Lucra Sports Raises $20 Million Series B Led by ARK After Reframing Pitch Around AI
Updated
Updated · TechCrunch · May 25
Lucra Sports Raises $20 Million Series B Led by ARK After Reframing Pitch Around AI
2 articles · Updated · TechCrunch · May 25
$20 million in Series B funding will help Lucra Sports expand its white-label gaming competitions and add mini-games, with ARK Invest Venture Fund leading the round and helping bring in other investors.
Lucra won backing despite not being an AI startup by recasting its pitch for late-2025 fundraising, arguing AI would either free up more leisure time for gaming or make Lucra a diversification bet if the boom faded.
ARK's support stood out because the firm had previously lost money on Skillz, another skill-based gaming platform, before exiting that investment.
Lucra sells tournament and wagering tools as loyalty products for consumer-facing businesses including Five Iron Golf, Dave & Buster's and Chess King, and CEO Dylan Robbins said steady year-over-year growth underpinned the raise.
The round highlights how even non-AI startups have had to frame growth stories around the AI frenzy to get venture meetings and secure capital.
Why did Cathie Wood's ARK, after a major eSports loss, make a gaming startup its first-ever lead venture investment?
As AI captured most venture funds, how did one founder's clever 'hedge' pitch land a $20 million investment?