Metaverse studio Karta has secured $1.1 million in investment from industry figures across the music, gaming, sports and finance worlds after a successful funding round.
Launched as a start-up in 2021 by music industry veteran Tony Barnes and Fnatic’s former head of events, Erik Londré, Karta aims to make the metaverse accessible for musicians, brands and sports rights-holders.
In the last two years, the studio has delivered a number of projects on Roblox, Fortnite and Decentraland for the likes of Amazon Music, Unilever’s Sunsilk and most recently K-pop girl group Twice. Collectively, the campaigns featuring virtual experiences have reached over 100m young people.
Twice Square (pictured) was a fan experience built through a partnership with Republic Records and JYP Management. It is the current No.1 music experience in Roblox and the third most popular branded experience overall on the platform in 2023.
The start-up has won several industry awards and was recently shortlisted in the Health & Wellness category at Cannes Lion Awards, for its work with Ronald McDonald House.
The new investment provides a springboard for Karta to service the booming demand for virtual worlds.
The recent funding round was led by venture capital firm GameTech Ventures and includes names from the music sector, notably Amy Thomson, artist manager and former chief catalogue officer at Hipgnosis.
The investment raised is going to be crucial in helping us service the growing demand for metaverse experiences
Erik Londré
Lachlan Gowrie-Smith, partner at GameTech Ventures, said: “Erik, Tony and the team at Karta are building the very best brand experiences on leading gaming platforms with consistently exceptional results. By adopting a partnership mindset with a long-term view and a focus on rich experiences and fun for communities of fans, they are pioneering a new medium of deep engagement with consumers. With an experienced and talented team, we’re delighted to be joining their journey with this investment.”
Amy Thomson said: “It was obvious as we navigate the way people engage with music and everyday life now in the metaverse, to back a company who are not only building the best spaces I’ve seen there but also planning innovation I think will evolve this into a place we can’t live without.”
The recent funding round also drew support from a range of other high-profile investors across gaming, sports, entertainment and finance industries including global entertainment company Toikido, CEO of Sports Loft Charlie Greenwood, chairman of UK Finance Robert Wigley, Powster founder and CEO Ste Thompson and venture studio Big Ideas Group.
Erik Londré, CEO of Karta, said: “We’re incredibly grateful for the backing and support received so far from some of the most well-respected figures in the industries we work with. They, like us, know the metaverse is the real deal and is delivering real word results that matter. The investment raised is going to be crucial in helping us service the growing demand for metaverse experiences by investing in our team, platform and regional expansions.”
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