Swedish Startup Friendbase Secures VR Investment From Korean Foreign Technology Startup Program

Friendbase, a social gaming virtual world, was recently awarded $30,000 from the Korean Foreign Technology Startup program to explore developing virtual reality (VR) as part of the Friendbase platform. As part of the program, Friendbase will be participating in South Korea’s Born Global Accelerator.

Friendbase is an avatar-based social gaming world where teens from across the globe play games, make new friends by chatting in real-time, and take fun quizzes (coming soon).

The company has actively be looking into incorporating VR, augmented reality (AR), and chatbots into the Friendbase world.

The startup was recently selected to exhibit at the prestigious Collision conference in New Orleans, bringing forth greater awareness along with potential content partners for its versatile platform. Prior to the Collision selection, Friendbase took part in the TINC incubator program (Nordic Innovation House) this past Fall in Silicon Valley. With members throughout the world, Friendbase has currently seen its heaviest adoption in Brazil, the United States, India, and Turkey.

“We are really positioning Friendbase to be a hub for digital entertainment,” says CEO and Co-founder Debbie Lygonis. “Instead of merely a game or a messaging platform, Friendbase is a platform — a virtual playground that is incredibly flexible towards emerging technologies and content.”

Part of that flexibility is giving its global users additional ways to be immersed into the Friendbase world, such as through virtual reality. According to Lygonis, this could lead to a more visceral experience for users as they meet their online friends and play games together. Friendbase is currently headquartered at the Embassy House in Stockholm, in a building dedicated specifically for gaming and VR. Stockholm is second only to Silicon Valley for the amount of billion-dollar companies per capita.

“Our goal is to create a vibrant virtual world where users can be entertained and have enjoyable experiences with friends,” says Lygonis. “We are thrilled to be awarded funds by the Korean Foreign Technology Program to further explore and develop VR for the Friendbase community.”

[An early test of VR in the Friendbase world.]

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PRESS CONTACT:

David Ryan Polgar | David@Friendbase.com | 607–267–9505