Andreessen Horowitz is renaming its crypto-focused arm a16z Frontier, TechCrunch reports, retiring one of the most recognizable brand names in venture capital as blockchain investing falls out of vogue.
a16z was among the firms that leaned hardest into crypto. It raised multi-billion-dollar funds dedicated to the sector, built a dedicated media operation around it, and made digital assets a centerpiece of its public policy work. As a division name, "a16z Crypto" was as much a statement of thesis as a label.
The new name says that thesis has broadened. Crypto has not vanished from the market, but it no longer sits at the center of where venture money and attention flow — a position increasingly held by AI and by defense-related software.
A rename does not by itself move money. What the firm invests in next, and whether existing crypto commitments keep deploying at the same pace, is the part worth watching; the specifics are in the original TechCrunch report.
