Sony Innovation Fund Invests $13 Million in Startale Group to Advance Soneium Blockchain

TLDR:

• Sony Innovation Fund leads Series A with $13M, lifting Startale’s disclosed funding to $20M total.
• Soneium Layer 2 shows traction with 500M+ transactions, 5.4M wallets, and 250+ dApps since January 2025 launch.
• Funding accelerates creator-centric, onchain entertainment using AI, IP, and Ethereum L2 rails at global scale.
• Sony–Startale partnership deepens via Block Solutions Labs, backing vertical blockchain stacks.

Sony Innovation Fund has committed an additional $13 million to Startale Group, the co-developer of the Soneium blockchain platform. This investment represents the first tranche of Startale’s Series A funding round.

The capital injection brings Startale’s total disclosed funding to $20 million, following a $3.5 million seed round from Sony in 2023 and a $3.5 million seed extension from UOB Venture Management and Samsung Next in 2024.

Partnership Expansion Drives Infrastructure Development

The latest funding deepens the collaboration between Sony and Startale Group, which began over a year ago. Sony Block Solutions Labs Pte. Ltd., the joint venture behind Soneium, serves as the operational foundation for this partnership.

The continued investment signals Sony’s confidence in Startale’s execution capabilities and strategic vision for blockchain infrastructure.

Soneium has achieved notable growth since its mainnet launch in January 2025. The Ethereum Layer 2 network has processed over 500 million transactions and attracted 5.4 million active wallets.

More than 250 decentralized applications currently operate on the platform, establishing Soneium as a prominent player in the Layer 2 ecosystem.

The Startale App functions as the primary access point to Soneium’s ecosystem. It integrates wallet functionality with asset management and application access. Startale USD (USDSC) provides a unified settlement layer that connects applications, users, and payment systems across the network.

Startale Group announced the investment through its official social media channels, stating that Sony Innovation Fund’s follow-on investment reinforces “the long-term shared vision between Sony and Startale to build infrastructure for onchain entertainment.”

The company added that Startale will continue strengthening Soneium as “a creator-centric platform for creator-led value and participatory fan experiences in the AI era.”

Entertainment and AI Integration Shape Future Direction

The partnership addresses evolving challenges in the entertainment industry as generative AI transforms content creation and distribution.

Sony’s entertainment and technology expertise combines with Startale’s blockchain infrastructure capabilities. This collaboration aims to develop new models for intellectual property-led platforms and creator-centric monetization.

Sota Watanabe, CEO of Startale Group, emphasized the strategic nature of the relationship. “Startale has been an important partner to Sony since the early days of Soneium,” Watanabe said.

He explained that their vision is “to bring the world on-chain, and Sony’s continued support strengthens our ability to deliver the infrastructure required to realize that vision at global scale.”

Kazuhito Hadano, CEO of Sony Ventures Corporation, described Startale’s comprehensive approach to blockchain development. “Startale is a company working across the blockchain space, from infrastructure to applications,” Hadano noted.

He highlighted the team’s global perspective and focus on “enabling new value flows built on on-chain technologies,” adding that Sony looks forward to “continuing to support Startale’s challenges and ambitions going forward.”

The funding will support Startale’s vertically integrated approach to on-chain infrastructure development. This includes expanding Soneium’s capabilities and enhancing the ecosystem’s application layer.

The partnership demonstrates institutional commitment to building entertainment-native blockchain platforms that bridge traditional media and decentralized technologies.

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