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3 days ago
3 days ago
Ep. 173 features Kenny Huang from TinyRex Games, which is building next-generation instant games at the intersection of social and iGaming.
Hear him discuss:
How his experience at EA and Bluebat Games led to founding TinyRex Games during the pandemic
Why TinyRex focuses on “original, edgy, cheeky” instant games beyond traditional slots
How their catalog has grown from 3 to 12+ games in just the past year
Why the crash game format has become so popular amongst players (and profitable for operators)
Why TinyRex targets both crypto and traditional iGaming operators with its distribution strategy
How aggregator partnerships complement direct operator integrations for better margins and branded exclusives
Why he decided not to raise institutional capital to grow Tiny Rex, instead favoring revenue-led growth
His lessons from the Bluebat acquisition, and why he’s prioritizing resilience and independence this time
Applications now open for SBC Summit First Pitch competition returning to Lisbon this September 16-18. Eligible startups can submit their applications until July 25 for a shot at over $100,000 worth of prizes.
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ TinyRex Games website
➡️ Kenny Huang on Linkedin
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
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This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday Jul 15, 2025
Tuesday Jul 15, 2025
Ep. 172 features Richard Acosta from Vor Interactive, a UK-based sports data provider creating proprietary first-party data and predictive models.
Hear him discuss:
How a soccer algorithm built by his co-founder sparked Vor's launch and first predictive model
Why their proprietary data now generates 2,000+ prediction points per soccer match across 50+ global leagues
How they’ve expanded from soccer into NFL, college sports, cricket, and tennis while focusing on first-party data
Why they chose a B2B model delivering data products to affiliates and operators instead of professional betting
How their predictive data powers both marketing widgets and pricing models for iGaming companies
How Vor designed a simple integration process that lets partners go live in under 48 hours
The early traction they’ve seen with Odds Shark in the US and Hub Affiliations in Italy, including strong early conversion rates
Why Richard believes staying lean and agile is key as they scale globally and expand their APIs and productized solutions
His long-term vision to grow Vor Interactive into a major global sports data supplier over the next five years
Applications now open for SBC Summit First Pitch competition returning to Lisbon this September 16-18. Eligible startups can submit their applications until July 25 for a shot at over $100,000 worth of prizes.
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ VOR Interactive website
➡️ Richard Acosta on Linkedin
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
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This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday Jul 01, 2025
Tuesday Jul 01, 2025
Ep. 171 features Ben Howard from EdgeSports, which offers sports data and predictive AI at your fingertips. Ben shares how the company is capitalizing on the growth of live betting, building modular tech for both consumers and B2B clients, and bootstrapping the business using its own prediction engine.
Hear them discuss:
The journey from sneaker software to Penn Entertainment to founder
How a winning parlay sparked the earliest version of Edge Sports
What makes their predictive models different from other research tools
Why live betting is the future—and how they’re solving for latency
The surprising win rates from their early Discord testing
How B2B traction in Discords and peer-to-peer betting helps fund growth
Why they’ve spent $0 on marketing to date and hit 10,000+ users
How sportsbooks limiting users shapes their roadmap and partnerships
What Edge Sports learned from SBC’s First Pitch and Startup Zone
Their plan to launch live predictions in time for the NFL season
Where Ben sees EdgeSports heading over the next five years
Applications now open for SBC Summit First Pitch competition returning to Lisbon this September 16-18. Eligible startups can submit their applications until July 25 for a shot at over $100,000 worth of prizes.
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ EdgeSports website
➡️ Ben Howard on Linkedin
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Wednesday Jun 25, 2025
Wednesday Jun 25, 2025
Ep. 170 features John Wright from StatsDrone, a business intelligence platform helping affiliates eliminate revenue leak and unlock more value from their data. John shares how the company is centralizing fragmented affiliate stats, building tools for operators, and uncovering hidden opportunities in iGaming’s affiliate ecosystem.
Hear them discuss:
The origin story from professional gambler to affiliate tech founder
How revenue leak inspired the earliest version of StatsDrone
Why “business intelligence” became the heart of their value proposition
Who uses the platform today—from SEO affiliates to large networks
How StatsDrone is building a global map of affiliate sites and links
The surprising ROI hiding in broken tracking and closed casino
Why affiliate CRM remains an underdeveloped opportunity
How operators and affiliate managers are starting to use their insights
What it’s like navigating investor interest and potential exit offers
His two-year vision to unlock billions in affiliate-side revenue optimization
Applications now open for SBC Summit First Pitch competition returning to Lisbon this September 16-18. Eligible startups can submit their applications until July 25 for a shot at over $100,000 worth of prizes.
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ StatsDrone website
➡️ John Wright on Linkedin
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday Jun 17, 2025
Tuesday Jun 17, 2025
Ep. 169 features Steven Kenway from Rolling Insights, a multi-sport data platform delivering reliable data to everyone from sharp bettors to startup founders. Steven shares how the team built powerful analytics tools and a developer-friendly API ecosystem to level the playing field in sports data access.
Hear them discuss:
• How Rolling Insights spun out of a real estate startup and consultancy• Why Steven believes most fantasy leagues are won by spreadsheet junkies• How acquiring a U.S. data engine became a turning point for the company• Where Rolling Insights fits into the official vs. unofficial data debate• Why startups are the primary customers for their B2B data feeds• The growing demand from sharp bettors and AI modelers• How SportWise and the Breakaway Accelerator fit into their ecosystem• The technical challenges of scraping fast-paced sports like darts• Why he says “you gotta flow like water” when running a startup• His long-term vision to become an official data provider
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ Rolling Insights website
➡️ Steven Kenway on Linkedin
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday Jun 10, 2025
Tuesday Jun 10, 2025
Ep. 168 features Davis Catlin from Discerning Capital, which invests at the intersection of betting, sports, media, and technology. This episode was recorded on-site at SBC Summit North America 2025 in Fort Lauderdale.
Hear him discuss:
Why starting Discerning Capital gave him new empathy for founders
Building a deal-by-deal investor network in a regulated industry
The playbook behind their first investment in Australian operator Picklebet
Why Midnite is a “challenger brand” winning with faster paybacks
How SlotCycle is unlocking a hidden market for used slot machines
The opportunity in underinvested profit pools in Australia and the UK
His high-level thesis on the total addressable market nearing $100B
How the capital flow into sweepstakes models may be slowing
Prediction markets like Kalshi and the regulatory gray zone they face
What a Bet365 acquisition could look like—and why DraftKings might care
Why Discerning Capital is launching a new program for user acquisition/growth financing
How it works: non-dilutive revolving credit tied to ad performance
Why it's a win-win model for operators with strong unit economics
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ Discerning Capital website
➡️ Davis Catlin on Linkedin
The Canadian Gaming Summit is happening June 17–19 in Toronto! Don’t miss out — get 50% off your Full Event Pass using code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP at checkout. Grab your ticket now: https://sbcevents.com/canadian-gaming-summit/ticket-options/
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday Jun 03, 2025
Tuesday Jun 03, 2025
Ep. 167 features Gino Donati from BetOPENLY, a peer-to-peer betting exchange eliminating the traditional sportsbook model by letting users bet directly against each other at true odds. This episode was recorded on-site at SBC Summit North America 2025 in Fort Lauderdale.
Hear him discuss:
Growing up in a sports-betting Italian family and booking bets in high school
How running numbers for syndicates gave him a window into the business
Why BetOPENLY was originally built offshore and pre-PASPA repeal
The core value prop of “win more, lose less” and how the 1% fee works
How trolls on TikTok helped drive the platform’s early growth
Why casual bettors and big action players both find value in the model
How BetOPENLY avoids deposit bonuses and operates with ultra-thin margins
Their “bet with friends” feature and zero-fee social sharing mechanic
How the team is solving liquidity challenges through third-party partnerships with companies like Kutt, BettorEdge, and THNDR
The legal framework that enables BetOPENLY to operate in 45 U.S. states
Expansion plans including peer-to-peer blackjack, DFS, and prediction markets
Gino’s other startup, Seed to Scale, and how he self-funds BetOPENLY
Why he’s in no rush to raise or exit—and where he sees the ceiling for P2P betting
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ BetOPENLY website
➡️ Gino Donati on Linkedin
The Canadian Gaming Summit is happening June 17–19 in Toronto! Don’t miss out — get 50% off your Full Event Pass using code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP at checkout. Grab your ticket now: https://sbcevents.com/canadian-gaming-summit/ticket-options/
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday May 27, 2025
Tuesday May 27, 2025
Ep. 166 features Steve “Dakota” Happas and Sahil Patel from FantasySpin, a real-money DFS platform reinventing the fantasy experience through a gamified, slot-style draft mechanic. This episode was recorded on-site at SBC Summit North America 2025 in Fort Lauderdale.Hear them discuss:
How a friendly fantasy football bet led to the founding of BettorFantasy
Steve’s journey from online poker and dating platforms to fantasy sports
Why the two companies merged to form FantasySpin and how the deal came together
How their slot-style drafting system introduces luck, skill, and replayability
Why FantasySpin rewards users even when players in their lineup don’t play
The biggest lessons from their first full NFL season post-merger
How their gameplay translates into highly engaging, video-first marketing
Why their future plans include spin-to-pick hybrid formats and arcade modes
How they’re self-funding growth while selectively exploring strategic capital
Their long-term vision to become the next billion-dollar DFS platform
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ FantasySpin website
➡️ Steve Happas on Linkedin
➡️ Sahil Patel on Linkedin
The Canadian Gaming Summit is happening June 17–19 in Toronto! Don’t miss out — get 50% off your Full Event Pass using code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP at checkout. Grab your ticket now: https://sbcevents.com/canadian-gaming-summit/ticket-options/
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Tuesday May 20, 2025
Tuesday May 20, 2025
Recorded live at SBC Summit Americas 2025 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, this episode recaps the excitement of the First Pitch competition.
In this episode, you'll hear from all five startup finalists just hours before they took the stage, and at the end of the episode, we bring back the winner for a celebratory chat fresh off their victory.
The five startups that competed for a prize package valued at over $100,000 were:
Oliver Renner from PromptBet.ai
Mark Antal from Staked AI
Andrew Lea from Gamewagrs
Kelson Quan from Wager Games
Madhav Halbe from Sidebetz.ai
Catch the video version of this episode here.
The Canadian Gaming Summit is happening June 17–19 in Toronto! Don’t miss out — get 50% off your Full Event Pass using code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP at checkout. Grab your ticket now: https://sbcevents.com/canadian-gaming-summit/ticket-options/
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Wednesday May 07, 2025
Wednesday May 07, 2025
Ep. 164 features Alexander Monahan from OddsJam, a data-driven sports betting platform acquired by Gambling.com Group in a deal worth up to $160 million. Alex returns to the podcast after first joining in early 2023 to share what has changed and what has stayed the same since the nine-figure exit.
Hear them discuss:
What life looks like after a $160M acquisition
Why he is still focused on helping bettors win with data
His reflections on the due diligence and acquisition process
Why he and his co-founder stayed bootstrapped without raising capital
How the US betting landscape has changed for sharp bettors since 2020
His thoughts on exchanges, promo arbitrage, and the future of sharp betting
Why content creation became central to OddsJam’s growth
How he balances founder pressure with long-term product vision
What the integration with Gambling.com has looked like behind the scenes
His advice for founders navigating high-stakes M&A conversations
Why he still believes there is room for new tools in sports betting
SBC Americas makes its debut in Fort Lauderdale on May 13-15, and you won’t want to miss it! Get 50% off your Full Event Pass at checkout using discount code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP. Secure your ticket now: https://sbcevents.com/en/sbc-summit-americas/full-event-pass/
Catch the video version of this episode here.
Learn more 👇
➡️ OddsJam website
➡️ Alexander Monahan on Linkedin
📩 Get the top headlines from the industry's most promising growth-stage companies every week—totally free! Subscribe to the Betting Startups newsletter here: https://news.bettingstartups.com/
--
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.