Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss are betting on privacy protocols gaining traction amid rapid advancements in artificial intelligence.
The twins, co-founders of Gemini, announced the launch of Cypherpunk, a digital asset treasury (DAT) focused on Zcash (ZEC$615.38). The fund has raised $100 million to acquire ZEC for its treasury, aiming to accumulate up to 5% of the circulating supply. Currently, Cypherpunk holds 233,644 ZEC.
Speaking at the Bitcoin Amsterdam conference, the brothers said their focus on privacy stems from AI’s exponential growth over the past two years.
Zcash positioned as privacy layer alongside Bitcoin
The twins see Zcash complementing Bitcoin (BTC$83,183) rather than competing with it. While Bitcoin may adopt additional privacy functions over time, Zcash can serve as a dedicated privacy layer for transactions, leaving Bitcoin as the primary store of value.
I think the current world works with Bitcoin and Zcash. Bitcoin proved decentralization and non-government money. But there’s more work to be done, and Zcash fills the privacy gap.
Cypherpunk and Zcash regain attention
While Zcash has been live since 2016, its profile has surged in 2025. Cameron Winklevoss said the protocol has reached a new inflection point, similar to milestones seen with Bitcoin over its 16-year history.
Bitcoin had key inflection points, like the Cyprus bail-in in 2013. That’s when the world started to notice. AI is now creating a similar moment for privacy protocols.
The brothers highlighted the influence of early cypherpunks, including Zooko Wilcox, co-founder of Zcash, as driving enthusiasm for the project.
Winklevoss twins embrace diverse crypto innovation
Known as early Bitcoin adopters on Wall Street they purchased 100,000 BTC in 2013 the Winklevoss twins have supported innovation across multiple protocols.
We don’t see this as a zero-sum game. Bitcoin is gold 2.0, but other protocols like Ethereum and Zcash expand the ecosystem. Innovation in different areas helps the whole space, including Bitcoin.
They emphasized that new solutions for programmability, privacy, and other utilities broaden adoption and solve previous limitations in the market.