Coinbase, Google veterans secure $5M to build ‘blockchain’s LinkedIn’

Icebreaker, an open professional network co-founded by Coinbase and Google veterans, has raised $5 million in a seed round to build the blockchain’s version of LinkedIn.

Dan Stone and Jack Dillé, co-founders of Icebreaker, announced they secured the funding in a round led crypto-native investment firm CoinFund.

Icebreaker will use the funds to assemble a world-class team as it continues its mission to launch a platform that allows for professional connections on the blockchain.

Professional networking platform on the blockchain

According to the announcement, Icebreaker targets a professional network where users can benefit from “cryptographically verifiable identity” in a market that’s increasingly impacted by artificial intelligence related noise and “fake personas.”

Icebreaker will help recruiters find the best, high-quality talents, while users can tap into top opportunities as the existing platforms are often laden with engagement driven profiles.

“The world runs on trust,” Icebreaker co-founder Dan Stone, said in a press release. “Until now, it’s been impossible to see because our existing networks optimize for engagement over signal. Yet every leader knows the loudest or most followed person is rarely the best. Icebreaker lets you see who your close network trusts so you can cut through the noise to surface the talent and opportunities that are quiet, yet exceptional.”

Stone and Dillé both worked at Google before joining crypto exchange Coinbase and left in 2023 to co-found Icebreaker.

Pilots for Icebreaker have included engagements with Coinbase, Opensea, and Polygon Labs. Users can create profiles on the platfom from existing identities across one or more of LinkedIn, X, GitHub, and Farcaster among others.

The platform’s seed round also attracted investment from venture capital firms Accomplice, Anagram, and Legion Capital. Over 30 founder angels also backed Icebreaker’s funding round.