Niantic, Inc is an American software development company based in San Francisco.
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33 Facts About Niantic Inc
2.
Niantic Inc is best known for developing the augmented reality mobile games Ingress and Pokemon Go.
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3.
Niantic Inc was formed as Niantic Labs in 2010 as an internal startup within Google.
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4.
Niantic Inc became an independent entity in October 2015 when Google restructured under Alphabet Inc Niantic has additional offices in Bellevue and Los Angeles.
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5.
Niantic Inc took its name from the whaling vessel Niantic, which came to San Francisco during the California Gold Rush in the 1800s.
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6.
Company spun out of Google in October 2015 soon after Google's announcement of its restructuring as Alphabet Inc During the spinout, Niantic announced that Google, Nintendo, and The Pokemon Company would invest up to $30 million in Series-A funding, $20 million upfront and the remaining $10 million in financing conditioned upon the company achieving certain milestones, to support the growth of the company and its products.
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7.
In November 2017, Niantic Inc raised $200 million in Series B funding from multiple investors, led by Spark Capital.
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8.
In January 2019, it was reported that Niantic Inc had raised an additional $245 million in a Series C fundraising round.
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9.
In November 2017, it was announced that Niantic Inc had acquired Evertoon, an app which allows users to make short, personalized films.
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10.
In February 2018, Niantic Inc announced that it had acquired augmented reality company Escher Reality, a team focused on building persistent, cross-platform, multi-user experiences.
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11.
Hanke stated that Niantic Inc planned to allow third-party developers to build AR games similar to Pokemon Go.
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12.
In June 2018, Niantic Inc announced the acquisition of computer vision and machine learning company Matrix Mill.
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13.
In July 2018, Niantic Inc announced the acquisition of LA-based gaming studio, Seismic Games.
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14.
In November 2018, Niantic Inc invested in DigiLens alongside Mitsubishi Chemical's Diamond Edge Ventures.
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15.
In June 2019, Niantic Inc announced the acquisition of London-based development studio, Sensible Object.
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16.
In 2021, Niantic Inc acquired Scaniverse, a 3D scanning app, and Lowkey, a social gaming platform in which users can record and share gameplay moments.
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17.
In 2022, Niantic Inc announced the acquisition of 8th Wall, a WebAR development platform, and NZXR, an augmented reality studio.
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18.
In June 2018, Niantic Inc shared a sneak peek behind the technology they had been developing for years: the Niantic Inc Real World Platform.
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19.
Niantic Inc mentioned that they intend to open up the platform in the future for use by third-party developers.
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20.
In December 2018, Niantic Inc announced their Beyond Reality Developer Contest offering third-party developers an opportunity to develop a new game experience on the Niantic Inc Real World Platform for a chance to compete for a prize pool of more than $1 million.
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21.
In November 2021, Niantic Inc launched the Lightship software development kit for augmented reality based on Unity.
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22.
Niantic Inc raised $300 million from Coatue Management for further development of Lightship and Niantic's "real-world metaverse", valuing the company at $9 billion.
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23.
In July 2019, Niantic Inc announced they would shut down the app later that year, with the app itself being removed from app stores immediately.
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24.
Niantic Inc's first augmented reality game Ingress was initially made available on Android by invitation only in November 2012.
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25.
Companies that partnered with Niantic Inc were marketed through the narrative of Ingress rather than direct marketing techniques.
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26.
In November 2018, Niantic Inc released a revamped version of the game branded as Ingress Prime.
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27.
Niantic Inc retained the older Ingress game as a separate download named Scanner [REDACTED].
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28.
In September 2015, it was announced that Niantic Inc had been developing Pokemon Go in partnership with Nintendo and The Pokemon Company for iOS and Android devices.
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29.
In November 2017, it was announced that Niantic Inc had been developing Harry Potter: Wizards Unite in partnership with Warner Bros.
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31.
The game was being co-developed with Seattle-based studio Very Very Spaceship, but Niantic Inc ultimately cancelled the game and three others in June 2022 amidst layoffs.
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32.
Niantic Inc has been sued in at least two class-action lawsuits: one starting in 2016 due to complaints from homeowners regarding trespassing and nuisance caused by Pokemon Go players, and a $1.
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33.
Niantic Inc claimed that the hacked versions of the applications were infringing on their intellectual property rights.
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