Tang Yi, Executive Director of Qiming Venture Partners: Optimistic about the long-term development of Web3, emphasizes project sustainability.

Qiming Venture Partners is a globally renowned venture capital firm that has established a wide presence and achieved significant accomplishments in traditional and Web2 sectors. In recent years, the firm has also begun to focus on and invest in the Web3 industry. This article features an interview with Tang Yi, the Executive Director responsible for Qiming Venture Partners' investments in the Web3 sector, exploring the firm's investment strategies, areas of focus, and analysis and outlook on the industry.

Introduction of Tang Yi: Qiming Venture Partners began investing in the cryptocurrency and Web3 sectors in 2019, and has currently invested in 16-17 projects. Although the market was in a downturn at that time, Qiming Venture Partners is optimistic about the long-term potential of this industry. They believe that from a technological and talent perspective, this market is very attractive, with many excellent engineers and developers innovating and conducting research in various fields.

Qiming Venture Partners' Web3 investment strategy focuses on supporting Chinese entrepreneurs and aims to establish a presence in the global crypto market. Their investment scope is broad, covering various aspects from infrastructure to application layers, including middleware and wallet projects. Tang Yi stated that they would flexibly adjust their investment strategies and amounts based on the different stages and needs of the projects.

In terms of specific investment directions, Qiming Venture Partners focuses on user entry and infrastructure projects. For example, they have invested in the self-custody wallet imToken, as well as the crypto finance company Matrixport aimed at institutional users. In terms of underlying infrastructure, they have invested in projects such as staking service providers. Additionally, they have also made early investment attempts in application layer fields such as DeFi, NFTs, and Gaming.

Regarding the current market conditions, Tang Yi stated that although it is difficult to predict the turning point of the market, he is relatively optimistic about the market improving before the end of next year. He emphasized that the key is to ensure that the invested companies maintain sufficient long-term capital reserves, preferably with sustainable income and value capture capabilities, to weather the possible market winter.

In terms of investment strategy, Tang Yi stated that Qiming Venture Partners hopes to maintain a stable investment pace, although it may be adjusted during bull and bear markets. He believes that the investment environment during a bear market is healthier for the entire ecosystem and projects, as investors can evaluate projects more rationally and engage in deeper communication with the teams.

When discussing the elements required for the mass adoption of Web3, Tang Yi pointed out that there is still a significant gap between Web3 and Web2 in terms of user scale and experience. He believes that this is mainly due to the acceptance issues related to cryptocurrency payment experiences, as well as the inadequacies of the underlying infrastructure. Tang Yi expects that resolving these issues may take a considerable amount of time and cannot be quickly solved in the short term.

For Web2 entrepreneurs entering the Web3 space, Tang Yi holds a positive attitude. He believes that these entrepreneurs often possess strong technical skills, execution ability, and product awareness. As long as they are willing to invest time to learn and understand the unique demands of Web3, they can usually adapt quickly and achieve success.

Finally, regarding the phenomenon of some Web3 entrepreneurs turning to the AI field, Tang Yi expressed an understanding of this choice. He believes it reflects the challenges currently faced by the Web3 industry, such as the lack of new use cases and scenarios, as well as the slow process of large-scale adoption compared to expectations. At the same time, he also pointed out that there is also uncertainty in the AI field, suggesting that entrepreneurs should choose their development direction based on their own interests and abilities, and be prepared for long-term exploration.