Bluesky Secures $100M Series B Amid Leadership Transition
Bluesky, the decentralized social media protocol and client, has revealed a previously unannounced $100 million Series B funding round. The round was led by Bain Capital Crypto and closed in April 2025. The disclosure coincides with a significant shift in the company’s executive leadership, as founder and CEO Jay Graber transitions to the role of Chief Innovation Officer.
Investor Backing and Financial Timeline
The substantial round included participation from several notable firms: Alumni Ventures, True Ventures, Anthos Capital, Bloomberg Beta, and the Knight Foundation. This financing follows Bluesky’s $15 million Series A in October 2024 and an earlier $8 million seed round in 2023, bringing the company’s total disclosed funding to approximately $123 million. Bluesky did not release an updated valuation figure with this announcement.
The involvement of Bain Capital Crypto, a firm known for investments in blockchain and Web3 infrastructure, signals strong institutional confidence in Bluesky’s decentralized social networking model. The Knight Foundation’s participation further underscores the project’s alignment with mission-driven goals around information ecosystems and civic discourse.
Executive Leadership Change
The funding news was revealed about one week after Bluesky announced a leadership transition. Jay Graber, who has served as CEO since the project’s inception as an independent company, will move into the newly created position of Chief Innovation Officer. Toni Schneider, a seasoned technology executive and former CEO of Automattic (the company behind WordPress.com), has been appointed as interim Chief Executive Officer while the board conducts a search for a permanent CEO.
This change comes at a pivotal time as Bluesky scales its operations and user base, suggesting the board is preparing for a phase of accelerated growth and professionalized management.
User Growth and Ecosystem Expansion
Since closing its Series A in late 2024, Bluesky has reported substantial user growth. The company stated its user base has climbed from 13 million to more than 43 million. This surge aligns with broader public interest in alternatives to centralized social platforms.
A key part of Bluesky’s strategy is the AT Protocol, its underlying open-source technology. The company highlighted that the protocol now supports a burgeoning ecosystem of third-party applications beyond the official Bluesky client. Mentioned examples include Skylight, Flashes, Surf, and Blacksky, illustrating the protocol’s role as a foundational layer for a diverse network of social experiences.
Disclosure: This article was edited by Estefano Gomez. For more information on how we create and review content, see our Editorial Policy.
