Archipelago Labs (A-Labs), a startup accelerator, has been officially launched to invest and accelerate the growth of the most promising startups and talents in the local Web3 ecosystem.
Backed by partners from the Philippine Digital Asset Exchange (PDAX), Oak Drive Ventures, and Magellan Digital Investment Group (MDIG) with a fund size of $10 million, A-Labs boasts a strong network of mentors, experts, and capital partners who will support the startups in growing their ventures.
The program aims to back startups and founders at the grassroots level through investment funding, advisory, and structured programs such as hackathons, incubation and accelerator programs targeting specific verticals and stages of development and growth.
A-Labs focuses on deploying capital in early-stage startups that address the gaps in the industry through sustainable business models and sound token economics. It is led by founders that have a track record in technology, crypto, and business, with sectors focused on the intersection of Web2 and Web3, consumer applications, infrastructure, tools, DeFi and the Metaverse.
“This marks the start of our journey in equipping founders, startups, and builders with the support and tools they will need to create meaningful and impactful products, infrastructure, and services. Doing these provides value from the ideation to the growth stages of each startup and will, in return, create a better ecosystem for Web3 here in the Philippines,” Lance Pormarejo, Archipelago Labs executive director, said.
Founded in 2022, A-Labs is made up of three founders and three principals who have already made significant contributions to the startup and Web3 arena.
“We believe that with a credible support system, startups can have a higher chance of success navigating and traversing the archipelago. Through A-Labs, we aim to create better digital experiences through web3 technologies for every Filipino,” Pormarejo said.
Part of the A-Labs’ inaugural cohort is Playdex, a startup building infrastructure for Web3 gaming through an NFT rental marketplace. By the end of 2022, A-Labs aims to release its first iteration of the State of the Archipelago, a quarterly report on all things Web3 in the Philippines.
In 2023, the accelerator program will run its first cohort for the Archipelago Labs Accelerator Block (ALAB), an 8-week cohort-based accelerator program.
