms wanes, reliance on points alone no longer sustains user interest or platform growth. The challenge is to move beyond this superficial engagement and provide something truly valuable — something that keeps users coming back because they truly feel valued, not just because of the promise of points or a potential airdrop.

The mission platform will evolve into an incentive experimentation platform

What’s old is new again — tasks are shifting from simple “click and collect” tasks to ongoing dynamic engagement, connecting traditional loyalty programs with on-chain actions. The platforms that succeed will be those that continually innovate on the “do X, get Y” incentives. They’ll need to design new formats, build the features needed to support them, roll them out to their teams, and immediately start working on the next project. Essentially, they’ll become platforms for experimentation — Web3 is too dynamic to be content with that.

Loyalty

Loyalty programs increase customer satisfaction through rewards such as discounts, access and experiences, while driving repeat purchases and long-term retention.

There are currently 18 loyalty platforms (down from over 40 in 2023). 12 of them have raised a total of $88 million, with $30 million in new funding, mainly thanks to Blackbird’s $24 million Series A:

Web2 brands mostly abandoned crypto in 2023, and with it went growth

Many loyalty platforms have either shut down or pivoted to non-crypto businesses, which is not surprising since this category is heavily focused on Web2. These companies have found it easier to adjust their products without changing their target customers. Interestingly, most of this pivot has occurred in the last 6-9 months, not at the beginning of the bear market.

Notable exits include Co:Create (which raised $25 million) and Hang (which raised $16 million). These transitions make sense — rather than chasing Web2 brands to create innovative experiences, many companies are choosing to build consumer experiences with their own technology, with the potential to move toward B2B infrastructure in the future.

With the increase in data privacy regulations and the rise of omnichannel consumer experiences (online, offline and on-chain), there is a growing need for a unified data layer, which is uniquely enabled by blockchain technology.

Clearly, everything will become a transaction, though not necessarily a monetary one. As data is generated on-chain, brands will securely access increasingly rich user profiles. These profiles will combine on-chain social behavior and transactions with first-party online and offline data to create the ultimate treasure trove of data for large brands. This data will enable brands to create highly targeted audiences, driving repeat purchases and long-term loyalty.

Community Tools

Community platforms provide tools to manage communities, track engagement, and provide analytics to enhance collaboration, member retention, content creation, and growth.

There are currently 19 community tool companies, 10 of which have raised a total of $87 million:

Challenges faced by communities lacking a business model and the difficulty of tracking revenue impact

Community tool companies face significant obstacles, primarily due to two issues. First, many communities lack a sustainable business model, making it difficult to invest in professional tools. Second, it is difficult to measure how communities contribute directly to revenue. While communities can drive brand loyalty and advocacy, translating these benefits into clear financial results remains complex. These challenges make it difficult for community tool companies to prove their value and grow in the market.

Redefining community: from long-term full-funnel engagement to deep short-term group experiences

Web3 community tool companies have the opportunity to redefine what community means. Instead of focusing on traditional large-scale communities, they can leverage blockchain technology to create dynamic on-chain group chats and short-lived experiences with integrated financial transactions. This approach allows for meaningful and measurable results without the need for a full funnel. By prioritizing value-driven, interactive, and financially intertwined communities, Web3 tool companies can explore new engagement and growth models, paving the way for transformative change in the digital landscape.

Messaging

The Web3 Messaging Platform is a protocol-level communication network that supports cross-chain messaging and notifications between dapps, wallets, services, and on-chain communities.

There are currently 15 messaging platforms (down from 24 in 2023), 11 of which have raised a total of $240M, but only $7.5M of new funding came from Sending Labs’ expansion in February:

Message delivery to a wallet is ineffective unless the message reaches a location frequented by the user.

Web3 messaging platforms face a dilemma because messages sent to a wallet are meaningless if the user can’t see them. Unlike traditional messaging applications that centralize communication in a user-friendly interface, many Web3 messaging protocols lack a reliable destination where users can consistently see messages. This gap means that even when messages are sent, they are often ignored, weakening the effectiveness of communication. To succeed, Web3 messaging platforms need to create or integrate with an ecosystem where users actively participate, ensuring messages are seen and acted upon.

Web3 social apps could become the messaging layer for wallets

None of the existing messaging platforms may succeed. Instead, Web3 social applications that integrate a messaging layer, such as Farcaster, Lens, and DeBank, may take the lead. These platforms allow messaging to wallets where users actually spend their time on the chain, making communication more efficient and relevant.

Customer Relationship Management and Market Entry Strategy

Web3 Customer Relationship Management System (CRM) helps teams manage and analyze customer interactions, primarily using on-chain data to create personalized targeted marketing campaigns.

There are currently 6 CRMs (down from 20 in 2023) with a total funding of $24M:

On-chain data alone is not enough for B2C CRM to thrive

All Web3 CRMs were initially targeted at B2C companies (except 3RM), aiming to help them understand their on-chain holders and community members. However, it is clear that this targeted data is more in demand in the B2B space.

The crypto ecosystem is primarily comprised of B2B companies, providing a larger and underserved market for Web3 CRM

B2B companies are in urgent need of leveraging on-chain data to qualify target companies, while also leveraging non-traditional channels from a Web2 perspective (e.g. Twitter and Telegram) to reach these companies. This shift presents a significant opportunity for Web3 CRM to cater to this historically neglected market.

Marketing Agency

Web3 Growth Agency provides strategic advice and deploys growth strategies for blockchain projects

There are currently 15 marketing agencies (down from 32 in 2023), all of which are self-funded:

Selling marketing services to a technology team that doesn’t believe in marketing is challenging

The market for agencies is becoming increasingly dynamic, with many new players emerging. A wave of smaller agencies has entered the market, with many experienced growth leaders transitioning into consulting roles following layoffs. However, many of these consultants are struggling to maintain their business after six months. If in-house marketers are finding it difficult to hold down their positions, it’s even harder for individual consultants to make a persuasive case externally.

Nonetheless, there is a clear need for growth support from early-stage teams, especially those that need non-technical expertise to gain a competitive advantage in a saturated market. While the big budgets of mature projects from the last cycle have decreased, emerging teams are seeking support to differentiate themselves.

The market is currently leaning toward larger marketing agencies that can provide comprehensive services—including design, growth, and development—rather than individual operators. This integrated approach is more attractive to clients seeking powerful marketing solutions.

Continued consolidation will intensify as large agencies dominate the competition for marketing talent

Looking ahead, the marketing agency market is likely to consolidate further, with larger agencies dominating the competition for top talent. These well-resourced agencies are better able to offer multidisciplinary services that smaller specialized agencies and solo consultants often struggle to match. However, the best operators with unique expertise in niche areas such as token economics, brand strategy, and founder storytelling are likely to succeed by differentiating themselves and addressing market challenges.

What happens next?

So, what can we expect to happen in the next two-year cycle?

First, we expect to see significant innovation in incentive programs, including referral, task, and loyalty systems. Companies will experiment with new formats and mechanisms designed to create more engaging and rewarding user experiences.

Second, integrating social elements into messaging platforms will become critical. Web3 social applications may evolve into the primary messaging layer, forcing traditional Web3 messaging platforms to integrate social features to remain relevant.

Finally, we expect a wave of bold and unconventional ideas that will push the boundaries of what’s possible in Web3. While some concepts may seem far-fetched today, they may define the next phase of this rapidly evolving industry.

Web3 growth areas are on the brink of transformation, driven by innovation and a willingness to explore uncharted territory. Those who can adapt and lead in these areas will shape the future of digital interactions and media.

This article is sourced from the internet: Web3 growth in 2024: Over 100 startups have raised over $1 billion

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Ulysses, the protagonist of Homers epic poem The Odyssey, said to his crew members during his adventure: We must take such risks and go to distant places to see if adventure and knowledge can be transformed into flowers and fruits. The evolution of Web3 wallets is like Ulysses sailing adventure, exploring tomorrows digital world through continuous updates and technological leaps. Most of the early versions of Web3 wallets were dedicated to asset management and trading functions. Later, with the development of on-chain applications such as DeFi, more complex functions such as cross-chain transactions, smart contract execution and DApp integration were gradually added. It is currently upgraded to a comprehensive platform with advanced functions such as smart transactions, MEV protection and real-time market data analysis, creating more open and inclusive financial…