As developers flock to Web3 apps, VCs follow

An expansion of use cases for blockchain technology—from NFT art collecting to crypto gaming—has spurred the development of decentralized apps. Now, two companies building tools for Web3 developers are raking in capital.
 

• Alchemy has raised a $200 million round led by Lightspeed and Silver Lake at a $10.2 billion valuation, up from $3.5 billion in October and $505 million in April.
   
• Earlier this week, Polygon raised $450 million led by Sequoia India at a reported $13 billion valuation. The company was previously backed by Mark Cuban and Coinbase Ventures.
   
• Both companies have been likened to Amazon Web Services because they provide tools and infrastructure for the blockchain in the way that AWS does for the cloud. The platforms have been used to build some of the most well-known Web3 apps: Polygon is used by NFT marketplace OpenSea and Alchemy by game creator Dapper Labs.

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