Participated · Series A · Feb 2018

Tunity builds a cloud and mobile Deep Learning and Computer Vision platform that lets users hear live audio from muted televisions (e.g., at bars, gyms, airports) directly on their phones. After a user scans a nearby TV screen, the app identifies the live video stream and its exact timing, syncing audio to the mobile device. The service currently works with more than 100 channels in the United States, including FOX, CBS and ESPN. Tunity is available on Google Play and the App Store. The company intends to use the new funding to complete productization of its data and to enhance its patented cloud-based Deep Learning and Computer Vision technology. MGM Resorts will integrate Tunity’s patented technology to enable guests to hear any TV at its properties through their mobile applications.

Led · Equity · Dec 2016

Survios builds consumer virtual-reality games and has shipped notable titles including Raw Data, Creed: Rise to Glory, Battlewake, and Westworld Awakening. The studio recently released The Walking Dead: Onslaught on Steam and is debuting it on PlayStation VR, with an original story co-written by TV show writers and featuring Norman Reedus. Survios has expanded into VR game publishing and deliberately chose not to pursue proprietary hardware, focusing instead on software and cross-platform play. The company is investing in cross-play and locomotion techniques to improve immersion and reduce VR nausea, and it delivers haptic sensations to increase presence. Leadership has been strengthened with new hires in marketing, product, and art to support growth and franchise work. The company views the upcoming hardware cycle (e.g., Oculus Quest 2) and increased consumer interest during the pandemic as tailwinds for larger-scale game distribution. Survios is a VR game studio best known for Raw Data, a title that runs on the HTC Vive. The studio says Raw Data grossed more than $1 million in revenue in the month after its Steam launch. Survios plans to use the new funding to bring Raw Data to more platforms and to expand the broader universe around the title. The company has emphasized location-based entertainment as an important channel to introduce people to VR and generate additional revenue beyond retail releases. Consumer headset adoption has been slower than expected due to high hardware prices, which informs Survios’s focus on theater- and arcade-style experiences. The funding and studio partnerships are intended to support Survios’s goal of becoming a leading publisher and content creator in virtual reality. Survios develops an immersive VR platform that combines body-tracking input with headset-based 3D worlds, described in the article as a "Kinect-meets-Oculus-Rift." The company's technology maps users' physical movements into virtual environments and is currently focused on gaming applications. Survios originated from the University of Southern California Mixed Reality Lab, the same lab that counts Oculus founder Palmer Luckey as an alum. The company recently received external validation and funding momentum following Facebook's acquisition of Oculus. With the new capital, Survios plans to scale its technology and operations to expand its VR offerings. The article highlights hands-on demos at the company's San Francisco headquarters, indicating a working product and active development pipeline.

Participated · Series B · Nov 2015

Tubi operates a free, ad-supported VOD service with a library of more than 12,000 movies and television series (about 40,000 hours of content) across devices including Roku, Amazon Fire TV, Samsung TVs, iOS, Android and Comcast X1. In 2018 the service saw viewership grow over 4.3x year-over-year, revenue grow over 180%, and it was profitable in Q4 2018. Tubi said it will reinvest profits into content acquisitions and plans to invest over nine figures to rapidly expand its catalog. The company closed a $25 million growth capital facility with Silicon Valley Bank to fund content acquisition and marketing. Tubi has formed distribution and ad-sales partnerships including Horizon Media (strategic partnership) and Rogers Media (exclusive Canadian ad sales representation). The service is currently available in the US and Canada and announced plans to launch in additional international territories in 2019. Tubi TV operates a free, ad-supported streaming service that aggregates a rotating catalog of over 50,000 titles from roughly 200 content partners, including Lionsgate, MGM, Paramount Pictures and Starz. The service targets millennial viewers and spans genres from anime and international TV to classics, indie films and documentaries. Tubi reports millions of users and saw 9x growth in monthly active users in 2016 versus the prior year. Ads are limited compared with TV (about 4–5 minutes of commercials per 30 minutes of content), and advertisers have included brands such as Fox, Unilever and Amazon. The company has built an in-house TV analytics platform to A/B test and optimize content curation and ad targeting. Tubi is available across web, mobile, game consoles and streaming players and plans to use new funding to scale, hire engineering/product/data staff, and expand marketing and analytics efforts. Tubi TV operates a free, ad-supported streaming service available on mobile devices, gaming consoles, and streaming media players. The company aggregates licensed content from more than 200 partners and offers roughly 40,000 hours of movies and TV shows, with new titles added weekly. It monetizes via direct and programmatic advertising, with ad breaks ranging from 15 seconds to two minutes and proprietary tech to avoid interrupting dialog. The app has been installed over 20 million times and attracts “millions” of monthly active users who spend over an hour per session; its audience grew over 400% year-to-date. Tubi TV is not yet profitable but is growing rapidly and plans to expand its team—already about 40 people, which tripled in the prior six months—with hires in engineering and marketing. Strategic investments from studios may enable expanded licensing options, though the company has not disclosed specific future plans.