Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) said it raised $7.2 billion to invest across several tech sectors, including gaming and artificial intelligence — but isn’t putting any more toward crypto.
The firm’s “Growth” venture strategy — a bundle of funds backing a range of early-stage startups — will receive the largest chunk of the raise at $3.75 billion. Its "Infrastructure" and "Apps" will respectively receive $1.25 billion and $1 billion, a16z said in an April 16 statement.
Its Infrastructure strategy mostly focuses on funding teams in the AI, computing and data industries, while the Apps funds focus on consumer, enterprise and fintech application builders.
The remaining $1.2 billion will be evenly split between “Games,” its gaming-focused funds, and its new “American Dynamism” fund — which invests in founders and companies supporting United States national interests in aerospace, defense, safety, education and manufacturing.
Its $4.5 billion crypto-focused fund didn’t receive any additional funding.
The $600 million dedicated to Games will be used to create a second game-focused fund, according to Andrew Chen, a general partner at a16z, who oversees its Games Fund One.
“From AI/infra, web3 games, VR/AR, 3D tooling, gamified apps, game studios, and much more. The fund targets a $300B+ industry that has spawned incredible companies over the past decade, and it’s great to be able to build,” Chen posted to X on April 16.
Chen added he’s particularly focused on funding games that integrate generative AI.
“[Generative AI] will transform many product categories, but in particular, games and interactive entertainment. This shouldn’t be a surprise, as gaming has been the driver of new killer apps for emerging computing platforms.”
A slice of the $600 million will be used in a16z’s accelerator program launched in early April, which will hand out $750,000 to a maximum of 40 gaming startups at a 12-week course in Los Angeles beginning in late July.
Related: ‘Tens of millions’ to enter Web3 through gaming in 2024 — GameFi execs
Each focus fund will have its own experts to maximize the likelihood of each fund’s success, a16z co-founder Ben Horowitz said in the April 16 statement.
“Each area requires deep expertise, so it’s not wise to try to cross-train someone in, for example, Games and Infrastructure,” said Horowitz. “Founders building AI foundation models need an entirely different set of networks and capabilities than founders building biotech therapies.”
“A great investor with the right help, the right networking, and the right expertise at the right time can be the difference between success and failure.”
Magazine: Web3 Gamer: Games need bots? Illivium CEO admits ‘it’s tough,’ 42X upside