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Amazon has announced a new startup accelerator program for its smart voice assistant Alexa device, and London-based developer Sensible Object is the only company from the UK to make the list.
The Alexa Accelerator, powered by Techstars, was created by the Alexa Fund, which provides up to $100m in VC funding to fuel new innovations in voice tech.
So far, nine companies from around the world will be taking part in the program, which involves travelling to Seattle for a 13-week course working with technologists and product leaders from both Amazon and Techstars.
Sensible Object, the developers behind the hybrid AR tabletop stacking title Beasts of Balance, has just entered a second Kickstarter campaign to help fund a new competitive mode for the game, which was successfully funded within six hours.
Sensible Object CEO Alex Fleetwood commented:This is a very exciting time for us. We’re in the middle of our second crowdfunding campaign, in which we reached our goal in under six hours and surpassed six figures in less than a day. And now, with the combination of the Alexa Accelerator, powered by Techstars and our latest funding round, we’re positioned extremely well for incredible growth in 2017, 2018 and beyond. We will be integrating Alexa to create novel twists on familiar play experiences, and our hybrid physical/digital model means we can rapidly turn that development effort into sales revenue. It’s the next step in our vision to build the play platform for the connected home.”
Techstars managing director Aviel Ginzburg added:From our first meeting, we’ve been extremely impressed with CEO Alex Fleetwood and the entire Sensible Object team. Their vision to merge physical and digital gaming by harnessing devices already adopted into the connected home is powerful and exciting.
Their execution to date with their first game Beasts of Balance has proven that not only are they the right people to tackle this opportunity but that they’ve discovered an entirely new and highly engaging genre of social gaming where friends and family play face to face, rather than face to screen.”
