AI gaming startup Born raises $15M to build ‘social’ AI companions that combat loneliness

Summary

Fabian Kamberi, CEO and co-founder of the Berlin-based AI gaming startup Born, thinks the current AI companions on the market are designed to be exploitative and geared towards isolating users through one-to-one relationships with AI chatbots. “It feels like it fuels the loneliness epidemic, instead of making it more fun and giving users the opportunity to make their lives better,” Kamberi told TechCrunch. The future of AI companions, he says, is about shared experiences that strengthen real-world bonds. Born’s flagship AI product is an app where users can raise, play mini-games with, and co-parent a cute virtual pet named Pengu. Think of it as a generative AI-powered Tamagatchi or Neopet, but one that requires collaboration with another human, like a friend or romantic partner. It’s a freemium app where users can pay for a Pengu Pass subscription for additional features. And while it’s reached more than 15 million users globally, according to Born, the company hasn’t disclosed how many of those are paying customers – a critical question for any consumer subscription business. The idea behind Pengu is that the social aspect turns the pet into a shared project, helping users engage with both the AI character and their real-life relationships. Now, Born is gearing up to release new characters for the Pengu app and launch another social AI product designed for young people. Born’s thesis that AI companions should both entertain and incorporate a social element has attracted investor attention. The startup, formerly known as Slay, has raised a $15 million Series A, bringing its total funding to $25 million, from investors including Accel, Tencent, and Laton Ventures. The thesis doesn’t stray too far from when Born was Slay, a social media app for teenagers that revolved around giving and receiving compliments. At the time, Kamberi described Slay as the “go-to spot for teens to rediscover social interactions in various play modes.” The pivot to Born’s AI companions carri...