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    "id": 1183,
    "name": "NuCypher (aka Threshold Network)",
    "slug": "nucypher-aka-threshold-network",
    "former_names": [
      "ZeroDB",
      "NuCypher",
      "Threshold"
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    "website": "https://threshold.network/",
    "all_locations": "Austin, TX, USA; Remote",
    "long_description": "NuCypher is one of two founding teams of the Threshold Network, which hosts tBTC, TACo, Random Beacon & tUSD. Since 2017, NuCypher has pioneered cryptographic primitives for end-to-end encrypted data sharing, including Proxy Re-Encryption and Threshold Access Control (TACo), novel cryptoeconomic mechanisms (e.g. Stable Yield). and original network/governance architectures (including a historic on-chain merger). TACo, our flagship product, is running on over 120 nodes with ~$80m of associated economic security, has paying adopting developers and major infrastructure partners (Ceramic, Irys, Textile, Unlock), and has been decentralized from genesis (mainnet launch in Jan 2024).",
    "one_liner": "Network for decentralized threshold cryptography and end-to-end…",
    "team_size": 10,
    "industry": "B2B",
    "subindustry": "B2B",
    "launched_at": 1461182717,
    "tags": [
      "Cryptography",
      "Privacy"
    ],
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    "top_company": false,
    "isHiring": false,
    "nonprofit": false,
    "batch": "Summer 2016",
    "status": "Inactive",
    "industries": [
      "B2B"
    ],
    "regions": [
      "United States of America",
      "America / Canada",
      "Remote",
      "Fully Remote"
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    "stage": "Early",
    "app_video_public": false,
    "demo_day_video_public": false,
    "app_answers": null,
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    "url": "https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/nucypher-aka-threshold-network",
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    "year_founded": 2015,
    "city": "Austin",
    "country": "US",
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      {
        "user_id": 74399,
        "full_name": "MacLane Wilkison",
        "title": "Founder/CEO",
        "founder_bio": "",
        "is_active": false,
        "linkedin_url": "https://www.linkedin.com/pub/maclane-wilkison/13/70a/677",
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    "news": [
      {
        "title": "Threshold Network launches a trust-minimized bitcoin bridge",
        "url": "https://www.axios.com/2023/01/31/threshold-network-bitcoin-ethereum-bridge",
        "date": "Jan 31, 2023"
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    ],
    "launches": [
      {
        "id": 68889,
        "title": "tBTC 💸 The truly decentralized bridge between Bitcoin and Ethereum",
        "tagline": "Meet tBTC, a decentralized, permissionless, scalable BTC bridge to DeFi",
        "body": "Hey everyone! We’re [NuCypher](https://www.nucypher.com/) (YC S16), contributors to [Threshold Network](https://threshold.network/).\n\n### **Tl;dr**\n\ntBTC is a trust-minimized bitcoin bridge that lets users wrap their BTC in exchange for tBTC tokens that can be deployed permissionlessly in the Ethereum DeFi ecosystem. Bitcoin is the most pristine digital asset and it deserves a decentralized financial system that's equally pristine. Mint tBTC and use your BTC as collateral to borrow, lend, LP, and more on Ethereum.\n\n### **👪 Who is it for**\n\nAre you a **BTC hodler, hedge fund, token fund, crypto VC, family office, DeFi OG, or high net worth individual who holds Bitcoin** but are concerned about the risk of permissioned and centralized bridges like wBTC? Do you worry about centralization risks like censorship or the bankruptcy/liquidation of a centralized custodian like what happened with FTX/Alameda and renBTC?\n\nThen tBTC is for you.\n\n# **💡** How does it work?\n\n**Decentralized Custody**\n\nIt's simple! Rather than sending your BTC to a centralized custodian, you permissionlessly interact with the Threshold Network smart contract on Ethereum and your BTC is custodied by the decentralized network of Threshold stakers (under the hood some fancy cryptography is happening using distributed key generation and threshold signatures). You deposit your BTC in an address generated by Threshold stakers and receive tBTC in your Ethereum wallet. **All this can be done via the** [**Threshold dashboard**](https://dashboard.threshold.network/tBTC).\n\n**Your Passport to DeFi**\n\nOnce minted, you can use your tBTC like any other token on Ethereum and across the DeFi ecosystem: to lend, borrow, yield farm, safeguard in smart contract multisigs like Gnosis Safe, and more…\n\n# **💪 Why we built tBTC!**\n\nWe built it for ourselves. We’ve been through multiple crypto cycles and have seen first-hand the risks of centralization and the ensuing loss of funds, all the way from Mt Gox to FTX/Alameda, more recently. We know not to send our BTC to an opaque centralized custodian just to put it to work. Bitcoin is the most pristine digital asset and it deserves a financial system that’s just as pristine.\n\n### **🙏🏻 Our Ask**\n\nIf you want to put your BTC to work, mint tBTC and get your passport to DeFi (but make sure you understand the risks, first): [**https://dashboard.threshold.network/tBTC**](https://dashboard.threshold.network/tBTC)\n\nOur community is here to help, come join the fun in [**Discord**](https://discord.com/invite/threshold), learn more about tBTC, and maybe even contribute to the DAO!",
        "url": "https://www.ycombinator.com/launches/Hv7-tbtc-the-truly-decentralized-bridge-between-bitcoin-and-ethereum",
        "votes": 17,
        "created_at": "2023-01-31T18:42:53.249Z"
      }
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  {
    "id": 25569,
    "name": "Bifrost",
    "slug": "bifrost",
    "former_names": [
      "Hapi Finance",
      "Mysterious.IO",
      "Mysterious"
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    "website": "https://www.hapi.finance/",
    "all_locations": "San Francisco, CA, USA",
    "long_description": "We write smart contracts that can automatically transfer assets during end-of-life events.\r\nWhen you hold your own keys to your own wallet, your funds are lost in worst-case-scenarios. We make an on-chain dead-mans-switch to help your loved ones claim your holdings.",
    "one_liner": "Wills and Estate Management for Crypto",
    "team_size": 4,
    "industry": "Fintech",
    "subindustry": "Fintech -> Asset Management",
    "launched_at": 1647374552,
    "tags": [
      "Crypto / Web3",
      "Finance",
      "Cryptography"
    ],
    "tags_highlighted": [
      "Crypto / Web3"
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    "top_company": false,
    "isHiring": false,
    "nonprofit": false,
    "batch": "Winter 2022",
    "status": "Inactive",
    "industries": [
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    "regions": [
      "United States of America",
      "America / Canada"
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    "stage": "Early",
    "app_video_public": false,
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    "app_answers": null,
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    "url": "https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/bifrost",
    "api": "https://devasheeshg.github.io/yc-api/batches/winter-2022/bifrost.json",
    "year_founded": 2021,
    "city": "San Francisco",
    "country": "US",
    "linkedin_url": "",
    "x_url": "https://twitter.com/0xMysterious",
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    "founders": [
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        "user_id": 311183,
        "full_name": "Kartik Sathappan",
        "title": "Founder",
        "founder_bio": "GP at Families Fund. Invest with SGV and Yap on Pirate Wires. Previously bifrost (yc w22), panda, neighborly, intuit, apple, hbo.",
        "is_active": false,
        "linkedin_url": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/kartiksathappan/",
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      {
        "user_id": 608990,
        "full_name": "Samraaj Bath",
        "title": "Founder",
        "founder_bio": "CEO @ ion design.\n2x YC founder. ex CTO, PM, design team manager, full stack engineer. \nobsessed w/ making it easier to build beautiful products.\n\nI previously founded an ice cream company, bootstrapped a birthday wishing app, danced professionally, and rebuilt a 1981 motorcycle.",
        "is_active": false,
        "linkedin_url": "https://linkedin.com/in/samraajbath",
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  {
    "id": 25937,
    "name": "Argument Computer Corporation",
    "slug": "argument-computer-corporation",
    "former_names": [
      "Yatima Inc."
    ],
    "small_logo_thumb_url": "https://bookface-images.s3.amazonaws.com/small_logos/b018aec0c7e89471028397fc469f207047365435.png",
    "website": "https://argument.xyz",
    "all_locations": "Boston, MA, USA; Remote",
    "long_description": "Argument combines zero-knowledge cryptography, formal verification and distributed consensus technologies to build systems for unbreakable, scalable, private, decentralized software.",
    "one_liner": "Accelerate verifiable computing",
    "team_size": 8,
    "industry": "B2B",
    "subindustry": "B2B",
    "launched_at": 1648223638,
    "tags": [
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      "Security",
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    "stage": "Early",
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    "url": "https://www.ycombinator.com/companies/argument-computer-corporation",
    "api": "https://devasheeshg.github.io/yc-api/batches/winter-2022/argument-computer-corporation.json",
    "year_founded": 2020,
    "city": "Boston",
    "country": "US",
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      "name": "Harj Taggar",
      "url": "https://www.ycombinator.com/people/harj-taggar"
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        "user_id": 45002,
        "full_name": "John Burnham",
        "title": "Founder",
        "founder_bio": "CEO @ Argument Computer Corporation",
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        "user_id": 800887,
        "full_name": "Gabriel Barreto",
        "title": "Founder",
        "founder_bio": "Co-Founder and Chief Architect at Yatima Inc.",
        "is_active": true,
        "linkedin_url": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/gabriel-aquino-barreto-2b512a197/",
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        "full_name": "Samuel Burnham",
        "title": "Founder",
        "founder_bio": "Co-founder and Vice President at Argument",
        "is_active": true,
        "linkedin_url": "https://www.linkedin.com/in/samuel-burnham/",
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