Augmented Reality-based mobile studio BitPet announced that it has received investment from WePlay Ventures and strategic angel investors.
Augmented Reality-based mobile studio BitPet announced that it has received investment from WePlay Ventures and strategic angel investors. The startup received this investment after graduating from the WePlay HUB Accelerator Program. Financial details of the investment have not yet been disclosed.
In addition to WePlay Ventures, six other angel investors participated in the investment round. Angel investors include John Wright, Vice President of UK-based gaming company Kwalee, and Fatih Haltasli, founder of London-based game publisher Matchingham Games.
BitPet was founded in 2020 by Mathias Grønstad and Kahoot co-founder Professor Alf Inge Wang. The startup aims to transform daily physical activity into a fun experience through location-based and augmented reality (AR) gaming. With this investment round, BitPet will offer its AR-based mobile game to users.
BitPet’s concept is based on exergame research conducted at NTNU in Norway, where Wang is a professor of game technology. BitPet offers a concept where players spend time with their digital pets, and players can develop and shape their pets. Using AR, players can customize their pets in various locations or game play. They can also photograph their pets in a 3D world and then showcase them in daily themed photo contests.
In addition, players are encouraged to walk, as they can collect resources and walk their pets using the game’s location-based features. The game also offers a co-located multiplayer augmented reality experience through a partnership with Niantic, creator of Pokémon GO.
As one of the first graduates of the WePlay HUB Accelerator Program, the studio was also recently part of StartupLab, one of Scandinavia’s leading accelerators.
BitPet Co-Founder Mathias Grønstad said that they are excited to have the support of WePlay Ventures and strategic angel investors:
“With WePlay HUB’s 12-week Accelerator Program, we had the opportunity to develop ourselves in business and technical areas with global mentors on the way to our investment journey, and we had the opportunity to make many strong connections with the ecosystem WePlay HUB has created within itself.”
