Miden, a Polygon-incubated project, has raised $25 million in seed funding from a16z crypto, 1kx, and Hack VC

Polygon-incubated project Miden has raised $25 million in seed funding to build its zero-knowledge edge blockchain.

The seed funding was led by a16z crypto and includes participation from 1kx, Hack VC, and Differential Ventures, with additional contributions by crypto luminaries such as Rune Christensen of MakerDAO and Sreeram Kannan of EigenLayer.

This round marks the emergence of Miden from Polygon (POL) Labs' Agglayer Breakout Program, highlighting the emerging Web3 technologies and talent within the Polygon ecosystem.

Helmed by former Meta blockchain engineers Bobbin Threadbare, Dominik Schmid, and Azeem Khan, Miden is developing a novel type of zero-knowledge blockchain designed to move the majority of computing and data storage from centralized servers to users' own devices, such as phones or laptops.

This approach, known as edge computing, enables applications to run significantly faster, maintain complete privacy, and scale more easily without encountering the limitations of a single, congested blockchain.

"We're excited to introduce a new generation of blockchain technology with Midenn," said Threadbare, CEO and co-founder of Miden. "By shifting execution to the client side, we're empowering developers to create more sophisticated and engaging Web3 applications."

Decentralized execution and hybrid states

Miden's edge blockchain architecture facilitates the decentralized execution of application logic on users' devices, while the public blockchain serves as a trustless coordination layer. This setup enables developers to build apps with hybrid public-private states and complex logic, all while maintaining confidentiality and auditability.

"Miden offers a unique and promising approach to overcoming some of the key challenges facing blockchain infrastructure today," said Dai, partner at 1kx. "The project solves fragmentation, scaling bottlenecks, and privacy concerns, which is a testament to the exceptional thinking within the Polygon Breakout Program."

The funding will be used to support protocol development, foster ecosystem growth with grants and programs, and build out developer tooling and documentation. The protocol is currently in the final alpha phase, with early developers already onboarded via the Pioneer program.

Mainnet launch is expected later this year.