CNBC Disruptor 50 Announces First eSports Company Ever to Make List: Skillz
CNBC today announced that Skillz, the worldwide leader in mobile eSports, has joined the CNBC Disruptor 50 list. Now in its fifth year, the list ranks the world’s most ambitious and innovative private companies that are changing the economy and business landscape. Along with Skillz (No. 41), this year’s list featured tech luminaries including Airbnb (No. 1), SpaceX (No. 14), Pinterest (No. 31), Blue Apron (No. 42) and Warby Parker (No. 47).
Skillz has become the first eSports company to make the list, further validating an industry projected to become a $5 billion global business by 2020. Recognized for inventing the mobile eSports category, Skillz has grown to over 46 percent of all eSports prizes in just four years since inception. The company has hosted more than 100 million mobile eSports tournaments and grown its user base to over 12 million players, 53 percent of which are female. Two weeks ago, Skillz announced that it had doubled its revenue run-rate in the past eight months to exceed $100 million.
“When we started in 2012, the vast majority of people had never heard of eSports,” said Andrew Paradise CEO and founder of Skillz. “Now, the eSports industry continues to grow at an exponential rate to disrupt the future of sports, a three thousand year old industry and one of humanity’s oldest and most celebrated institutions.”
CNBC.com’s special report, found at disruptor50.cnbc.com, features an in-depth profile of Skillz and an explanation of how CNBC chose the companies on the list. The site also contains a robust line-up of stories exploring the technologies that today’s business decision makers need to know and explaining how investors can profit from disruptive trends. CNBC will continue to track the progress of Skillz as a Disruptor throughout the coming year.
For more information on Skillz-enabled games and implementing mobile eSports competitions, visit www.skillz.com or email [email protected].
About Skillz
Skillz, the leading mobile eSports platform, connects the world’s 2.6 billion mobile gamers through competition. Over 12 million gamers use Skillz to compete in mobile games across 3,000+ game studios. Skillz awarded more than 46 percent of all eSports prizes and broadcast over 40 million minutes of footage to spectators worldwide in 2016. Founded in 2012, Skillz is headquartered in San Francisco and backed by leading venture capitalists as well as the owners of the New England Patriots, Milwaukee Bucks and New York Mets. To learn more, visit www.skillz.com.
