In an effort to enhance its content game and better compete with TikTok, Google has purchased Alter, for about $100 million, an artificial intelligence (AI) avatar startup that enables creators and marketers to express their virtual identity, a source familiar with the situation told TechCrunch.
The source stated that the deal was finished roughly two months ago, but neither company made it public. While denying the acquisition, some of Alter's top executives altered their LinkedIn profiles to reflect their new employment with Google. Because they are disclosing confidential information, the source requested that they remain anonymous.
A Google representative confirmed to TechCrunch that the business has acquired Alter, but she would not elaborate on the specifics of the transaction.
Alter started as Facemoji, a platform that provided plug-and-play technology to assist game and app developers to integrate avatar systems into their products. Alter has offices in the United States and the Czech Republic. Play Ventures, Roosh Ventures, Twitter, and other investors contributed $3 million to the startup's seed round of funding.
Initially known as Facemoji, Alter provided a platform for other developers to use in order to integrate avatar creation features into their apps and games. Jonathan Slimak, the chief co-founder and COO of Alter, recently announced on LinkedIn that he was beginning a career "building Avatars at Google." It's unclear how Alter's people and technology could help Google outperform TikTok. Google's version of the short-form video format, YouTube Shorts, has already proven to be profitable for the company. Google revealed in June of this year that the platform had 1.5 billion monthly active users after a global rollout in the summer of 2021.
Using Alter, Google intends to enhance and expand its content offerings, according to a source familiar with the situation. Jon Slimak and Robin Raszka, the creators of Alter, did not reply to a request for comment.