# Blackbird Labs

> Blackbird Labs is a New York-based restaurant technology company that pairs a consumer dining app with a blockchain-based payments and loyalty network. Founded in 2022 by Resy and Eater co-founder Ben Leventhal, Blackbird lets diners check in at participating restaurants, earn a rewards currency called $FLY, and pay their bill through the app, while giving restaurants lower payment-processing fees and direct ownership of their guest data. The company runs its own layer-2 network, Flynet, and operates in New York, San Francisco, and Charleston with roughly 1,000 restaurants on the platform.

- **Founded:** 2022
- **Headquarters:** New York, United States
- **Founders:** Ben Leventhal (Founder and CEO)
- **Team size:** ~76 employees
- **Products:** Blackbird App, Blackbird Pay, $FLY, Flynet, Blackbird Club
- **Notable:** Raised $50M Series B in April 2025, bringing total funding to roughly $85-96M., Grew to approximately 1,000 participating restaurants across three U.S. markets., Launched Flynet, its own blockchain mainnet, in February 2025.

## Products & services

- **Blackbird App** — Consumer mobile app where diners check in at participating restaurants, earn the $FLY rewards currency, unlock perks like priority tables and off-menu items, and pay their bill.
- **Blackbird Pay** — In-app payments that let diners settle their check with USDC or $FLY, charging restaurants a flat ~2% fee instead of the 3.5-4% typical of card processors.
- **$FLY** — Blackbird's native rewards token, earned by dining at participating venues and usable across the network; restaurants can also use it to pay platform fees.
- **Flynet** — Blackbird's own blockchain network (mainnet), the rails that power $FLY, loyalty, and payments across the platform.
- **Blackbird Club** — A tiered, cross-restaurant membership and points program offering priority access to tables at 100+ Blackbird Club restaurants via concierge, plus Friends & Family perks.
- **Coffee Club** — A rewards program where users earn 10% back in points when paying with Blackbird at participating coffee shops and cafés.

## Achievements

- Raised $50M Series B in April 2025, bringing total funding to roughly $85-96M.
- Grew to approximately 1,000 participating restaurants across three U.S. markets.
- Launched Flynet, its own blockchain mainnet, in February 2025.
- Founded by Ben Leventhal, co-founder of Eater and Resy (Resy acquired by American Express in 2019).
- Assembled a cap table spanning Spark Capital, Coinbase, a16z crypto, Union Square Ventures, and Amex Ventures.

## Latest updates

- **2025-04** — Closed a $50M Series B led by Spark Capital to fund U.S. expansion and launch Blackbird Club.
- **2025-02** — Went live with Flynet, its own blockchain mainnet powering $FLY and payments.
- **2023-10** — Raised a $24M Series A from a16z crypto, Amex Ventures and others.

## Links

- Website: https://blackbird.xyz
- LinkedIn: http://www.linkedin.com/company/blackbirdlabsinc
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/blackbird_xyz
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/blackbird.xyz

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/blackbird-labs
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-07-22