The Betting Startups Podcast

Ep. 224 features Andrew Wood, Co-Founder of RallyTabs, to discuss his transition from investment banking into entrepreneurship, the evolution of RallyTabs from a physical pull-tab concept into a digital product, and how the company is creating a new sports engagement experience that combines predictions, collectibles, and pack-ripping mechanics.
 
Hear them discuss:
How Andrew's experience covering the gaming industry as an investment banker led him to identify opportunities within the sports gaming ecosystem.
The origins of RallyTabs, including its evolution from a slot route concept to a live sports pull-tab product before ultimately becoming a digital platform.
How RallyTabs combines sports predictions, digital cards, collectibles, and pack-ripping mechanics into a single fan engagement experience.
The user experience behind RallyTabs, including digital packs, live sports predictions, collectible cards, and the ability to reactivate cards for future games.
Why RallyTabs sits at the intersection of sports predictions, fantasy, collectibles, and pack ripping rather than fitting neatly into a single existing category.
The company's go-to-market strategy, combining digital marketing with in-person activations at sports bars, stadiums, and tailgates.
Why simplicity and a low barrier to entry are central to RallyTabs' strategy for attracting a broader audience of sports fans.
How the company has funded its growth through founders and a friends-and-family round while testing customer acquisition channels before pursuing a larger capital raise.
Andrew's perspective on the rapid evolution of the gaming industry, from the post-PASPA boom to the emergence of sweepstakes and prediction markets.
RallyTabs' roadmap for the next 12 months, including expanding into football and additional sports, growing its customer base, exploring retail-focused products, and becoming a bigger part of the live game-day experience.
 
The Startup Zone at SBC Summit in Lisbon is the best way for startups to establish their presence at "The Greatest Show in Gaming". Discounted packages are available exclusively through BettingStartups, but spaces are very limited so register your interest ASAP: https://www.bettingstartups.com/sbc-summit-2026
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ RallyTabs website
➡️ Andrew Wood 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/
 

Ep. 223 features Andrew Gonzalez, CEO & Co-Founder of ParlayX, for a wide-ranging discussion on entrepreneurship, prediction markets, institutional trading infrastructure, fundraising, product-market fit, and the rapidly evolving relationship between sports betting and prediction markets.
 
Hear them discuss:
Andrew's journey from Southern California and UCLA to crypto investing, venture capital, Flowdesk, and ultimately launching ParlayX after deciding to bet on himself as a founder.
Why leaving a well-funded startup to build ParlayX full-time was one of the biggest risks of his life and how support from family and friends helped shape that decision.
How ParlayX evolved from a retail-focused product into an infrastructure platform designed specifically for institutional participants in prediction markets.
Why market makers need better tools for permissions, account management, security, custody, and collaboration across prediction market platforms such as Kalshi and Polymarket.
How ParlayX is building a unified operating layer that allows firms to organize traders, allocate capital, manage credentials, and monitor activity across multiple exchanges.
Why the retail prediction market aggregator model has struggled and how conversations with potential customers led the team to identify an underserved institutional market.
How ParlayX plans to monetize its platform through a SaaS model while developing new products that improve capital efficiency through portfolio netting and lending solutions.
Why Andrew believes prediction markets and sports event contracts are here to stay, despite ongoing regulatory uncertainty and debates surrounding the industry's future.
How growing institutional participation could reshape prediction markets by creating new opportunities for hedging, insurance, block trading, and market-making.
ParlayX's vision to become the "Plaid for prediction markets" by serving as the central infrastructure and orchestration layer connecting exchanges, market makers, capital, and data across the ecosystem.
 
The Startup Zone at SBC Summit in Lisbon is the best way for startups to establish their presence at "The Greatest Show in Gaming". Discounted packages are available exclusively through BettingStartups, but spaces are very limited so register your interest ASAP: https://www.bettingstartups.com/sbc-summit-2026
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ ParlayX website
➡️ Andrew Gonzalez 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/

Ep. 222 features Robert McCall, Founder of The Sharps, to discuss his journey from the cannabis industry into sports betting, building a skill-based peer-to-peer sports prediction tournament platform, and using AI to build the product from scratch. 
 
Hear them discuss:
How Rob went from the cannabis industry and competitive gambling into sports betting, with poker and blackjack tournaments inspiring the creation of The Sharps.
The concept behind The Sharps, a skill-based peer-to-peer sports prediction tournament platform where players compete using props, parlays, and same-game parlays.
How the tournament structure works, including weekly, head-to-head, team, and custom leagues, buy-ins, rebuys, live leaderboards, and prize pools.
Why The Sharps is designed for both experienced bettors and novices, giving players opportunities to compete, learn, and improve their skills.
The Sharps Score, which evaluates players using metrics including CLV and ROI while providing greater transparency into betting performance.
How The Sharps is navigating regulation through geolocation technology that automatically adjusts the platform based on the rules of different jurisdictions.
Rob's go-to-market strategy ahead of the NFL season, including partnerships with VSiN, FantasyPros, BettingPros, Props.Cash, FootballContest.com, and others.
Early player feedback, why the social features and live leaderboard are proving popular, and the debate surrounding the Sharps Score.
How Rob self-funded the company and used AI to build a robust platform from scratch despite having no programming background.
The immediate focus on security and functionality ahead of the NFL season, along with Rob's long-term vision of making The Sharps a recognized global platform with a major industry partner.
 
The Startup Zone at SBC Summit in Lisbon is the best way for startups to establish their presence at "The Greatest Show in Gaming". Discounted packages are available exclusively through BettingStartups, but spaces are very limited so register your interest ASAP: https://www.bettingstartups.com/sbc-summit-2026
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ The Sharps website
➡️ Robert McCall 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/

Ep. 221 features Frank Li, Co-founder of ESX, to discuss building a next-generation sports prediction market for technical bettors. Frank shares how his background in quantitative trading led him to prediction markets, why ESX is focused on live sports trading, and how content, community, and customer feedback have fueled the company's early growth.
 
Hear them discuss:
Frank's journey from quantitative sports betting and prediction markets to co-founding ESX, and the inspiration behind creating a trading-first sports betting platform.
How ESX differentiates itself by targeting technical and semi-professional bettors with live sports trading tools, social features, and an exchange-style experience.
Why Reddit, customer interviews, and more than 10,000 user conversations have been central to shaping the product and identifying real customer pain points.
ESX's content-first growth strategy, generating millions of social media views and building an engaged community that converts into active users.
The company's early traction, including rapid month-over-month volume growth, bootstrapping with $100,000, and plans to raise $2 million to accelerate expansion.
Why Frank believes sports betting and financial trading are converging, and how prediction markets could reshape the future of sports wagering.
Lessons learned as first-time founders, the value of mentorship, and how programs like Zero Labs have helped the ESX team navigate the startup journey.
ESX's long-term vision to become one of the most recognized brands in prediction markets alongside industry leaders like Kalshi and Polymarket
 
Applications for the 2026 Affiliate Draft are now open until August 16th. Eligible startups are encouraged to apply here: https://www.alphahub.tech/programmes/affiliate-draft-2026/
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ ESX website
➡️ Frank Li 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/

Ep. 220 features Neil Dillon, Founder of Solas Compliance, to discuss how AI is transforming marketing compliance for regulated industries. Neil shares his journey from Betfair and Flutter to launching Solas, explains why compliance remains one of the biggest bottlenecks for operators, and offers practical insights into building enterprise-grade AI products for the betting industry.Hear them discuss: 
Neil's career journey from Betfair and Flutter to founding Solas Compliance after identifying a long-standing pain point in marketing and legal workflows.
How Solas Compliance uses AI to review marketing assets before they go live, helping operators reduce risk while dramatically speeding up compliance reviews.
Why enterprise AI requires far more than a simple ChatGPT wrapper, including the importance of consistency, audit trails, security, and regulatory readiness.
Early traction with tier-one operators, solving real-world compliance challenges during major events like the FIFA World Cup, and expanding across multiple regulated markets.
The realities of enterprise software sales, aligning legal, compliance, and marketing teams, and driving adoption across large organizations.
Neil's fundraising journey, securing early venture backing, raising £670,000, and preparing for the company's next investment round.
Common misconceptions about AI, why bigger models aren't always better, and the value of specialized models built for specific enterprise tasks.
Balancing life as a first-time founder and new father, and how both experiences have shaped his perspective on building a business.
Solas Compliance's vision to become the global standard for AI-powered marketing compliance across betting, financial services, pharmaceuticals, and other regulated industries.
Neil's advice for founders embracing AI, building customer trust, and creating products that solve real operational problems in highly regulated markets
 
Applications for the 2026 Affiliate Draft are now open until August 1. Eligible startups are encouraged to apply here: https://www.alphahub.tech/programmes/affiliate-draft-2026/
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ Solas Compliance website
➡️ Neil Dillon 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/

Ep. 219 features Edward Lyttel and Rob Fulforth from Flutter to discuss the company's AlphaHub innovation program and the 2026 Affiliate Draft. They explore how Flutter collaborates with startups, what they're looking for in this year's applicants, and why community, AI-powered fan tools, and betting innovation are shaping the future of sports betting.
 
Hear them discuss:
How Flutter's AlphaHub helps startups build partnerships with leading brands like FanDuel, Betfair, Paddy Power, and Sky Bet
The goals of the 2026 Affiliate Draft and what startups can expect from the application process
Why community-driven products continue to be one of the biggest opportunities in sports betting
How AI-powered fan tools can improve the betting experience through better insights, visualization, and personalization
Why Flutter believes betting is evolving into a broader entertainment experience beyond traditional sportsbooks
Lessons from last year's Affiliate Draft and what made Verdict the winning startup
The importance of building products that solve real fan problems before focusing on monetization
Why niche audiences and passionate communities often create stronger startup opportunities than broad, general-purpose products
What founders can expect from the two-day Dublin event, including mentorship, investor access, networking, and pitch coaching
Advice for startups looking to partner with major operators and how Flutter evaluates innovation across the betting ecosystem
 
Applications for the 2026 Affiliate Draft are now open until August 1. Eligible startups are encouraged to apply here: https://www.alphahub.tech/programmes/affiliate-draft-2026/
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ Flutter website
➡️ Edward Lyttel on Linkedin
➡️ Rob Fulforth 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/

Ep. 218 features Devon and Tejas, Co-founders of Blitz, an AI-powered sports intelligence platform transforming how broadcasters, analysts, content creators, and sports organizations access and utilize sports data. 
 
Hear them discuss:
How two Duke graduates turned sports betting profits into a sports data startup
The PrizePicks strategy that grew a small bankroll into tens of thousands of dollars
Why they spent countless hours building and validating their own sports data infrastructure
The challenges of cleaning, normalizing, and connecting fragmented sports datasets
How Blitz evolved from a betting-focused product into a B2B sports intelligence platform
Building a “ChatGPT for sports” used by broadcasters, analysts, and content creators
The power of combining historical sports data with betting market information
Creating real-time insights and automated content generation across multiple sports
Why sports data remains one of the biggest challenges in AI-powered sports products
The importance of “deterministic data, generative voice” in AI applications
Lessons learned selling to broadcasters and media professionals
How AI is enabling small teams to build sophisticated sports technology companies
Why deep sports knowledge remains critical when building sports-focused AI products
The current state of betting edges, prediction markets, and automated trading
Blitz’s vision for becoming the intelligence layer powering the future of sports media and fan engagement
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ Blitz website
➡️ Devon Sinha on Linkedin
➡️ Tejas Srinivasan 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/

Ep. 217 features Nick Meader, Co-Founder & CEO of SpeedLabs, joining Jesse Learmonth to discuss the company's $6.5 million seed round, the creation of "Momentum Markets," and why he believes the next generation of sports betting products will be built around live narratives rather than traditional betting markets.
 
Hear them discuss:
Nick’s journey from college bookmaker and betting entrepreneur to venture capital investor and founder of SpeedLabs
How a conversation with poker legend Phil Hellmuth and industry veteran David Woodley helped spark the creation of SpeedLabs
The concept behind Momentum Markets and why SpeedLabs is building live, narrative-driven betting products instead of traditional microbetting markets
How AI, proprietary modeling, and real-time game analysis power dynamic markets based on the storylines unfolding within each game
Why prediction markets may be better positioned than traditional sportsbooks to adopt innovative betting products and experiences
SpeedLabs’ dual go-to-market strategy, including B2B partnerships and a new consumer-facing gaming product set to launch later this year
The company’s $6.5 million seed round, led by gaming-focused investors with deep ties to companies like FanDuel and PrizePicks
Nick’s fundraising lessons, including why team quality, humility, and founder likability matter more than spreadsheets at the earliest stages
His perspective on the evolving relationship between sportsbooks and prediction markets, and why he believes the two are already converging at the user-experience level
The roadmap ahead for SpeedLabs, including launch partners, NFL season plans, and the long-term vision of making Momentum Markets a mainstream betting product
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ SpeedLabs website
➡️ Nick Meader 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/

Ep. 216 features Jackson Erminio, Founder of Spina, joining Jesse Learmonth to discuss building a skill-based gaming startup, solving the liquidity challenge, and creating a marketplace where players can compete head-to-head in games they already know and love.
 
Hear them discuss:
How Jackson went from selling sneakers and running a marketing agency to founding Spina, a real-money skill gaming platform built around familiar games like Connect 4, 8-Ball Pool, and Tic-Tac-Toe
Why Spina pivoted from betting on anything between friends to live, head-to-head skill games with matchmaking and optional voice chat
The startup's dual go-to-market strategy, combining a direct-to-consumer app with B2B partnerships for casinos, gaming platforms, and influencers
The liquidity challenge facing all multiplayer gaming marketplaces and the creative tactics Spina is using to ensure players can find opponents quickly
Early traction metrics, including strong repeat-play rates, growing organic app downloads, and surprising demand for Connect 4 compared to other games
Partnerships with companies like BetOpenly and Hub88, plus opportunities to power custom gaming experiences for influencers and content creators
Finding a technical co-founder through TikTok, and validating the concept before investing heavily in development
Why Jackson believes skill gaming is one of the industry's most overlooked categories and how it may benefit from a more favorable regulatory landscape than other gaming verticals
Lessons learned from bootstrapping, moving quickly, testing ideas in public, and focusing relentlessly on solving the most important problem first
Spina's vision for the future, including cross-platform liquidity, expanded distribution, and becoming the leading marketplace for real-money skill-based competition
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ Spina website
➡️ Jackson Erminior 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/

Ep. 215 features Travis Geiger, Co-Founder & CXO of WagerWire, joining Jesse Learmonth at SBC Fort Lauderdale to discuss the company’s transformation into its vision for building a regulated prediction market ecosystem. Fresh off securing a license-in-principle in Gibraltar, Travis shares how the company is positioning itself at the intersection of gaming, finance, and innovation.
 
Hear them discuss:
Why WagerWire evolved into Wire Markets and how prediction markets became the company’s next major opportunity
The challenges startups face integrating with sportsbooks, and why innovation often struggles within the regulated betting ecosystem
Wire Markets’ Gibraltar licensing milestone, regulatory approach, and plans to build a compliant, responsible prediction market platform
Creating a builder-friendly ecosystem where founders, startups, and innovators can launch products and access new distribution opportunities through Wire Markets
The role of Starties and Betting Startups in supporting entrepreneurship and fostering a stronger betting innovation community
Responsible gaming, addiction concerns, and why prediction market operators must borrow best practices from both gaming and financial services
Gibraltar’s growing importance as an international hub for gaming, fintech, and prediction market businesses
The company’s fundraising plans, investor interest, and roadmap toward launching ahead of the next NFL season
Why Travis believes prediction markets represent a larger cultural shift than previous industry trends like DFS, microbetting, and sweepstakes
His vision for building a global, regulated financial marketplace around real-world events and information
 
Catch the video version of this episode here.
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ WagerWire website
➡️ Travis Geiger 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/