Digital Toy Platform Cryptoys Raises $23M From a16z, Dapper Labs, Mattel

Cryptoys, a platform aiming to "reimagine what a toy actually is," has raised $23 million in funding from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z), Dapper Labs and multinational toy manufacturer Mattel (MAT).

The platform is the flagship product of non-fungible token (NFT) studio OnChain Studios and aims to bring NFTs to kids in the form of colorful characters. Cryptoys aims to combine these with gaming and apps within an interactive platform.

"We set out to reimagine what the concept of a 'toy' actually is and how digital mediums can allow us to go beyond physical constraints to achieve new levels of play and interactivity," OnChain CEO Will Weinraub said on Thursday.

The company recently secured a partnership with Mattel to transform some of its most storied characters into playable avatars, which can be sold as NFTs. Mattel is the manufacturer of such world-famous products as Barbie, Hot Wheels and Polly Pocket.

Cryptoys is built on Flow, the blockchain developed by Dapper Labs, which has seen its digital basketball collectible platform NBA Top Shot amass around $1 billion in sales.

The NFT market, having enjoyed a mesmeric boom in 2021 at the peak of the crypto bull run, could face some serious challenges in the months ahead with the broader crypto ecosystem now firmly in bear market territory.

It will remain to be seen to what extent a platform geared specifically towards kids will prove a thriving use case for digital assets and blockchain technology.

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