(Bloomberg) -- Paris-based startup Zama has raised $73 million to further develop its cryptography technology aimed at enhancing data privacy for both blockchain and artificial-intelligence projects.

The Series A funding round was led by crypto venture fund Multicoin Capital and Filecoin creator Protocol Labs. Other investors include the Solana blockchain’s co-founder Anatoly Yakovenko and Metaplanet. The firm declined to disclose its valuation.

The startup is developing something called fully homomorphic encryption, which allows computations to be performed using encrypted data. The technology will improve data privacy and confidentiality for new industries including blockchain and AI, according to Rand Hindi, chief executive officer of Zama.

“We spent three years getting the technology to a point where it’s extremely easy to use” fully homomorphic encryption, Hindi said in interview. “So as a developer, you don’t have to know anything about cryptography to use it. You can use it for any application you want.”

The company currently has more than 75 employees, according to Hindi. The fresh capital will be used to further develop the cryptography technology, expand support for customers and extend the company’s cash runway, he said. 

“The last couple of years have taught us that we cannot expect the market to be stable anymore,” said Hindi. “Having a very long-term runway is a way to also make our customers more comfortable working with us as a startup.”

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