Aliens TLDR

UnicornDAO raised $4.5 million with investment from Yuga Labs and ConsenSys Mesh, among others Only 5% of NFT sales go toward projects from female artists, according to UnicornDAO A new DAO is challenging the male-dominated NFT and Web3 landscape by funding and empowering women and LGBTQ+ artists.

UnicornDAO, started by Pussy Riot founding member Nadya Tolokonnikova, collects NFT (non-fungible token) artwork from such artists and provides them with the platform and funds to continue their creative endeavors.

UnicornDAO can be the instrument that “brings beautiful and cute adoption of NFTs by people who are repulsed right now by bro culture,” Tolokonnikova told Blockworks.

DAO members include musicians Grimes and Sia, NFT artist Beeple and entrepreneur Guy Oseary.

UnicornDAO’s partnership with crypto payments infrastructure provider MoonPay enables creators to become members of the DAO via a sponsorship program without being hindered by financial barriers to entry.

The political branch will implement the business model of UkraineDAO, another of Tolokonnikova and Caldwell’s recent ventures that raised over $7 million in less than one week via an NFT sale to aid Ukrainian citizens during the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Caldwell said UnicornDAO is not like other communities because it’s “safe, fun, accepting, and there’s a path towards activism and financial freedom.” He described the organization as a “lighthouse” for those who are crypto- and Web3-curious but may not fit into the space’s traditional communities.

“Behind all the tech, I still think the NFT community is about human connection,” Caldwell said.