1. What is AE?

Introduction to AE Cryptocurrency

AE (Aeternity) is a blockchain-based distributed computing platform established in 2016. It aims to offer efficient, transparent, and scalable blockchain technology. The main features of Aeternity include:

1. State Channel Design: Aeternity employs state channel design, allowing for independent verification of data and smart contracts, thereby enhancing transaction speed and scalability while ensuring increased privacy.

2. Decentralised Oracles: Aeternity introduces decentralised oracles, aiming to redefine the underlying protocols of today’s smart contracts.

3. Consensus Mechanism: Aeternity uses a modified Proof of Work (PoW) consensus mechanism, combined with the Bitcoin-NG consistency algorithm and Cuckoo Cycle hashing algorithm, aimed at addressing the energy consumption and ASIC centralisation issues of traditional PoW.

4. Decentralisation: Aeternity’s design aims to prevent the concentration of wealth within blockchain systems, ensuring the decentralisation and long-term success of the system.

5. Native Token: The AE token is the native token of the Aeternity platform, which can be transferred amongst members and is used to compensate participant nodes for an arbitrary number of computations executed. All AE token users can participate in the governance of the Aeternity blockchain through a voting process.

2. Who founded AE?

The AE cryptocurrency (Aeternity) was co-founded in 2016 by German computer scientist Yanislav Malahov (known as the "Godfather of Ethereum"), along with former Augur core developer Zack Hess and former Synereo core developer Jack Pettersson.

3. Which venture capitalists invested in AE?

Based on the provided information, it is difficult to find specific investment details regarding the cryptocurrency "AE". However, from the content, it can be understood that the AE Group from 2018 (possibly unrelated to cryptocurrency) was involved in online gaming and underground currency exchange businesses instead of cryptocurrency investments.

If you are referring to the Aeternity (AE) cryptocurrency, the provided information does not directly mention its investment status. Aeternity is a cryptocurrency, but there is no relevant investment information in the search results given.

If you need investment information about Aeternity (AE) cryptocurrency, it is advisable to search on relevant cryptocurrency news websites or data platforms.

4. How does AE operate?

The AE cryptocurrency (Aeternity) is a decentralised blockchain project designed to address some issues of Ethereum, such as scalability and security. Here are the basic operational principles of AE cryptocurrency:

1. Background and Positioning: Aeternity was founded by Yanislav Malahov, who claims to be the "Godfather of Ethereum," although he did not participate in Ethereum’s development or community building. Aeternity is often referred to as "the European Ethereum," aiming to solve the scalability and security issues of Ethereum.

2. Technical Features: Aeternity employs a technology known as "state channels" to enhance transaction speed and reduce costs. State channels allow users to conduct transactions off-chain, only recording the transaction results on the blockchain when necessary, which significantly improves transaction efficiency.

3. Smart Contracts: Aeternity supports smart contracts, but unlike Ethereum, it uses a more secure programming language for writing smart contracts, which helps to reduce security risks associated with them.

4. Consensus Algorithm: Aeternity uses a consensus algorithm known as "Cuckoo Cycle," which is ASIC-resistant, aimed at preventing miners from using specialised hardware to control the network.

5. Tokens: Aeternity’s token is known as AE, used for paying transaction fees and execution fees for smart contracts.

In summary, Aeternity aims to provide a faster, safer, and more scalable blockchain platform through its unique technical features and design.