Venture capital wants in on chess. And they have an ambitious plan: to make a new variation of the game popular.
What’s happening:
- Chess grandmaster Magnus Carlsen and legendary German entrepreneur Jan Henric Buettner have raised $12M USD for their newly launched venture known as Freestyle Chess
- The round was led by venture capital giant Left Lane Capital
The big idea:
- Freestyle Chess is a new approach to classical chess often referred to as Fischer Random, in which the pieces are assembled randomly behind the pawns instead of in their traditional starting places
- By assembling the pieces in unique spots, Fischer Random deviates away from well known classical openings and unlocks entirely new styles of chess
Why it matters:
- Despite chess having enormous popularity globally, there have yet to be tournaments that garner enormous popularity globally and transcend into mainstream culture
By the numbers:
- Freestyle Chess will host multiple tournaments, with grand prizes ranging from $750K to $1M USD
Going deeper:
- Freestyle Chess is also planning to launch a new digital experience for Fischer Random chess, in addition to hosting multiple high stakes tournaments across the world
The intrigue:
- Magnus Carlsen is widely considered to be the most successful chess player of all time and this new venture represents the first time he has ever raised funding to launch a company focused specifically on chess
