Born with 15 million US dollars Series A

The consumer AI startup Born has completed a Series A financing round of 15 million US dollars. The aim is to drive forward the development of AI-supported "AI Friends" and expand the team with international expertise. The new round brings the total funding raised to date to 25 million US dollars.

Leading investors from the consumer and gaming industry participated in the financing round: Accel (lead seed investor) also took part in the Series A, together with Tencent and Laton Ventures. Angel investors such as Ilkka Paananen (Supercell), Riccardo Zacconi (King), Scott Belsky (ex-Adobe, A24 Partner) and Alexander Pall (The Chainsmokers) are also among the supporters.

From chatbots to real digital companions

Born is positioned at the interface of AI and consumer social. The company develops virtual friends that go beyond pure chatbots and are designed to be socially, emotionally and culturally relevant. Unlike platforms that focus on role-playing games or purely text-based conversations, Born aims to build resonant digital relationships that feel alive and sustainable.

We see enormous potential to use AI not only for infrastructure and B2B, but to create real added value for consumers - through products that entertain, connect and enable social interaction in new ways.

Fabian Kamberi, CEO and co-founder Born / SLAY GmbH

Flagship app Pengu reaches 15 million users

Since its launch in 2022, Born has already brought five global social apps to number 1 in app stores. The AI character app Pengu, which users not only play, but also "raise" and "co-parent" together, has been particularly successful. With over 15 million users worldwide, Pengu is the largest AI character app with its own IP in the USA.

With emotionally intelligent AI characters, Born can shape a new consumer category. The ability to develop chart-topping apps, combined with a clear product vision, shows the potential for global growth.

Luca Bocchio, Partner at Accel

With the new capital, Born plans to open a US office in New York, develop more characters for Pengu and roll out internationally a social AI product that has so far been tested in stealth mode. At the same time, the funds will be used to expand the team in order to attract top talent in the field of consumer AI.

Born, or SLAY GmbH, was founded in 2022 by Fabian Kamberi, Jannis Ringwald and Stefan Quernhorst. The company develops AI-based social apps that combine play, community and digital companionship. With innovative characters like Pengu, Born aims to shape the next step in the evolution of digital consumer products.