Latent Technology, a London, UK-based startup building the next-generation animation technology for virtual worlds and game characters, raised $2.1 million in pre-seed funding
The round was led by Root Ventures and Spark Capital, with participation from gaming fund Bitkraft. This funding will help Latent to scale its team and develop the first version of its product.
The startup uses AI-based animation technology and real-world physics to enable virtual world characters to move in physically accurate real-time, in contrast to today’s tech where characters are loaded with thousands of hand-crafted animations.
“My co-founder and I were working in the AI space in research in the video game industry,” Jorge del Val, co-founder, and CEO of Latent Technology said. “After knowing how interesting this space could be, I had this idea in my head to take the technology and take the next step in animation. We are building the next-generation animation technology for virtual worlds, which will allow characters in virtual worlds to take their own decisions about the movements they make, and allow them to interact physically with their environment, instead of loading them with thousands of animations.”
Company: Latent Technology, Inc.
Raised: $2.1M
Round: pre-Seed Round
Funding Month: February 2023
Lead Investors: Root Ventures and Spark Capital
Additional Investors: Bitkraft
Company Website: https://www.latent-technology.com/
Software Category: AI Animation Technology
About the Company: Founded by Jorge del Val and Jack Harmer, Latent Technology provides an AI platform for developers to create virtual worlds which feature real-time animation technology. The company utilizes reinforcement learning and generative modeling techniques to create lifelike and dynamic characters that respond physically to the environment through neural networks in real time, enabling gaming studios to provide immersive experiences. The company is on a mission to reinvent how virtual worlds are experienced and created through the use of cutting-edge AI.
Source: https://venturebeat.com/games/latent-technology-raises-2-1m-to-blend-ai-and-game-animations/