Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz has launched a $600 million fund exclusively for gaming startups.
Games Fund One is the California-based firm’s first fund solely dedicated to the gaming industry. The influx of fresh capital will allow Andreessen Horowitz to broaden its reach in a global video game industry valued at more than $300 billion.
- The fund is led by general partners Andrew Chen, Jon Lai, and James Gwertzman.
- It will look for investment opportunities in gaming services and apps.
- The fund will also invest in companies building technology for Web3 and the metaverse.
Andreessen Horowitz has a history of investing in gaming and Web3-related companies, but the firm’s willingness to double down on the industries comes as cryptocurrencies have seen more than $1 trillion of their value wiped out since November 2021. The gaming industry has also faced challenges that include supply chain constraints and restrictions on gameplay in China.
Recent Gaming Investments
Sky Mavis, the video game developer behind NFT-based title “Axie Infinity,” raised $150 million in April to help alleviate losses caused by a recent exodus of players. Investors in the round included Andreessen Horowitz and software and venture firm Animoca Brands.
The same month, Andreessen Horowitz and SoftBank Group led a $150 million funding round for gaming startup Improbable Worlds to fund its new project, M² — a blockchain-enabled system that connects to the metaverse. The round valued the project at roughly $1 billion.
