Esports veterans launch a new esports technology company

Esports industry veterans Alexander Garfield, CEO of Evil Geniuses, is teaming with some of the top professionals in the industry to launch, Popdog, a new eSports technology and services company. The others who are part of the initiative are Andreas Thorstensson, a former Counter-Strike world champion and co-founder of SK Gaming, Niles Heron, a consultant who part of the development of TechStars, Gener8tor and Detroit’s TechTown, and Colin DeShong. The company will develop solutions to optimise live streaming for tournaments, talent, and publishers. The company has already received a $9 million Series A funding round led by Makers Fund and Korea Investment Partners.

“We’re building our company around the core belief that eSports and gaming video content, born more from technology than any other sports or entertainment verticals we’ve seen, need better technology in order to be properly understood, monetised, and optimised,” says company CEO Garfield in a prepared statement.

“The industry needs a backend, and our mission is to be that backend by supporting the ecosystem as a whole with a comprehensive offering of technology and services. This funding brings us one step closer to fulfilling that mission. We’ve already assembled an incredible team of industry leaders, product experts, and eSports veterans, and we’re excited to begin rolling out a suite of products that we think will make operating in the space transparent and scalable, as opposed to opaque and speculative.”

Alexander Garfield wins the International tournament twice and is best known for his role in helping to build pro-gaming organisations Evil Geniuses and Alliance into eSports heavyweights. In 2014, Garfield sold the teams’ parent company GoodGame to Twitch.

Popdog’s co-founders include CTO and CPO Andreas Thorstensson, CSO Niles Heron, and CCO Colin DeShong.