Shares in publicly traded blockchain and artificial intelligence firm Eightco (ORBS) are up more than 15% Thursday following news that the firm has raised $125 million to continue its expansion into AI and blockchain. 

The firm earned commitments of $75 million from leading Ethereum treasury firm BitMine Immersion Technologies and $25 million each from Cathie Wood’s Ark Invest and Payward, the parent company of crypto exchange Kraken. 

BitMine’s Chairman Tom Lee will join the firm’s board of directors, while Ark’s Chief Futurist Brett Winton will be added as an advisor to the board. Eightco Chairman Dan Ives will step down as part of the transition.

“Bitmine invested in ORBS as we believe this company sits at the center of some of the most important future needs and developments for AI," Lee said in a statement.



Lee’s firm previously invested $20 million in Eightco as part of its “moonshot” strategy, in which it allocates a small portion of its balance sheet to high-upside projects—akin to Google X, which invests in firms trying to solve big, ambitious problems. 

Eightco also announced that it has closed a strategic $50 million investment into OpenAI, and a $25 million investment in Beast Industries, the company of YouTube star MrBeast, whose real name is Jimmy Donaldson. BitMine too has backed Beast Industries, investing $200 million in the firm earlier this year.

Eightco previously raised $250 million to create a digital asset treasury centered on Worldcoin (WRLD), the proof of humanity project—co-founded by OpenAI CEO Sam Altman—that asks users to scan their eyes to prove their personhood. The firm still maintains positions in Worldcoin and Ethereum, citing a long-term belief in the “ERC-20 protocol,” the technical standard for creating assets like tokens on Ethereum. 

“To me, there is tremendous synergy between Proof of Human (Worldcoin), the OpenAI foundational models, and connectivity to the greatest content creator in the world, MrBeast,” Lee added. “And the Ark investment team, known for their pioneering work on identifying exponential opportunities, is further fueling synergy and innovation in this company."

Ark and BitMine are intertwined in other ways, as well. Wood’s investment firm maintains an active position of nearly $169 million in BitMine stock (BMNR) across its ETFs, making it the firm’s 25th largest position, according to data from Cathie’s Ark.

“ORBS is taking on a unique initiative at the intersection of AI, blockchain, and creator-driven platforms," said Wood in a statement. "At ARK Invest, we focus on technologies that have the potential to transform the global economy.

A $25 million position in ORBS would thrust the firm inside Ark’s top 70 holdings. 

ORBS is now trading around $0.94, still down around 12% in the last five days of trading. Shares are down around 46% year-to-date. 

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