Toronto-based Web3 gaming analytics startup Helika has unveiled Helika Accelerate, a $50-million gaming accelerator program.
With backing from venture capital firms Sfermion, Pantera Capital, and The Spartan Group, the program is meant to provide traditional and Web3 gaming studios with education and mentorship on game and economy design, game balancing, user acquisition, and liveops. Helika says that, with its venture capital partners, it will provide up to $50 million to the gaming studios emerging from the accelerator.
Founded in 2022 by CEO Anton Umnov, CPO Lucas Fulks, and CTO Cori Crohman, Helika says it synthesizes data across chains, social media platforms, and games with an AI-powered suite of products for game studios. Its offering is aimed at providing actionable insights that improve player engagement, retention, and monetization. As part of the accelerator, cohort members will also gain access to Helika’s offering for six months.
“Web3 has a big issue; games are settling for ‘good enough,’” the company said in a recent LinkedIn post. “We’re excited to be supporting games with our team’s expertise in game development, Web3, data analytics, tokenomics, and fundraising.”
Helika says the accelerator is targeted at independent to mid-sized studios with at least a five-person team and that cohorts are small, with three to five studios per cohort.
RELATED: Helika closes $10.8-million CAD Series A for Web3 gaming analytics platform
Last month, Helika closed an oversubscribed $10.8 million CAD ($8 million USD) Series A round led by accelerator partner Pantera Capital with participation from fellow partner Sfermion. Other participants included Sparkle Ventures, Diagram Ventures, and a few individual investors, including Yuga Labs chief gaming officer Spencer Tucker.
Following the raise, Helika claimed to have surpassed seven figures in revenue in under a year and Umnov told BetaKit the startup had raised $12.5 million USD in funding to date.
The startup has been focused on releasing foundational analytics, attribution, and liveops products in the year leading up to its Series A round. The startup’s success in the United States and Europe prompted Helika to continue developing its AI-powered game management products and enter the Asia-Pacific market, Umnov said in a statement at the time.
Helika currently counts Web3 gaming studios such as Wildcard Alliance, WAGMI, Treasure, and Yuga Labs—the studio behind the Bored Ape Yacht Club NFT series—among its customers.