Why Hack VC Led the Series A of Hyperlane

By Sean Brown and Alex Botte, Partners at Hack VC

At Hack VC, we believe in partnering with visionary founders who address the fundamental barriers impeding the broader adoption of blockchain technology. Hyperlane is tackling one of the biggest challenges in Web3 today: interoperability, which is why we led their Series A. 

The Fragmentation Problem

The blockchain landscape has expanded rapidly. Networks such as Ethereum, Solana, and Bitcoin anchor the space, alongside a growing number of rollups, smaller Layer 1s, and application-specific chains. While each network seeks to offer a unique functionality, this diversity has led to fragmented liquidity, complex user experiences, and limited composability. Data and liquidity is scattered across hundreds of networks. Developers have to wrestle with building on multiple chains. Users can’t easily move assets around or enjoy the full benefits of what Web3 can offer.

Breaking down network TVL is a good illustration. According to DefiLlama, there is over $100B in total value locked across various DeFi applications built on hundreds of different chains. A large amount is on Ethereum, but increasingly other chains are capturing more TVL. This means more and more liquidity is divided across an increasing number of chains, making the inability to move assets smoothly across chains a greater and greater problem.

Hyperlane: Permissionless Interoperability

Hyperlane is a permissionless interoperability protocol designed to address these fragmentation issues directly. It enables any application to communicate and share data with other networks without requiring centralized intermediaries or extensive customization. This open architecture is particularly advantageous for newer or specialized chains that wish to integrate with established ecosystems quickly.

1. Permissionless Deployment: Hyperlane’s model allows developers and network operators to self-deploy the protocol on any chain, be it a Layer 1, rollup, or app chain. Once integrated, the chain gains instant access to every other network connected via Hyperlane. This permissionless framework helps projects accelerate time-to-market and reduce integration overhead.
2. Modular Security: Hyperlane’s Interchain Security Modules (ISMs) enable developers to tailor their security models to suit specific requirements. This flexibility includes the option to use custom validators, set rate limits, or leverage the robust security available through Hyperlane’s EigenLayer AVS (actively validated service). The result is a solution that balances efficiency and assurance, matching the needs of each project’s risk profile.
3. Multi-VM Support: Hyperlane supports various virtual machines, such as EVM, SVM, and CosmWasm, ensuring a broad reach across different blockchain ecosystems. You can build “Warp Routes” to bridge tokens without incurring slippage and enjoy a simpler, faster bridging experience.

How Hyperlane Works

1. Deploy Hyperlane: Set up the protocol on your target chain, allowing it to send and receive messages (transactions, data, etc.) within the Hyperlane network. 
2. Create Warp Routes: If you need token bridging, set up Warp Routes, which let you move assets around quickly and cheaply.
3. Launch a UI: Developers can quickly implement an out-of-the-box user interface, enhancing accessibility for end users and reducing the need for additional front-end development.

Traction and Growth

Hyperlane has been hard at work for nearly three years, and the numbers speak for themselves:

• 9M+ messages sent across various networks
• $6B+ in value bridged
• 300+ active contracts sending messages daily 

Hyperlane is already live on 140+ chains, including major ecosystems like Solana, Ethereum, Arbitrum, Optimism, Cosmos, Base, Eclipse, Movement, and more. Support for new chains is growing every month, usually caused by third party developers deploying new chain support themselves rather than having to rely on the Abacus Works entity. This is in contrast to many other interoperability protocols that often have selective exclusive chain support processes, where getting prioritization from the centralized labs entity can involve politics, fees or just general lack of process visibility.

Hyperlane has grown tremendously over the last year. Since the beginning of 2024, Hyperlane went from virtually zero market share to over 20% of the cross-chain messaging market, solidly cementing themselves as one of the top 3 messaging providers in the space. 

The Road Ahead

As Web3 continues growing, true interoperability is the linchpin that holds it all together. Hyperlane’s permissionless, modular, and multi-VM approach makes it one of the most flexible solutions on the market. That’s why we’re thrilled to support them.

For a deeper dive, feel free to check out the Hack VC Gigabrain Session featuring Hyperlane, or browse their website for all the latest stats and updates.

Disclaimer

The information herein is for general information purposes only and does not, and is not intended to, constitute investment advice and should not be used in the evaluation of any investment decision. Such information should not be relied upon for accounting, legal, tax, business, investment, or other relevant advice. You should consult your own advisers, including your own counsel, for accounting, legal, tax, business, investment, or other relevant advice, including with respect to anything discussed herein.

This post reflects the current opinions of the author(s) and is not made on behalf of Hack VC or its affiliates, including any funds managed by Hack VC, and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hack VC, its affiliates, including its general partner affiliates, or any other individuals associated with Hack VC. Certain information contained herein has been obtained from published sources and/or prepared by third parties and in certain cases has not been updated through the date hereof. While such sources are believed to be reliable, neither Hack VC, its affiliates, including its general partner affiliates, or any other individuals associated with Hack VC are making representations as to their accuracy or completeness, and they should not be relied on as such or be the basis for an accounting, legal, tax, business, investment, or other decision. The information herein does not purport to be complete and is subject to change and Hack VC does not have any obligation to update such information or make any notification if such information becomes inaccurate.

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