A16z Invests $15 million in Poseidon’s AI Data Layer via Story Protocol

- A16z Crypto backs Poseidon with $15 million to tackle AI data licensing issues. - The decentralized platform uses Story Protocol tech for IP-safe data sharing. On July 22, 2025, The Block reported that Andreessen Horowitz's crypto division (a16z Crypto) led a $15 million seed round for Poseidon, a decentralized data platform designed to address the training data shortage in AI. The funding will support the platform's mission to provide high-quality, legally licensed data for artificial intelligence development. Incubated by the Story Protocol team, Poseidon introduces an economic model to reward creators and data suppliers for their contributions to AI systems. The platform uses Story Protocol’s programmable intellectual property layer and immutable IP registry to offer a legal framework for training datasets. In addition, Story Protocol operates as a Layer 1 blockchain focused on tokenized IP, and its "proof-of-creativity" system enables automated licensing and royalty payments. In The Block's July 22 report, Chris Dixon, founder of a16z Crypto, stated, "AI foundation models have already exhausted the most easily accessible training data." He added, "Poseidon aims to establish a new economic foundation for the internet, rewarding creators and suppliers for providing the diverse inputs that next-gen intelligent systems need." Poseidon will use the $15 million investment to scale its infrastructure, which includes launching contributor modules, software development kits, and licensing tools for developers and data suppliers. The platform anticipates its early access release this summer. According to CoinMarketCap on July 22, Story Protocol (IP) was trading at $5.07 as of 18:15 UTC, marking a 4.74% increase over the previous 24 hours.