ChainCatcher news, according to TechCrunch, AI video generation tool Haiper has completed a $13.8 million seed round financing, led by Octopus Ventures, with participation from 5Y Capital. Haiper had previously completed a $5.4 million Pre-Seed round financing in April 2022, with angel investors including Phil Blunsom and Nando de Freitas.It is reported that Haiper was launched by former DeepMind members Yishu Miao and Ziyu Wang. Users can generate videos for free on the Haiper website by inputting text prompts, although there are certain limitations. Haiper is planning to expand its video generation capabilities and has been exploring commercial use cases with companies such as JD.com.

ChainCatcher news, the Near ecological multi-chain network [Octopus Network](https://www.rootdata.com/zh/Projects/detail/Octopus Network?k=MTQ0NQ==) has launched version 2.0, planning to introduce the NEAR IBC Port in the second quarter to connect with Cosmos chains and support cross-chain asset transfers. NEAR Restaking will go live in the third quarter, providing shared security services for Cosmos chains.According to a report by ChainCatcher last December, 40% of the core team members of Octopus Network left, and the team token incentives were indefinitely suspended. This measure aims to help Octopus Network weather the crypto winter, with the team focusing on Near and IBC as the strategic cornerstones for development. (Source link)

ChainCatcher news, Louis Liu, the founder of the Near ecosystem multi-chain network Octopus Network, published a blog post stating that the core team of Octopus Network will launch a voluntary resignation plan for restructuring, with approximately 40% of the members (12 out of 30) leaving the core team through this plan. The remaining team members will accept a 20% salary reduction, and the team token incentives will be indefinitely suspended.According to reports, Louis Liu stated that the plan aims to help Octopus Network survive the crypto winter, and next year the team will focus on Near and IBC as strategic cornerstones for development. If users have any questions regarding Octopus 2.0 and the restructuring of the core team, Louis Liu will provide explanations in a community conference call on January 8.According to data from RootData, Octopus Network completed a $3 million seed round financing in April last year, with participation from NGC Capital, OKX Blockdream Ventures, Spark Digital Capital, and others. Additionally, the project completed a $5 million Series A financing in September last year, with participation from Youbi Capital, DCG, Gate Labs, and others. (Source link)

ChainCatcher news, the UK-based investment management platform Sidekick has completed a £3.3 million (approximately $3.82 million) Pre Seed funding round, led by Octopus Ventures, with participation from Seedcamp, Semantic, Grabyo founder Will Neale, Gumtree co-founder Michael Pennington, Tandem Bank co-founder Ricky Knox, Credit Kudos co-founder Freddy Kelly, Azimo co-founder Michael Kent, and Mark Ransford.It is reported that Sidekick aims to help millennials become wealthier by providing access to positive portfolio management, educational tools, and the ability to invest in assets such as cryptocurrencies and private equity. Sidekick charges an annual management fee of 1% on the amount invested in each portfolio, with cryptocurrency potentially being slightly higher. (source link)