Protocol Labs

Protocol Labs

Protocol Labs was founded by Juan Benet in 2014 and participated in the Y Combinator S14 program. It originated as the development hub for the InterPlanetary File System (IPFS) and Filecoin, two protocols designed to decentralize the web and cloud storage. The organization raised early funding from investors including BlueYard and Union Square Ventures. Its core structure is built around creating, de-risking, and spinning out open-source protocols and companies, rather than managing a traditional investment portfolio. The network's work spans web3 infrastructure, artificial intelligence, augmented and virtual reality, brain-computer interfaces, and hardware. Protocol Labs originated IPFS, Filecoin, and libp2p, which underpin large swaths of the decentralized web. The Filecoin network surpassed 12 exabytes of storage capacity by late 2021, supported by over 3,300 storage providers. In August 2020, Protocol Labs partnered with Cloudflare and the Ethereum Foundation to launch drand, the first production-grade publicly verifiable randomness beacon. Its venture studio arm, PLVS, graduated startups including Akave, Storacha, and Randamu. The network also supports projects such as CoinList, which spun out in 2017, and nft.storage, which stored over 40 million NFTs within its first year. Protocol Labs reports a network of more than 600 startups, funds, accelerators, foundations, and service providers. It maintains offices across San Francisco, New York, London, Beijing, and other global hubs. The network includes adjacent entities such as the Filecoin Foundation, which formed the Decentralized Storage Alliance with AMD, Seagate, and EY in 2022. In September 2024, the PL Dev Guild launched its first cohort to fund open-source contributors across the network. The organization completed its transition to a fully decentralized network model in July 2024. Protocol Labs' structural differentiator is its self-described decentralized network architecture, where core protocols are developed as open-source public goods and then spun out into independent companies and foundations. Unlike a conventional VC firm or tech incubator, it does not centralize equity ownership or decision-making. The network generates deal flow through protocol-driven developer communities, hackathons, and an in-house research lab, while adjacent funding mechanisms include grant programs and token-based incentives rather than traditional LP-led fund structures.