London and Chengdu-based entertainment tech firm Anorak has raised $5 million in a pre-seed funding round. The investment was co-led by Play Ventures and Backed VC, with additional participation from Supercell and MTG.
The company is led by CEO Shaun Rutland and CCO Jonathan Alpine, both formerly of the mobile games studio Hutch, alongside Tak Fung, who heads the firm's AI lab in Chengdu. The startup currently employs 20 people across its two office locations.
Anorak is developing proprietary inference technology designed to make generative video faster and more controllable. The platform aims to transition games from pre-generated content to real-time interactive experiences based on user input.
The startup intends to provide tools that allow niche communities to create their own playable content. By reducing production costs, the company seeks to serve audiences that are typically overlooked by traditional game development models.
The newly acquired capital will be used to expand the team and release initial playable formats. The company plans to launch its creator platform in early 2027.
