AudioMob is About to Change in-game Advertising for Good

Amidst the doom and gloom for businesses worldwide, AudioMob and its founders have managed to find a bright spot to grow their idea. Their recent round of seed funding (when investors invest in startups, usually for an ownership stake in the company) attracted high-profile gaming investors such as Supercell, the developers of the hit game Clash of Clans.

Understandably, there’s a lot of excitement surrounding the company. So, what exactly do they do? They created an alternative to in-game adverts which is as simple as it is brilliant: instead of ads that interrupt players, AudioMob allows adverts to run in the background of mobile games through audio – leaving the player to continue playing.

If you’re shrugging your shoulders about the opportunities in this particular market, think again – the mobile gaming industry is worth a cool $77 billion. Plenty of space, then, for AudioMob to grow and flex its muscles.

The story of its founding reads, quite frankly, like a startup match made in Heaven. The company’s founders, Christian Facey (CEO) and Wilfrid Obeng (CTO), met whilst working at Google. With a wide range of experiences and skills gained from the likes of JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs and Google, the pair set out to create AudioMob.

The company’s niche industry, ‘in-game advertising’, is in itself huge. In the US alone, turnover amounted to over $13 billion; and with a massive boom in the gaming industry worldwide, the market for such platforms is only set to grow. Fan favourites such as Fortnite have opened the market to an even bigger audience.

When asked, almost 28% of adults prefer audio ads compared to the more conventional video ads – proving that demand clearly exists; expect an increase in interest from gaming developers and companies alike.

What makes this particular round of seed funding all the more impressive is that it was done in a global pandemic. Truth is, with economic uncertainty bouncing around, attracting investments isn’t always easy. Facey himself admitted that working to attract funds in such a climate proved difficult, as most of their clients were affected by the pandemic. But whilst coronavirus made attracting funds harder, for the founders, it made working on the company easier. Isolation from the busyness of the wider world gave Facey and Obeng found room to focus.

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Armed with a sizable amount of seed funding, the company plans to focus on research and development, recruitment and growth. With two ambitious founders at the helm, it seems the future is bright for this startup.

And whilst most leave their former employers with a degree of bitterness, it turns out their departure from Google was all hugs and rainbows; the tech giant is helping the company through its Google For Startups programme, giving them access to mentorship and a vast industry network.

Facey and Obeng have demonstarted an ability to progress through level one – but to unlock harder stages, they’ll be hoping that AudioMob is the best player in a promising market.

If you’re working on your own project during lockdown, here are a few suggestions on how to stay positive.