In a significant move for the blockchain industry, Sentient, an open-source AI model platform, has raised $85 million in a funding round co-led by Pantera Capital, Framework Ventures, and Peter Thiel’s Founders Fund. Other participants include Ethereal, Robot Ventures, Symbolic Capital, Delphi, Dao5, Nomad, and Primitive Ventures.

Sandeep Nailwal, the founder of Polygon and a key contributor to Sentient, emphasized the platform's potential to democratize AI development and counter the concentration of power in a few centralized entities.

The platform is backed by esteemed professors Pramod Viswanath and Himanshu Tyagi, who aim to compete directly with OpenAI. The funds from this round will be used to accelerate the development of Sentient's AI platform, with the testnet scheduled for Q3 this year. This investment signifies a positive outlook for the blockchain industry, particularly in the DeFi and BRC 20 sectors.