Tea, an open supply unified package deal supervisor for software program builders, at the moment introduced it has added one other $8.9 million in seed funding to its coffer because it builds on current momentum that has seen some 16,000 builders authenticate their software program packages with Tea.
Tea is the brainchild of Max Howell, creator of widespread open supply package deal manager Homebrew, and Timothy Lewis. The duo formally based Tea out of Puerto Rico final November, with the corporate emerging from stealth in March backed by $8 million in funding from notable backers together with the enterprise capital arm of crypto large Binance.
The corporate has made grand proclamations about the way it plans to springboard off the blockchain with a brand new web3 protocol to assist open supply software program creators and maintainers receives a commission. This can entail “digital contracts” that make it simpler for firms to sponsor these liable for key parts of their tech stack. The proposed protocol will see package deal maintainers obtain a non-fungible token (NFT) after they full a package deal submission, and which is “used to proof their work and is the important thing that directs tea rewards,” in keeping with Tea’s white paper.
For now, although, Tea’s targeted on the primary incarnation of the product which launched last month to problem well-established incumbents within the package deal administration area corresponding to GitHub-owned NPM and Homebrew itself.
Tea CLI interface mockup Picture Credit: Tea
Versatile
Tea comes with the promise that will probably be greater than a easy package deal supervisor: will probably be a “common” package deal supervisor, a common interpreter, and a digital setting supervisor. However over and above all that, it’s malleable, with builders and corporations in a position to tailor issues to their very own wants.
“What now we have launched thus far is what I take into account to be the bottom options {that a} CLI [command-line interface] instrument of its variety ought to have,” Howell advised TechCrunch. “It makes fascinated by what packages you want secondary to fascinated by what you need to obtain — what you need to construct. The way forward for Tea shall be within the extensions the neighborhood creates to cater the true energy of open supply to their particular person niches.”
Whereas that future sounds promising, supporting open supply builders of their efforts to receives a commission is arguably the most important game-changer right here. Nonetheless, Tea’s shut alignment with the crypto realm could trigger many to pause for thought, significantly in mild of the high-profile chaos emanating from the FTX collapse. Moreover the involvement of high-profile traders corresponding to Binance, Tea’s proposed protocol will see package deal maintainers obtain a non-fungible token (NFT) after they full a package deal submission, and which is “used to proof their work and is the important thing that directs tea rewards,” in keeping with the white paper.
However the the problem of funds has been a relentless dialogue level within the open supply sphere, significantly off the again of prominent security flaws such as Log4Shell. Corporations finally want a robust software supply chain, so any method that this may be supported is prone to garner a minimum of some curiosity.
There isn’t any agency date in thoughts for when Tea’s new protocol shall be prepared for prime-time, however the firm says it must be obtainable a while in 2023.
“Very similar to ready till November to launch our CLI, we’re not going to launch till we perceive the way it must be greatest constructed and have gone by trial and error internally,” Lewis added. “We’re going to take our time and ensure the instrument itself could be very helpful and beneficial for builders.”
Lewis additionally careworn that when the protocol does launch, its core parts, which embrace the blockchain registry, license administration, and remuneration options, shall be fully non-obligatory for all concerned. However it’s going to additionally function the idea for Tea’s personal enterprise mannequin.
“We’re a multi-faceted companies firm — we intend to construct instruments on this protocol that shall be revenue-generating, and encourage others to do the identical by having an immutable decentralized registry,” Lewis stated. “We’ve got a protracted checklist of potential revenue-generating outcomes relying on what the neighborhood finds most helpful.”
Extra particularly, there shall be scope for enterprise-specific companies round safety and compliance.
“We really feel that we are able to excel in licensing and license administration,” Lewis added. “Open supply provide chain safety is crucial for a lot of enterprises at the moment. We’ll have a system to assist establish potential threats and function to observe license compliance with the 1000’s of various open supply parts.”
Tea’s newest seed spherical was led by Acuitas Group Holdings, with participation from Betaworks Ventures, Percival VC, Spherical 13 Digital Belongings Fund, StrongBlock, and Wax Blockchain.
