Eightco Secures $125 Million from BitMine and Ark Invest as Tom Lee Joins Board

BitMine's Tom Lee Joins Eightco Board as ORBS Stock Jumps on $125 Million Fundraise - Decrypt

Eightco aims to expand its reach into AI, blockchain, and digital consumer products, having completed investments in OpenAI and Beast Industries. Shares in publicly traded blockchain and artificial intelligence firm Eightco (ORBS) are up more than 15% Thursday following news that the firm has raised $125 million to continue its expansion into AI and blockchain. The firm earned commitments of $75 million from leading Ethereum treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies and $25 million each from Cathie Wood's Ark Invest and Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken. BitMine's Chairman Tom Lee will join the firm's board of directors, while Ark's Chief Futurist Brett Winton will be added as an advisor to the board. Eightco Chairman Dan Ives will step down as part of the transition. "Bitmine invested in ORBS as we believe this company sits at the center of some of the most important future needs and developments for AI," Lee said in a statement. Lee's firm previously invested $20 million in Eightco as part of its "moonshot" strategy, in which it allocates a small portion of its balance sheet to high-upside projects -- akin to Google X, which invests in firms trying to solve big, ambitious problems. Eightco also announced that it has closed a strategic $50 million investment into OpenAI, and a $25 million investment in Beast Industries, the company of YouTube star MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson. BitMine too has backed Beast Industries, investing $200 million in the firm earlier this year. Eightco previously raised $250 million to create a digital asset treasury centered on Worldcoin (WRLD), the proof of humanity project -- co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman -- that asks users to scan their eyes to prove their personhood. The firm still maintains positions in Worldcoin and Ethereum, citing a long-term belief in the "ERC-20 protocol," the technical standard for creating assets like tokens on Ethereum. "To me, there is tremendous synergy between Proof of Human (Worldcoin), the OpenAI foundational models, and connectivity to the greatest content creator in the world, MrBeast," Lee added. "And the Ark investment team, known for their pioneering work on identifying exponential opportunities, is further fueling synergy and innovation in this company." Ark and BitMine are intertwined in other ways, as well. Wood's investment firm maintains an active position of nearly $169 million in BitMine stock (BMNR) across its ETFs, making it the firm's 25th largest position, according to data from Cathie's Ark. "ORBS is taking on a unique initiative at the intersection of AI, blockchain, and creator-driven platforms," said Wood in a statement. "At ARK Invest, we focus on technologies that have the potential to transform the global economy. A $25 million position in ORBS would thrust the firm inside Ark's top 70 holdings. ORBS is now trading around $0.94, still down around 12% in the last five days of trading. Shares are down around 46% year-to-date.

Eightco Lands $125M in Funding from Bitmine and ARK

The fresh capital from Kraken's parent company, Ark Invest, and Bitmine has backed Eightco's new bets on OpenAI and MrBeast Shares in Eightco Holdings (ORBS) jumped 12% on Thursday after it raised $125 million to back its bets in blockchain and artificial intelligence. Eightco said on Wednesday that crypto treasury firm Bitmine led the funding with $75 million, while Ark Invest and Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken, each chipped in $25 million apiece. The company added that Bitmine chairman Tom Lee would join Eightco's board and Ark Invest's chief futurist Brett Winton also signed on as a board advisor. Eightco chairman Dan Ives, known for his bullish commentary on the tech sector, also stepped down from his position after being appointed to the role in September. Eightco said the capital would support its expansion "into investing in technology shaping the next generation of artificial intelligence, blockchain infrastructure, and global digital consumer platforms." Eightco said that it had also closed an initial $50 million strategic investment into OpenAI and another $25 million investment into Beast Industries and its owner and YouTuber James Donaldson, better known as MrBeast. "These investments position ORBS as a hub at the center of key frontier AI technologies and content creation, expanding its portfolio to include ownership stakes in world-leading innovators," Eightco said. Related: Crypto accounting startup Cryptio lands $45M as institutions move onchain Shares in Eightco ended trading on Thursday up 11.67% to 90 cents in reaction to the announcement. The stock saw a slight fall after hours, dropping by 2.6% to 88 cents. Shares in Eightco are down over 92.49% in the past six months as stocks tied to crypto have been battered amid a broad market downturn. Eightco is an e-commerce inventory management platform that made its first crypto play in September, announcing it would buy and hold Worldcoin (WLD), which sent its share price surging by 3,000% in a single day.