Blackbird, a new Web3 hospitality platform, has raised $11 million in a seed funding round that was co-led by Union Square Ventures, Shine Capital and Multicoin Capital, a company representative confirmed to CoinDesk in an email.
The startup was founded by Ben Leventhal, who previously co-founded food publication Eater and online restaurant platform Resy, which was acquired by American Express (AXP) in 2019.
The Blackbird platform will be a Web3-backed way for restaurants to connect with guests through loyalty and membership. An initial version of the product is expected to launch in the first half of 2023.
As part of the investment, Union Square Ventures partner Fred Wilson will join the Blackbird board. Other investors in the round included investment firm Variant, the venture-capital arm of USDC issuer Circle and digital product conglomerate IAC.
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