I founded Pogbet in 2018. I raised nearly a million dollars in funding to build a sports betting app for friends sitting around watching a game on TV to wager a few bucks against each other. We pivoted into livestream engagement when covid hit and built out really powerful AI that could predict nearly anything in livestreamers' games. As we started to gain traction, I realized our betting product was a net-negative for the world and shut it down.

Introduction

Pogbet started as a class project in an engineering class at UC Berkeley and evolved into a startup with thousands of users, a million dollars in capital raised, and the most tumultuous four years of my life.

I wanted to build a sports betting platform that was not predatory, but rather something a few buddies sitting around a TV could use to bet on what was going to happen. I raised some capital, hired a team of around 15 brilliant people, and launched an iOS app in partnership with organizations around the US for March Madness 2020. But then Rudy Gobert touched those microphones and the rest was history. Sports died off and so did my hopes and dreams.

I pivoted Pogbet into livestreaming engagement. This is a fancy way of saying sports betting but for people playing video games on Twitch or YouTube. It worked surprisingly well, and our AI worked way better than we expected, but our success was measured by how much money we could suck out of our customers' wallets while providing nothing but a little dopamine in return. It made me feel like a supervillain, so I sold off a tiny bit of the IP and quit.

Sports betting at face value is a mixed bag, but the corporations who implement it are in a rat race to grab as much money as possible from desperate people who are often down on their luck. Seeing this from the other side was a revelation that, strangely enough, granted me a significantly deeper class consciousness than I ever could have imagined.

My Role

I founded Pogbet (although it was initially called Better Sports Corporation). I was a working CEO who wrote code, designed every single element of the app and UX, livestreamed, and produced marketing material.

I believe I compensated employees fairly for their labor even when they were unable to work due to extraneous circumstances (some were stuck in Armenia during the brutal war with Azerbaijan, for example). All employees had stock and an equal voice at the table.

I am proud of the quality of the product we built. However, the impact on the world was a net negative which is why I shut it down.

I view Pogbet in a similar capacity to a tomahawk missile (I know this is an insane sentence, but bear with me). There are some really cool technological feats packed inside, but the actual use-case is appalling. But unlike Biden, Trump, Obama, and just about every US president before them, I am willing to act on my conscience (although I doubt some of them had consciences in the first place).

Diatribe aside, here's a description of Pogbet that I used to show investors. I hope this intro demonstrates my ability to grow and lead with empathy.

Brand

I designed Pogbet's brand in Adobe Illustrator and Adobe XD.

Origin and Evolution

Initially designed as a sports betting application, Pogbet's early successes were quickly overshadowed by the global pandemic, which halted the sports world and, consequently, Pogbet's launch plans. However, the team, comprised of skilled Berkeley engineers and funded through initial capital, pivoted towards leveraging live streams on platforms like Twitch and YouTube, integrating industry-leading AI to analyze in-game data for titles such as League of Legends and Valorant. This strategic shift not only salvaged the project from the impacts of COVID-19 but also expanded its market by partnering with streamers reaching over a million viewers globally, significantly enhancing stream engagement by up to 80%.

Product Innovation

At the heart of Pogbet's product offerings lies its AI-driven tools designed to enhance streamer audience engagement and monetization. The platform specializes in on-stream predictions, leveraging machine learning to offer real-time betting odds and facilitating interactive viewer participation. This feature was extended to encompass a wide range of games, demonstrating Pogbet's versatility and commitment to inclusivity in gaming.

Technical Backbone

Pogbet's technological infrastructure is robust, utilizing a stack comprising React.js for the front end, Java for the back end, Python for ML/AI applications, and Electron for local data capture software. The landing page, crafted with Webflow, showcases Pogbet's commitment to sleek, user-friendly design and accessibility.

Branding and Design

Pogbet's brand ethos, balancing playfulness with trustworthiness, is vividly reflected in its visual identity. The primary color, a unique shade of "Blurple," symbolizes royalty, mystery, and trust, aligning with the brand's mission to be a dependable yet engaging platform. The custom typography further emphasizes this blend of fun and formality, ensuring readability and brand recognition.

Digital Collectibles and PogbetTV

Expanding beyond traditional betting, Pogbet ventured into digital collectibles, offering trading cards and on-chain subscriber badges to deepen community engagement. These initiatives, coupled with the innovative QR Code Donation tool, exemplify Pogbet's forward-thinking approach to integrating technology with user experience.

PogbetTV, a dedicated streaming channel on Twitch, underscores the brand's influence in live streaming, providing a platform for curated multi-casts and enhancing viewer engagement through live predictions.

Conclusion

Pogbet represents a paradigm shift in how viewers engage with live streaming content, bridging the gap between entertainment and interactive participation. From its inception as a response to a market need to its evolution into a comprehensive platform for stream engagement through AI and digital collectibles, Pogbet has demonstrated resilience, innovation, and a deep understanding of its user base. The project, with its rich technological infrastructure, adaptive brand strategy, and commitment to enhancing the streaming experience, stands as a testament to the possibilities of marrying technology with user-centric design.

As the architect behind Pogbet, from concept through design to deployment, my role spanned across all facets of product development. The journey of Pogbet, mirrored in every layer of its Figma prototypes, every line of code, and every strategy employed, encapsulates a narrative of innovation, adaptability, and the relentless pursuit of engaging digital experiences.

Product Overview

🔮 Livestream Predictions

Automated ML Predictions

Pogbet’s Machine Learning betting runs proprietary software on the streamers’ computers and generates odds for viewers to bet on. All in real time.

Automated ML betting is a set-it-and-forget-it solution for streamers who just want to focus on their gameplay and let Pogbet handle the hard stuff.

Pogbet’s ML currently supports League of Legends with full support for Valorant, DOTA, CS:GO, Rocket League, FIFA, and Warzone coming soon.

ML Predictions are against the house.

Quick note: We’ve found training ML for MOBAs is much easier than FPSs, which are easier to train than BRs. but our league model works decently on DOTA, and our early Valorant model works decently on CS:GO.

Predictions

Pogbet Predictions are a super easy and fun way for streamers and their mods to engage audiences within any game on the planet.

Much like Twitch Predictions, streamers/mods simply write out a yes/no question with a quantitative result (ex: ‘Will Larry get 3 or more kills this game?’). Users predict yes or no, and odds are locked as soon as the timer expires or a mod closes entries.

Predictions are peer-to-peer.

Transactions

Deposits are credited to the user’s account in a stable USD value. On the backend, Pogbet uses Jupiter to swap SOL for USDC (SPL) for the best rate possible as well as storing some USDC/USDT in pools to earn up to 10% APY on held funds.

Entries, payouts, and bonuses are conducted off-chain. They would be on-chain if games did not have cheaters, disconnections, lag, hackers, etc etc.

All the necessary anti money laundering (AML) filters will be set in place without compromising users’ privacy.

⚡ Digital Collectibles

Trading Cards

Pogbet initially demoed digital trading cards in early 2021 on Ethereum. The cost was ~$30. When users attempted to purchase them, they were furious because the total came out to over $60. We took a step back and realized this was much bigger than trading cards.

All Pogbet trading cards are issued to commemorate milestones such as tournament wins, subscriber/viewer counts, or something noteworthy like joining an org such as FaZe or 100 Thieves.

For most iterations of trading cards, the streamer will also receive at least one of their own cards as an incentive to boost value. Card distribution will be done through QR Codes Donos (see below), airdrops, and Solana Candy Machine mints.

Non-transferable Sub Badges

On-chain subscriber badges reward long-term subscribers within communities. Sub badges can be used as a form of entry to digital events (ex: entering a tournament hosted by streamer, online meetups, etc.), early access to merchandise drops, displaying on social profiles, future airdrops, and more.

We believe you cannot buy your way into OG status in an established community, which is why these digital collectibles would be non-transferable. Future airdrops to holders may or may not be transferable depending on the circumstances.

QR Code Donations

The QR Code Donation tool is a powerful on-screen tool for streamers to gamify their donations. Viewers can donate nearly instantly and nearly feelessly with Solana Pay and be rewarded with a digital collectible if the donation criteria is met.

For example, a streamer can load up their drop with virtual tickets to redeem for merchandise, in-app Pogbet credit, trading cards, tickets to their next IRL or virtual event, or anything in between.

Native support will also be added to Pogbet’s website soon so that users can use their Pogbet balance to interact with these donations as well.

Please note this example’s design is specific to this streamer

🖥️ PogbetTV

PogbetTV is the streaming home of all things Pogbet. PogbetTV is exclusively on Twitch and serves as a home for NFL RedZone-style multi-casts of our partners and streaming friends.

PogbetTV is already in the top 1.9% of Twitch channels thanks to ETRAIN’s streaming abilities.

Pogbet is also building on-screen tools that harness Pogbet’s API to display live predictions to serve as a visual cue to viewers.