Paradigm Pivots $1.2B Into AI, Because Apparently Crypto VCs Now Need Robots Too

Venture firm Paradigm has raised $1.2 billion for a new fund investing in artificial intelligence, robotics, crypto and other frontier technologies, the company announced Wednesday. The vehicle marks Paradigm's fourth fund and expands its strategy beyond digital assets, though managing partner Alana Palmedo said crypto remains central to the firm's mission. "Crypto was the first frontier for us, and it continues to be a really exciting one, but there's so much else happening right now that's pretty hard to ignore," Palmedo told Bloomberg.

Palmedo described the scope in a post on X, writing, "$1.2B to invest in steep exponentials. 8 years ago we were backed by people who believed in the crypto frontier. Now we're doubling down as frontiers are colliding across AI, crypto, space, deep tech, energy." The firm said in a statement, "Our approach is to stay close to the metal–researching, building, and investing alongside founders, first in crypto, and now across AI, robotics, and other frontiers."

Founded in 2018 by Matt Huang and Coinbase co-founder Fred Ehrsam, Paradigm previously raised a $2.5 billion crypto fund in November 2021, at the time the largest dedicated crypto fund, followed by an $850 million early-stage blockchain fund in 2024. The new fund has already deployed capital into autonomous drone delivery company Zipline International, which reached a $7.6 billion valuation in January, and space defense startup True Anomaly, which hit a $2.2 billion valuation in April. Other investments cited by the firm include AI company Nous Research, the developer behind Hermes Agent, along with crypto holdings in decentralized exchange Hyperliquid, prediction market platform Kalshi, and Tempo, a stablecoin-focused blockchain co-founded with Stripe.

Internally, Paradigm highlighted Ethereum development tools Foundry and Reth, AI agent project Centaur, and EVMbench, a blockchain security benchmark developed with OpenAI. Co-founder Matt