Participated · Series B · Jun 2023

Anzu provides an intrinsic in-game advertising solution that integrates advertising into cloud, PC, console, and mobile games and complex 3D environments. The company has expanded measurement capabilities for advertisers, connected with exclusive AAA games and premium content, and secured patents for its proprietary technology. Anzu recently hired Nerissa MacDonald as EVP Global Sales and plans to use new funding to build out its global leadership team. The company intends to grow its U.S. footprint by developing teams across the country and to remain independent and focused on improving advertising in games. Management and investors characterize in-game advertising as a rapidly growing market with multi-billion-dollar potential. Anzu is a Tel-Aviv, Israel–based in-game advertising platform led by co-founder and CEO Itamar Benedy. The platform integrates non-intrusive, real-world brand ads into gameplay to enable top-tier game developers to monetize users and allow Fortune 500 brands to reach gaming and esports audiences. The company recently launched an ad-verification solution that ensures ads are viewable and delivered in a brand-safe, fraud-free environment. Anzu raised $6.5M in Series A funding to support its growth. It plans to use the funds to expand market offerings specifically targeting Triple AAA game franchises on PC and consoles. The company also intends to strengthen its presence in European and North American markets by scaling business development efforts in those regions.

Participated · Equity · Mar 2022

Anzu.io is an in-game advertising platform. The company announced it closed a $20M funding round. NBCUniversal and HTC joined as investors alongside existing backers WPP, Sony Innovation Fund and BITKRAFT Ventures. The post also lists HBSE Ventures, Alumni Ventures, Chicago Cubs, GOAL Ventures and Marc Merrill among backers. The raise brings Anzu's total funding to $37M since 2017. The announcement did not disclose operating metrics or future product plans. Anzu.io provides in-game advertising technology that embeds real-world ads into high-quality video games, esports tournaments and live streams across console, PC and mobile. Its clients include game publishers Ubisoft, Lion Castle and Nacon, and global brands PepsiCo, Samsung and Vodafone. The company positions gaming as an increasingly important advertising channel as the industry grows (the article notes gaming is larger than music and film combined and expected to reach about $257 billion by 2025). Anzu received $9 million in new funding to fuel international expansion. With the new capital it plans to expand in the US (starting in Los Angeles and New York) and into Asian markets including Singapore and China. No revenue or user metrics were disclosed in the article. Anzu.io provides a programmatic in-game advertising platform with real-time analytics that serves dynamic, IAB-recognized ad formats directly inside games without disrupting player experience. The company emphasizes hyper-targeting and personalized advertising to enable Fortune 500 brands to reach audiences in-game and helps developers monetize the same user in multiple ways. Anzu.io recently launched the first ad-verification solution in console gaming to ensure viewability, brand safety, and fraud protection. Its technology deploys real-world ads through exclusive inventory in top video games and promises improved programmatic delivery and real-time data optimization. The company plans to expand offerings to target triple-A PC and console franchises and to scale business development in European and North American markets. Anzu.io has 13 employees and raised $6.5 million in the financing announced in the article.

Participated · Equity · Oct 2017

The Mighty operates a social network and media site where people with chronic illnesses, mental health disorders, and disabilities share personal stories and support. Founded by Mike Porath in 2014, the company is Los Angeles-based and mission-driven to "empower and connect people facing health conditions and disabilities." The site has grown to more than 1 million community members, a 10 million-strong newsletter subscriber base, and adds about 150,000 newsletter signups per month. Editorially the company staffs 15 editors and writers and supports over 10,000 unpaid contributors. Early traffic growth and partnerships have produced incipient revenue from sponsored posts, videos, and surveys; The Mighty runs sponsored posts rather than branded drug ads. The company recently struck a partnership with WPP to surface its storytellers to healthcare clients and is building new features including a Quora-style Q&A and one-to-one messaging. Peter Wang joined as CTO to help build product and scale the platform. GGV Capital’s involvement is intended to help accelerate international growth.

Led · Equity · Sep 2017

Gimlet Media operates a network producing podcasts. The company announced a $5 million investment from advertising conglomerate WPP. That investment follows a $15 million raise the prior month, bringing Gimlet's summer fundraising to $20 million. The articles identify Gimlet primarily by its podcasting business and recent financing activity. No operational metrics or explicit future product plans are provided in the articles. The coverage highlights the company's growing ties to large marketing players through the WPP investment. Gimlet Media produces narrative and serialized podcasts and develops branded audio through its Gimlet Creative arm. Founded in 2014 by Alex Blumberg and Matthew Lieber, the company creates both nonfiction and fiction programming. Its IP has been licensed for television and film, including an ABC adaptation of StartUp (Alex, Inc.), an Amazon series adaptation of Homecoming, and a film based on a Reply All episode. Gimlet operates a staff of around 80 and generates revenue from advertising and IP licensing. Future plans include developing more programs, expanding staff and Gimlet Creative, and tailoring formats for emerging platforms like Alexa, Google Home and Apple HomePod. American Podcasting Corp builds high-quality, narrative podcasts and positions itself as a content company competing with established networks like Maximum Fun, Earwolf, Carolla Digital and Nerdist. Cofounders Alex Blumberg and Matt Lieber are documenting the company’s creation on the StartUp Podcast and plan a forthcoming rebrand. The company has sought external financing via a debt-only raise and was the subject of an SEC filing. The filing reported $675,000 raised on an offered $1.5 million debt-only round; the founders later said the team had raised slightly more than $1 million. The network has received media attention, including a Washington Post story about podcast profitability and an excerpt aired on This American Life. Future plans emphasized in coverage focus on building a sustainable content business in the podcasting sector.

Led · Series C · Jun 2017

Mic Network produces news and branded content aimed at millennials, publishing text and video across topic channels such as politics, social justice, personal finance, entertainment, technology, beauty, food and travel, and gaming. The company creates sponsored content for advertisers seeking to reach millennial audiences and lists clients including Alphabet, Discover, Goldman Sachs, Marriott, Netflix, Chanel and Microsoft. Mic operates multiple themed channels (e.g., Navigating Trump’s America, The Movement, Payoff, Slay, Hype, The Future Is Now, Strut, Out of Office, Multiplayer) in addition to core news coverage. Founded in 2011 and based in New York, Mic employs 165 people and maintains bureaus in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Chicago, Toronto, Stockholm and Kiev. The article states the company has raised about US$60M in funding since inception. No revenue or user metrics are disclosed in the article. Mic is a millennial-focused digital publisher that emphasizes video news and topical content channels. The company reaches 66 million unique readers and viewers each month, and 75% of its daily views come from video. It launched its first video series about two years prior to the article and recently announced nine new content channels covering topics like women’s issues and pop culture. Mic says its advertising business tripled revenue year-over-year, and that three quarters of advertisers who bought with Mic returned. The company plans to accelerate investment in video news and to expand premium video offerings for live and SVOD distributors using the new funding. Mic was founded in 2011. Mic publishes news and video content targeted at millennials, retaining a political emphasis from its PolicyMic roots while presenting a more serious tone than list-driven peers. The company reports its audience tripled from 9 million in January 2014 to 30 million in May 2015, with 70% of readers under 35. Mic operates a roughly 45-person newsroom and plans to grow to more than 100 staff within 18 months. It is expanding its brand partnership team to build advertiser-facing branded content and increasing investment in video after its Flip the Script series achieved 33 million views across eight episodes. The company recently hired Madhulika Sikka, formerly executive editor at NPR, as Mic’s executive editor to help lead editorial growth. Mic has raised new capital to fund this expansion and conversion to a text-and-video brand across phones, laptops and tablets.