dao5

An experimental venture capital firm focusing on early-stage blockchain and cryptocurrency projects. Founded in 2022 by Tekin Salimi, a former general partner at Polychain Capital, dao5 aims to reimagine the future of investing in crypto by merging early-stage venture capital with long-term decentralized governance. The firm operates with a distinct vision of transitioning into a decentralized autonomous organization (DAO), with plans to convert the fund into a fully tokenized, on-chain governed entity. dao5 is known for backing foundational crypto protocols and emerging companies that push the boundaries of blockchain innovation.

dao5 focuses on early-stage investments in crypto protocols, infrastructure, and foundational Web3 companies. The firm targets projects that prioritize decentralization, novel consensus mechanisms, token-driven economies, and next-gen crypto infrastructure. It is particularly aligned with teams building in the Bittensor ecosystem and decentralized compute and network layers, including tools for coordination, governance, and interoperability. dao5 also selectively incubates projects internally that align with its ecosystem thesis.

dao5 has backed more than 50 startups, with 10 new investments in the last 12 months alone. The firm has led 6 rounds, about 12% of its total, and boasts 0 exits across its portfolio. The firm's portfolio includes early investments in notable projects such as Bittensor, a decentralized machine learning network; Berachain, a high-performance EVM-compatible blockchain; EigenLayer, a restaking protocol; Story Protocol, focused on decentralized IP infrastructure; and Movement Labs, building execution layers for modular blockchain stacks. The firm plans to convert into a decentralized autonomous organization later this year, with tokenized ownership and treasury governance transferred to stakeholders, including portfolio founders, fund managers, and advisors.