X Ventures released its State of Web3 Capital 2026 report, which analyzed over 200 startup applications submitted between January and May 2026 through the Proof of Pitch program. The report details sector trends, funding stages, and blockchain preferences within the current Web3 landscape.

Real-world asset (RWA) tokenization constituted the primary sector for 29% of the applicants. Decentralized finance (DeFi) followed, representing 23% of the primary sectors identified. Decentralized AI accounted for 11% of applicant sectors, while DePIN made up 7% of the applicant sectors.

A majority of the applicants, 56%, are in pre-revenue stages, according to the report. Thirty-seven percent of applicants are already generating revenue, and 7% reported profitability. Most applicants, 89%, remain at either the pre-seed or seed stage, with 49% classified as pre-seed and 40% raising seed rounds.

North America represented 35% of applicants, and Europe accounted for 25%. The Middle East made up 5% of the applicant pool. Solana was the most frequently mentioned blockchain, appearing in 25% of applications. Ethereum was mentioned in 22% of applications, and Base appeared in 21%.

Ferdinand Le Tendre, Head of Accelerator at X Ventures, commented on the findings. Le Tendre noted that Canton Network was mentioned by 7% of founders. "A year ago people treated stablecoins as plumbing. Now stablecoins are the clearest product-market fit in the industry and the entry point for almost every payments and treasury discussion we have with institutions," Le Tendre said. "Most people read this report and see a market maturing. I see a market picking sides, and it is choosing institutional finance over crypto-native finance," he said.

Le Tendre added that RWA surpassing DeFi in interest indicates a shift in industry perspective. "RWA overtaking DeFi is the tell. It is the industry admitting the future is not a parallel financial system, it is the existing one rebuilt on better rails," Le Tendre stated. "The defining infrastructure story of the next two years is not the chains everyone is naming today. Watch Canton," he said. "The winners of this cycle will not have the loudest community. They will have the rails banks can use, the revenue to prove it, and the discipline to make the crypto invisible and the value obvious," Le Tendre said.