TLDR: Riccardo Zacconi, co-founder and former CEO of King, the company behind Candy Crush Saga, has officially joined the Board of Directors at Layer AI. This appointment follows his significant investment in the company’s recent $6.5 million seed funding round. Layer AI specializes in developing a generative AI platform designed to empower game studios with advanced tools for creating 2D, 3D, video, and audio assets.
Riccardo Zacconi, the visionary co-founder and former CEO of King, renowned for developing the global phenomenon Candy Crush Saga, has been appointed to the Board of Directors of Layer AI. This strategic move comes after Zacconi’s investment in Layer AI’s oversubscribed $6.5 million seed funding round, which was co-led by Arcadia, a new fund from Tripledot Studios co-founder Akin Babayigit, and Zacconi’s own investment vehicle. Under Zacconi’s leadership, King became a dominant force in mobile gaming, culminating in its acquisition by Activision Blizzard for $5.9 billion in 2016.
Layer AI is at the forefront of developing a multi-modal creative platform powered by generative artificial intelligence. The company’s mission is to provide game studios with professional-grade tools for efficient asset creation across various formats, including 2D, 3D, video, and audio, while ensuring intuitive control and scalability, particularly for enterprise clients. The platform aims to redefine content creation in game development by integrating AI directly into existing production pipelines.
Commenting on his decision to join Layer AI, Zacconi stated, “Layer is the first solution I have seen to provide developers with the simplest way to bring AI into their production pipelines. I am impressed with the team Burcu and Volkan have built, as well as Layer’s technology and deployment speed. I am excited to join this talented team’s journey alongside fellow investor and mobile games veterans.”
Layer AI has already garnered significant industry adoption, with over 200 studios, including major players like Zynga, Tripledot, SciPlay, Huuuge Games, and Machine Zone, integrating its tools into their workflows. The platform has demonstrated its effectiveness by enabling studios to produce high-quality assets at scale, significantly reducing production time and leading to reported productivity increases of up to 80%. The company was founded by industry veterans Volkan Gurel (CEO) and Burcu Ozcengiz, who bring expertise from MIT and Unity, respectively.
Also Read:
- Sega Establishes Internal AI Committee to Integrate Artificial Intelligence Across Development and Operations
- Stability World AI and BearFAI Forge Alliance to Revolutionize Web3 Creativity
Zacconi’s extensive experience in scaling game businesses and his mastery of freemium monetization models are expected to provide invaluable insight and deep credibility to Layer AI’s ambitious goals. He will serve as an active board member, contributing his expertise in business development, growth strategy, and industry leadership to shape the company’s future direction. This latest funding builds on Layer AI’s previous success, having raised $1.8 million in seed funding in 2023 to enhance its 2D image generation capabilities before expanding into 3D.
