Pany Haritatos: Pioneering a New Era in Game Development
The gaming industry has witnessed remarkable transformations over the years, and one executive making waves is Pany Haritatos. His latest venture, Series Entertainment, aims to innovate how games are developed using cutting-edge technologies.
Last month, Series secured an impressive $28 million in its Series A funding round, which attracted a plethora of investors, including major names like Netflix and Dell Technologies Capital. This success follows a $7.9 million seed round led by Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) just a year prior. According to an SEC document, this new funding will enable Series to pursue its ambitious goals in the gaming landscape.
Series’ Growing Portfolio
In an impressive stride toward expansion, Haritatos has already completed an acquisition, bringing mobile game studio Pixelberry into the fold. Pixelberry is celebrated for its interactive fiction title, Choices: Stories You Play, further bolstering Series’ portfolio.
Known in the industry as Series AI, the company is determined to revolutionize video game creation through large language models (LLMs) and generative AI. Their flagship product, the Rho Engine, is designed to facilitate rapid game development, positioning Series as a potential competitor to established players like Unity.
Gamers might be skeptical of the narrative surrounding LLMs and their purported capabilities. Nevertheless, there is no denying that the gaming sector is experiencing an exciting evolution, as artificial intelligence continues to play an integral role in reshaping the gaming experience.
The Role of AI in Game Development
Traditionally, game developers tackle everything from character design to crafting intricate in-game items like elixir bottles. However, with AI technology, the landscape is shifting. Developers can now leverage AI tools to enhance interactivity, enabling non-playable characters (NPCs) to become dynamic, nuanced entities that interact believably with players.
Moreover, AI may offer players vast opportunities for customization, potentially transforming the way they engage with the games. Nonetheless, to harness this technological prowess, developers require AI-enhanced game engines capable of delivering comprehensive support.
Series positions the Rho Engine as the premier AI-native, multimodal full-stack game development platform. While competing platforms such as Modl.ai Engine and Unity’s Muse Chat exist, Rho distinguishes itself by focusing on end-to-end game development rather than auxiliary functions like bug detection or supplementary assistance.
Investor Enthusiasm and Industry Background
The enthusiasm surrounding Series is palpable among its investors. A16z partners Joshua Lu and Andrew Chen, thrilled by the seed funding deal with Haritatos, aptly characterized Series as “a game studio and technology company that is reinventing the future of game development with generative AI” in a blog post.
This excitement is largely attributed to Haritatos’s extensive background in game development. His journey began in the late 1990s with the emergence of Adobe’s Flash player, where he founded his first studio that ultimately sold to Zynga. Following this, he launched a mobile game studio and struck a deal with Kongregate during the Flash game’s heyday, later becoming CEO of the company before selling it to Swedish gaming studio MTG. In 2020, he took the reins of Snap’s games group, where he further honed his skills in augmented reality and embedded games.
This pedigree is a significant reason why Series has attracted support from high-profile gaming investors, including BITKRAFT, a firm co-founded by eSports pioneer Jens Hilgers, and F4 Fund, managed by veteran game developers David Kaye and Joakim Achrén.
Rapid Expansion and Future Outlook
Under Haritatos’s leadership, Series has experienced non-stop growth. The team has expanded dramatically, from just 17 employees at the start of 2024 to over 100 today, recruiting talent from reputable companies such as Zynga, Machine Zone, Google, and Snap.
While Haritatos opted not to provide a personal interview following the announcement of the Series A funding, an emailed statement conveyed his gratitude, noting, “We are thrilled that we raised a very successful $28 million Series A during a tough year for funding.”
As estimated by Pitchbook, the Series A funding round reportedly accounted for about 15% of the company’s equity, implying a post-money valuation of approximately $190 million—though Series has declined to comment on its accuracy.
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