The Betting Startups Podcast

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/

This bonus episode features Andrew Gonzalez, Founder & CEO of ParlayX, joining Jesse Learmonth moments after winning the SBC Summit Americas First Pitch competition in Fort Lauderdale. 
 
Hear them discuss:
Winning the SBC First Pitch competition, and what it means to him
Andrew’s entrepreneurial story, including leaving his market-making career, navigating multiple pivots, and betting on himself as a founder
The challenges institutions face with blockchain, compliance, and fragmented market access, and how ParlayX aims to solve them
Launch plans, institutional partnerships, and the growing opportunity at the intersection of prediction markets and financial infrastructure
 
Catch the video version of this episode here.
 
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. 214 features Alec Gehlot, Founder of PlaySignal, a responsible gaming platform helping operators intervene earlier, reduce self-exclusions, and create healthier player experiences. 
 
Hear them discuss:
The inspiration behind PlaySignal and why rising self-exclusion rates reveal a growing industry challenge
How PlaySignal’s traffic-light system helps identify at-risk behavior and intervene before players reach a crisis point
Why Alec believes responsible gaming should move from a back-office compliance function to a player-facing experience
The concept of “RG 3.0” and how behavioral science, player psychology, and real-time engagement can reshape responsible gaming
Balancing player protection and retention by helping operators act proactively rather than reactively
The pressures facing regulated operators, including higher taxes, tighter regulations, and competition from offshore markets
Why responsible gaming may become the strongest differentiator for licensed operators in the years ahead
How prediction markets and platforms like Kalshi are approaching self-exclusion and responsible participation
Alec’s decision to bootstrap PlaySignal and his approach to building a lean startup in the gaming industry
The entrepreneurial lessons he’s learned from boxing, resilience, and getting “punched in the face” while building a company
 
Catch the video version of this episode here.
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ Play Signal website
➡️ Alec Gehlot 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. 213 features Gregory Tolmochow, Founder & CEO of Trendline Labs, a startup building what it calls the “Bloomberg Terminal for prediction markets.” 
 
Hear them discuss:
Gregory’s journey from sports betting analytics and The Betting Insider to founding Trendline Labs
Why prediction markets represent a major evolution beyond traditional sports betting
The pivot from an AI-powered sports analytics tool to a unified prediction market terminal
Building a platform that aggregates pricing, liquidity, and data across multiple prediction market exchanges
How Trendline’s Optimus AI model helps users understand market pricing and identify opportunities
The company’s vision to become the trusted information source for prediction markets
Monetization plans through premium subscriptions and transaction-based trading fees
Regulatory considerations, including obtaining an Introducing Broker (IB) license to enter the U.S. market
The ongoing debate around prediction markets, sportsbooks, market makers, and retail traders
Trendline’s roadmap, fundraising plans, and long-term goal of democratizing access to market intelligence
 
Catch the video version of this episode here.
 
Learn more 👇
➡️ Trendline Labs website
➡️ Gregory Tolmochow 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. 212 is the official First Pitch preview episode, where we will meet the 5 startups selected to present at SBC Summit Americas on June 11 in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
 
In this episode, you will hear from the five finalists:
Javier Troncoso, InsightPlay.ai
Matt Bresler, Odditt
Matt Paulton, OddsBlaze 
Andrew Gonzalez, ParlayX
Robert McCall, The Sharps
 
SBC First Pitch brings together some of the most exciting startups within the betting and gaming industry to compete for a chance to win an exclusive prize package, valued at over $100,000 to assist in the winner’s development and growth plans.
 
Listen to Business of Betting, the premier podcast covering the business of the sports betting industry featuring host Jeff Edelstein, on Spotify, Apple Podcasts and YouTube
 
If you don't have a ticket for the event yet, use discount code BETTINGSTARTUPSVIP for 30% off your pass. Grab your ticket here: https://sbcevents.com/sbc-summit-americas/
 
Catch the video version of this episode here.
 
📩 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/