Web3 AI-powered OP3N has announced that they have managed to successfully secure an astounding $28 million in a Series A funding round led by the well-known blockchain gaming investment firm, Animoca Brands, according to a TechCrunch exclusive.

With this latest financing round, the startup, which was founded in 2021 as a subsidiary of EST Media Holdings, is now valued at $100 million. Some of the investors that participated in this round include The Spartan Group, Warner Music Interactive, Avalanche’s Blizzard Fund, Dragonfly Capital, Galaxy Digital, NBA player Russell Westbrook and more.

The co-CEO of OP3N, Jaeson Ma, told TechCrunch that “These are all long-term players and people who are here to stay and bring strategic synergy for us” and that “We’re here to build a product that I believe will hopefully in two years become the decentralized Facebook, YouTube, Spotify or WhatsApp for web3.”

The new funding will be used to expand the company’s leadership team, but it will also be used for the development of their chat-based product titled Superapp, which Ma describes as being “a web3 version of WhatsApp meets Amazon, or WeChat meets Alibaba.”

According to the report, the goal is to create an app that utilizes blockchain technology while at the same time featuring the similar friendly UI that Web2 is known for, the goal being to bridge the gap between Web3 and Web2 in order to provide an accessible and user-friendly experience. Users can sign up through the platform using their email, automatically creating a crypto wallet in the process, after which they’re able to add various media content, be it audio, video or mixed form, allowing creators the opportunity for fans enjoy their work through experiences requiring NFTs with differing price points.

The report also reveals that the LA-based company managed to raise $10 million in a seed round in 2021 that included participants the likes of Twitch co-founder Justin Kan and The Sandbox co-founder and COO Sébastien Borget.