Sony increased its funding in Startale Group with a $13 million investment to support the company as it enters its second year of mainnet operation. Sony’s total investment in the company is estimated at $20 million.
Soneium, developed by Sony Block Solutions Labs and Startale, had a strong first year on its mainnet, prompting Sony to increase its investment by $13 million, bringing the total to $20 million. Sony described the move as part of a long-term infrastructure strategy to connect its intellectual property and consumer ecosystems.
Sony’s goal is to create a comprehensive ecosystem encompassing digital property, creator monetization, and new distribution models. A Sony spokesperson stated that the investment “does not change Sony’s operational or governance role, and the partnership structure remains unchanged,” indicating continued collaboration rather than direct operational control.
Soneium launched on the mainnet in January 2025 and is built on an Optimism Superchain (OP Stack) foundation, with Polygon CDK integrations and ZK-powered validity proofs. The architecture aims to combine broad compatibility with enterprise-grade security and lower transaction costs for high-volume consumer use cases.
Integrated ecosystem and expansion of operations
Soneium has made progress in expanding interoperability and on-chain utility through platform partnerships and integrations. One of the keys to Sony’s project is integrating operations with the Astar Network, bringing those who own ASTR into the ecosystem.
Also included is the launch of Uniswap on the network to provide on-chain liquidity, and finally, a collaboration with Plume for RWA funding via SkyLink.
Sony and Startale have emphasized creator-centric features as the main product draws for Sony Music, PlayStation, and the film divisions. The company also highlighted the platform’s potential role in provenance and fair compensation when AI-generated content and data access intersect with creative works.
For marketplaces and developers, the immediate questions will be whether Soneium maintains high throughput while increasing TVL and cross-platform liquidity. Investors and partners will likely continue to monitor on-chain activity, dApp retention, and integration results over the next few quarters as the clearest evidence of whether the network can scale toward Sony’s consumer-oriented ambitions.
