Switchboard, a customizable oracle network that lets users plug into the on-chain economy, announced it has raised $7.5 million in a Series A round led by Tribe Capital and RockawayX, with participation from Solana Foundation, Aptos Labs, Mysten Labs (Sui), Subzero Ventures, Starkware, Arche Capital, Breed VC, Ascensive Assets, BlockBuilders, and others.
This funding round also included support from leading ecosystem funds, including Solana Foundation, Aptos Labs, Mysten Labs, and the Starknet Foundation, and well-established backers, including Subzero Ventures (Bryan Pellegrino, Ryan Zarick, and Ari Litam from LayerZero).
Switchboard’s oracles platform grants users complete control over the data they choose to bring on-chain, which puts them in control of their own Web3 switchboard. And with an increasingly diverse range of on-chain applications – from established mainstays such as DeFi to emerging sectors such as on-chain gaming and gambling – access to increasingly niche datasets is necessary but still requires the security and certainty of large-scale oracle networks. Switchboard’s permissionless and customizable design enables users to configure bespoke oracle networks that are fine-tuned for highly specific applications while also providing easy access to pre-built oracles for common tasks.
This funding round, with support from Web3 industry titans, will help Switchboard continue to expand rapidly. And over 100,000 users have already plugged into Switchboard since June 2021, with over $2 billion in total value secured.
Compared to other standard oracle networks, Switchboard offers several unique differentiators
1.) Customizable—The Switchboard platform is divided into queues—separate networks of oracles working together. Access permission, staking and slashing consequences, and all other governance are determined at a queue level, and users can build their own unrestricted custom queues perfectly tailored for their unique tasks.
2.)Permissionless – Anyone can run their own queues, nodes, or rules for governance on Switchboard. Flexible access control allows queues to be configured as both permissioned or permissionless, giving users the option to design and manage their own permissionless oracle networks.
3.) Fast – Switchboard is largely built on Solana, which allows operations to be performed quickly and efficiently thanks to Solana’s industry-leading TPS. In addition, Switchboard leverages Trusted Execution Environments (TEEs) to allow information to be sent quickly and confidentially across the network.
4.) On-demand – Switchboard’s on-demand model lets users bring data on-chain at the exact moment they need it, cutting down on unnecessary updates and reducing operating costs for developers.
KEY QUOTES:
“Switchboard is dedicated to delivering the perfect oracle solution for every developer’s needs. The industry has become over-reliant on one-size-fits-all solutions that are needlessly slow and inefficient to set up. We’re granting developers the ability to quickly build the solutions they need.”
- Chris Hermida, co-founder of Switchboard
“Oracle networks are the backbone of the Web3 ecosystem. They differ in the data sources, methods in data publishing, reliability and ease of use. We believe Switchboard scores very highly on these metrics. It is designed to maximize flexibility and performance; developers can run their own queues, customizing their oracle network, or build on cost effective on-demand data feeds. Better data connections between Web2 and Web3 are key to new use cases and novel on-chain experiences, so we are excited about the innovation Switchboard will unleash.”
- Marek Sandrik at RockawayX
“The role of oracles in the crypto world has expanded dramatically. As DeFi, gaming, and other use cases surge – demand for more bespoke and efficient oracle solutions grows in tandem. We’re excited to continue backing Switchboard’s efforts.”
- Jared Madfes of Tribe Capital
