MNX, a decentralized futures exchange built on the Ethereum Layer 2 network MegaETH, raised $6.4 million in a pre-seed funding round announced Wednesday. The platform, which focuses on AI economy trading instruments, was co-founded by Stephen Grugett and Ian Philips, creators of prediction markets platform Manifold Markets. Village Global led the round with participation from Cambrian, North Island Ventures, Finality Capital, Relay Digital, and angel investors including Dwarkesh Patel, Byrne Hobart, Matt Liston (Augur and Gnosis co-founder), and Scott Moore (Gitcoin). The fundraising began in March, closing a first tranche within weeks and a second tranche last week. The startup aims to create a trading venue for AI-related assets that are currently difficult to access through existing platforms.
Village Global Leads $6.4 Million Pre-Seed Round at $40 Million Valuation
The round was structured as a simple agreement for future equity (SAFE) with token warrants at a $40 million valuation, according to Grugett. No investors in the round received board, advisory, or observer seats. The startup began fundraising in March, closing the first tranche within a couple of weeks and a second tranche last week following additional investor interest.
MNX Plans Valuation Futures and AI-Specific Prediction Markets
MNX's planned products include valuation futures, equity perpetuals, compute perpetuals, and prediction markets, each focused on the AI economy. For valuation futures, Grugett said MNX uses dated futures rather than perpetual contracts because perpetuals are not well-suited for trading illiquid private company valuations. MNX's equity perpetuals will focus primarily on AI-related companies, particularly foreign-listed stocks such as Z.ai and Sivers, while compute perpetuals will use indices from research firm SemiAnalysis. For prediction markets, the platform will focus on AI-specific topics rather than mass-market events such as sports, listing markets tied to AI benchmark numbers, product releases, company financials, and geopolitical issues. The platform also plans to offer leverage on markets where appropriate.
Platform Uses 200-Millisecond Batch Auctions on MegaETH
Rather than relying on a continuous order book, MNX uses 200-millisecond batch auctions enabled by MegaETH's sub-millisecond block times. Grugett said the design is intended to reduce the latency race and maximum extractable value (MEV), while giving all trades executed in the same auction the same price. The team does not view multi-chain support as important and expects blockchain infrastructure to remain in the background rather than something users actively think about.
MNX Targets Mainnet Launch Later This Summer
The exchange is currently in private beta with institutional partners on the MegaETH testnet and plans to launch on mainnet later this summer. To address liquidity challenges, MNX plans to launch a single Hyperliquidity Provider (HLP)-style liquidity vault managed by the team, following a model pioneered by Hyperliquid and Lighter to help provide market liquidity across the platform. For user acquisition, Grugett said MNX plans to target technology workers and retail traders seeking AI exposure while replicating the community-driven distribution strategy that helped grow Manifold Markets. The platform also sees an opportunity among crypto users who are increasingly using tokenized real-world assets as trading instruments.
Team Plans to Hire Three to Six Full-Time Employees
The fresh capital will be used to seed an HLP-style liquidity vault and hire across development and growth functions. MNX currently consists of the co-founders and several part-time non-technical contractors. The startup plans to hire three to six full-time employees over the next three months. Philips is no longer involved with Manifold Markets, and Grugett has appointed a co-chief executive officer as his successor at Manifold and is in the process of stepping away from the prediction market platform to focus on MNX.
FAQ
What did MNX raise in its pre-seed funding round?
MNX raised $6.4 million in a pre-seed funding round at a $40 million valuation. Village Global led the round with participation from Cambrian, North Island Ventures, Finality Capital, Relay Digital, and several angel investors. The round was structured as a SAFE with token warrants.
What products does MNX plan to offer?
MNX plans to offer valuation futures, equity perpetuals, compute perpetuals, and prediction markets, all focused on the AI economy. The platform uses dated futures rather than perpetual contracts for valuation futures and will focus equity perpetuals on AI-related companies such as Z.ai and Sivers.
When does MNX plan to launch on mainnet?
MNX is currently in private beta with institutional partners on the MegaETH testnet and plans to launch on mainnet later this summer. The platform uses 200-millisecond batch auctions enabled by MegaETH's sub-millisecond block times.
