Sound
Sound.xyz was a San Francisco-based music NFT platform that let independent musicians mint and sell NFT collectibles directly to fans using onchain proof of support and decentralized storage, before shutting down in January 2026.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2021
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingDigital Commerce or Content
What Sound does
Sound (operating as Sound.xyz) was a privately held music technology company founded in 2021 and headquartered in San Francisco that enabled independent musicians to mint and sell their work as NFT collectibles directly to fans. The platform used onchain proof of support and decentralized storage to provide verifiable, portable ownership records for music and metadata, and was accessible globally through a self-serve web interface with wallet connectivity, including listing on OpenSea. Its go-to-market was community-led, relying on Web3-native channels and direct artist-to-fan engagement rather than traditional sales motion.
The company initially monetized through transaction fees on primary NFT sales between artists and collectors, then pivoted in 2024 to a subscription-based fan support product after the speculative music NFT market collapsed amid regulatory scrutiny under US securities law and insufficient secondary demand. Sound raised a $5 million seed round in December 2021 led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) and a $20 million Series A in mid-2023, also led by a16z with participation from Archetype, Coinbase Ventures, Palm Tree Crew, Sound Ventures, and others, for total disclosed funding of approximately $25 million. The platform served a horizontal base of tens of thousands of independent musicians and music fans/collectors, with no disclosed enterprise contracts.
Sound.xyz officially went offline on January 16, 2026, with the team citing the need to focus fully on a successor product, Vault (vault.fm). User assets remain accessible onchain and on OpenSea, and artists can continue to claim remaining contract funds through a 0xSplits integration, but the original Sound.xyz platform is no longer operational. The company should be understood as a defunct Web3-music venture whose capital, technology stack, and community are being redirected by founders David Greenstein and team into the new Vault effort.
Sound firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Sound
- Website
- https://sound.xyz
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2021
- Operating status
- Closed
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Sound.xyz was a San Francisco-based music NFT platform that let independent musicians mint and sell NFT collectibles directly to fans using onchain proof of support and decentralized storage, before shutting down in January 2026.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Sound industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Music NFT Marketplace
- NAICS
- Sound Recording Industries (5122), Motion Picture and Sound Recording Industries (512), Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers (516210)
- SIC
- Services-Motion Picture & Video Tape Distribution (7822), Phonograph Records & Prerecorded Audio Tapes & Disks (3652)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Music & Audio NFT Marketplaces (FSADANAD)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- NFT Marketplaces & Aggregators (primary/secondary, discovery, cross-market routing) (FSAPAFAB), Music Aggregators & DIY Distribution Platforms (MPAIAAAD)
Keywords
Where Sound is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Markets served
Sound business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Digital Commerce or Content
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- NFT Sales Transaction Fees: Platform facilitated primary NFT sales between artists and fans, taking a transaction fee on each sale
- Subscription Model: Pivoted to subscription-based fan support tools after NFT-first model failed, charging recurring fees for premium access
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels2 records
Marketing channels3 records
Sound product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Sound.xyz operated a music NFT marketplace that enabled independent artists to mint, sell, and distribute their music as NFT collectibles directly to fans. The platform featured onchain proof of support and decentralized storage for music and metadata, and later pivoted to a subscription-based fan support product before going offline on January 16, 2026.
Product overview
Sound.xyz was a single unified music NFT platform that enabled artists to mint and sell their music as collectible NFTs to fans. The platform evolved from an NFT marketplace model to a subscription-based product before shutting down in January 2026. The company has since transitioned to building Vault (vault.fm), a new project focused on artist independence.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Sound.xyz (NFT Marketplace) A music NFT marketplace that enabled independent artists to mint, sell, and distribute their music as NFT collectibles directly to fans. The platform provided onchain proof of support and decentralized storage for music and metadata. Artists earned through direct NFT sales and community engagement; fans and collectors purchased music NFTs and built collections visible across connected wallets such as OpenSea.
Companies that use Sound
Customer profileSegments2 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Sound technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Feature2 records
Sound partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- Splits (splits.org)corePlatform integrated with 0xSplits to enable artists to claim remaining funds after Sound.xyz went offline. Splits is a smart contract-based payment distribution protocol.
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights3 records
Sound competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- OpenSea: OpenSea is the largest general NFT marketplace and served as a secondary distribution channel for Sound.xyz collections via wallet integration. It is a broad incumbent that encompasses music NFTs as a sub-category.
- Patreon: Patreon is the dominant subscription-based platform for direct artist-to-fan monetization. It is the closest Web2 incumbent to Sound.xyz's post-pivot subscription model for fan support.
- Zora: Zora is a broad Web3 protocol and marketplace for NFTs across categories including music. While not music-specialized like Sound.xyz, it served as comparable NFT infrastructure for music creators and collectors.
Emerging players
- Decent: Decent is a Web3 music platform offering tokenized music, NFTs, and direct artist-to-fan distribution. It is comparable to Sound.xyz in its use of blockchain rails for independent music monetization.
- SoundMint: SoundMint is a music NFT minting and marketplace platform focused on limited-edition audio drops. It targets a similar independent artist and collector niche as Sound.xyz but operates at a smaller scale.
- Audius: Audius is a decentralized music streaming protocol with a native token economy that competes for Web3-native artist mindshare. It overlaps with Sound.xyz in its Web3-music positioning but uses streaming rather than NFTs as its core mechanic.
- Opulous: Opulous is a Web3 music platform offering NFT-based artist financing and a music NFT marketplace. It overlaps with Sound.xyz in serving independent artists with blockchain-based monetization tools.
Direct peers
- Catalog: Catalog is a music NFT platform that lets artists tokenize individual tracks and editions for direct fan sales. It overlaps with Sound.xyz's core use case of NFT-based music collectibles and direct artist monetization.
- OneOf: OneOf is a music NFT marketplace built on Tezos that partnered with major artists and labels. It is a direct peer in the music NFT space, having raised ~$63M during the same 2021-2022 cycle as Sound.xyz.
- Royal.io: Royal.io is a music NFT and fractional ownership platform that lets fans buy shares in songs and earn royalties. It is one of the closest direct competitors to Sound.xyz in the music NFT category and raised significantly more capital ($71M).
Market position
Strengths3 records
Weaknesses4 records
Competitive moat3 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights5 records
Customer concentration
Sound social profiles
Digital presenceSound financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Sound leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Sound funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors16 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Sound M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Sound
What does Sound do?
Sound.xyz operated a music NFT marketplace that enabled independent artists to mint, sell, and distribute their music as NFT collectibles directly to fans. The platform featured onchain proof of support and decentralized storage for music and metadata, and later pivoted to a subscription-based fan support product before going offline on January 16, 2026.
Is Sound a public or private company?
Sound is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently closed.
When was Sound founded?
Sound was founded in 2021. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Sound based?
Sound is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Sound make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. NFT Sales Transaction Fees are the primary driver. The others are subscription Model.
Who are Sound's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are OpenSea, Patreon and Zora. Emerging players are Decent, SoundMint, Audius and Opulous. Direct peers are Catalog, OneOf and Royal.io.
Does Sound have an API?
No public API is recorded for Sound.
What industry is Sound in?
Sound's product category is Music NFT Marketplace. Its primary akta.pro industry code is FSADANAD, Music & Audio NFT Marketplaces, with a secondary code of FSAPAFAB, NFT Marketplaces & Aggregators (primary/secondary, discovery, cross-market routing). Its NAICS code is 5122 and its SIC code is 7822.