The esports organization Gen.G announced today it has a completed a $46 million funding round that includes actor Will Smith as an investor.
Gen.G, formerly KSV Esports, started in 2017. Its executive chairman and cofounder Kevin Chou was also the co-founder for mobile developer Kabam. It has teams competing in notable competitive games Overwatch, League of Legends, PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds, Clash Royale, Fortnite, Call of Duty, and Apex Legends.
The money will help Gen.G open its Los Angeles headquarters, which is coming in July. Gen.G is also creating a youth esports academy program. The founding will also help Gen.G’s global expansion. The organization has teams in U.S., China, and Korea.
Along with Smith, Japanese soccer star Keisuke Honda invested via her Dreamers Fund, and Los Angeles Clippers minority owner Dennis Wong also contributed. Other investors include New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Conductive Ventures, Battery Ventures, Canaan Partners, SVB Capital, Stanford University, former chairman of U.S. investments at Alibaba Group Michael Zeisser, and MasterClass co-founder and CEO David Rogier.
“We are grateful for the support of a remarkable group of investors that is as diverse as the future of esports itself,” said Gen.G CEO Chris Park in a press release sent to GamesBeat. “Our partners in this round share Gen.G’s mission to reimagine sports entertainment as only an authentically global esports organization can.”