Bangalore-based gaming startup MetaShot has secured $400K in a pre-seed round with participation from investing platform Inflection Point Ventures (IPV).
MetaShot aims to bring the joy of sports to every living room, to democratise the console gaming industry with its technologies and to make metaphysical gaming devices accessible to millions of households. The company’s platform offers users an immersive cricket experience from the comfort of their living rooms. It allows users to play with their friends or strangers from around the world. MetaShot is one of the few companies from India uniquely positioned to disrupt the growing global console market.
MetaShot co-founder Prince Thomas said, “MetaShot aims to revolutionise the $72bn global gaming console market by introducing accessible metaphysical gaming, which is currently in its early stages globally and in India. Interestingly, we dreamed, designed and built MetaShot completely out of India. We thank our investors for believing in our journey and backing our mission.”
The startup’s major investor Inflection Point Ventures’ partner Vikram Ramasubramanian said, “Cricket is loved in India in all seasons and for all reasons. We see that with the right marketing and business strategy, that MetaShot has demonstrated, they can tap into billions of cricket lovers in the country and explore strategic partnership to drive their brand recall. The potential is immense, and we believe IPV can help MetaShot with this moon shot of an opportunity.”
The gaming startup is founded by three individuals. The CEO Thomas brings over 13 years of experience in product and brand-building, having previously held a management position at BankBazaar. The COO Ranjit Behera is an alumnus of IIM Bangalore and NIT Rourkela, with a background in growth and marketing strategy; he has worked at MyGate, Aditya Birla, and BankBazaar, among others, and holds two patents. The CFO Ajith Sunny comes with a sales and operations background and has experience in senior management roles in various industries, including logistics and real estate.
The company has sold its pre-booking spots for Bangalore in 24 hours. Currently, it is operating in the Bangalore market and plans to expand its operations to other cities in the second quarter of the current financial year, with aspirations to venture into other cricket-playing nations soon.
For the funding, apart from IPV, the round saw participation from an early-stage gaming focused fund and prominent angels, including founders of Dineout – Ankit Mehrotra, Sahil Jain and Khalid Qazi, among others. The funds will be used to expand the team, invest toward growth and marketing, and for R&D efforts.