Walmart’s ‘Store Nº8’ Web3 Accelerator Debuts with 5 Innovative Startups

Walmart’s incubation arm, Store Nº8, in partnership with Outlier Ventures, introduces Store Nº8 Base Camp, a Web3 accelerator program featuring five promising startups. This 12-week virtual incubator program is set to transform Web3 marketing, advertising, and payment technology. These startups, hailing from the U.S., Italy, Poland, and the UK, are poised to revolutionize global retail and commerce.

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“Increasingly immersive virtual worlds offer new opportunities for customer engagement and commerce,” says Thomas Kang, VP and GM at Walmart. Web3’s potential to connect physical and virtual realms presents exciting prospects.
“Over the next year, you’ll see us test a variety of experiences in virtual worlds that connect to commerce at stores and vice versa.”

Thomas Kang, VP and GM at Walmart
The program’s core focus is on “decentralized commerce,” aiming to enhance the retail and consumer experience through Web3 innovation. Startups will explore diverse blockchains, receiving $200,000 stipends from Synergis Capital, along with valuable enterprise advising from KPMG U.S. and access to Store Nº8’s extensive network.

Despite the ongoing crypto market challenges, this initiative remains optimistic about the future. “This challenging period is also an opportunity for founders to refine their core value proposition and gain market traction, fostering a culture of innovation and efficiency,” says Ruth Galvin, program manager at Outlier Ventures.

Out of over 370 applicants, these five startups made it to the final cohort:

1. HypeLab: Simplifying Web3 Advertising for Businesses

HypeLab aims to help companies get their products in front of web3 users through its design services like its “self-service advertiser portal,” which can help build campaign assets. The startup also provides on-chain and off-chain options for advertisers to pick where their ads are placed.

It offers users a software development kit that can insert advertisements into decentralized applications “in 20 minutes or less,” according to the company. It’s backed by investors from Coinbase Ventures, Shima Capital, Dispersion Capital, OP Crypto, and others.

2. Reveel: An On-Chain Payout Infrastructure and Creator Tool

Reveel is an on-chain payout infrastructure and creator tool that can help startups automate their accounting and payout infrastructure. Its ecosystem consists of a number of applications, brands, and networks like Ethereum, Polygon, Alchemy, and Zora, according to its website.

The platform helps startups manage all of their revenue through one dashboard as well as provide customizable payment flows. The infrastructure is multi-chain friendly and allows for any token to be processed on its platform. Developers can also implement Reveel’s revenue-sharing protocol into their projects through its software development kit so creators can share their revenue with others. It’s backed by Binance Labs, Moment Ventures, Anamcara, and Pixelynx.

3. Tide Protocol: Offering Data-Driven Web3 Marketing

Tide Protocol is a marketing and analytics suite that helps web3 startups create and customize marketing campaigns. It’s powered by Polygon Studios and works on any Ethereum-compatible blockchain, without the need for a coding background. It is backed by Outlier Ventures, according to Crunchbase.

4. Tokenguard: An Analytics Platform for Web3 Growth

Tokenguard is an analytics platform focused on helping web3 projects grow. It supports blockchains and crypto projects like Polkadot, Moonbeam, Aleph Zero, Astar, Kusama, and more. The platform provides decentralized applications as well as on-chain and off-chain analytics, ecosystem growth tracking, and crypto APIs. It is backed by Outlier Ventures and NCBR Investment Fund ASI S.A., according to Crunchbase.

5. Unblock: Facilitating Cross-Border Payments through Web3 Solutions

Unblock’s portal helps enable business payments in Web3 through its free API infrastructure. It also helps simplify the on-and-off-ramping process into crypto. Its API-based solutions can remove complications associated with user KYC and help customers with compliance, risk monitoring, and more.

The platform is available for businesses, individuals, and applications through its white-label API and provides transfer speeds under 20 seconds and transaction fees starting at 0.5%. It is backed by Outlier Ventures, Celo Ecosystem, and others, according to Crunchbase.

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Walmart’s venture into Web3, alongside these innovative startups, hints at a future where retail and commerce evolve in exciting ways, making the shopping experience more immersive and engaging.

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