The Block: Maker of web3 adoptable dogs from 'outer space,' Dogami raises fresh $7 million

Dogami, a web3 game that enables players to adopt and raise virtual dogs, raised $7 million in a seed extension round.

The fundraise was led by European venture capital firm XAnge. Other backers include Bpifrance, Blockchain Founders Fund and Wagram Capital, according to a statement from the company.

The equity round closed at the end of November, Dogami CEO and co-founder Max Stoeckl said in an interview with The Block. Earlier this year, Dogami raised $6 million in a seed round with backing from investors including Ubisoft, Animoca Brands, Tezos and GSR, and the new seed extension brings Dogami’s total funding to $14 million.

“There was a lot of due diligence,” Stoeckl said. “We underwent, I think, two months of commercial and legal DD. These investors turned upside down every stone and [it's] also a good sign of legitimacy that this gives us.”

What is Dogami? Founded in the middle of last year, Dogami enables individuals to buy non-fungible tokens of 3D dogs, which they can adopt and raise. Dogami did an initial drop of 12,000 dog NFTs in the first quarter of this year.

“All of this is basically rooted in a very strong backstory that describes where the Dogami come from,” Stoeckl said. “Dogami are not normal dogs, they come from outer space, and they come to earth with a purpose. They have to find the human with whom they bond and then when they have this magical bond, they get back their memory and they remember their legacy and where they come from.”

This rich storyline created by a former Marvel writer will enable Dogami strip content for years to come, Stoeckl said. He is aiming for the game to reach a mass market audience, with the opportunity to extend into other branches of media like comics or videos.

Doga House artwork from Dogami

Most recently, the startup launched DOGA House, which is a mobile game available to owners of Dogami NFTs on iOS and Android devices.

The average age of a Dogami player is 30, according to the company.

The Dogami universe The Dogami universe has its own currency called DOGA, which is used for buying and selling NFTS and accessories as well as participating in events.

The DOGA token is down 96% from its all-time high of $0.41 in March of this year and currently trading around $0.0147, according to data from CoinMarketCap.

Some of the funds from the raise will be used for listing the token on more exchanges, Stoeckl said.

“This week we have two listings already, Bittrex and Bitmart,” he said. “We are talking to a few other top 10 exchanges right now, for which we will also need some budget.”

Dogami leverages the Tezos blockchain but may in the future explore wrapped tokens on other blockchains and cross chain transactions, Stoeckl said.

Partnering with Gap Earlier this year, Dogami partnered with fashion brand GAP to offer branded accessories for players to buy.

The Dogami team is exploring launching two new partnerships with brands next year, Stoeckl said

Also on the roadmap is the development of the game environment and new animations, the company said in the statement. Most of the funds are going towards product development, Stoeckl said.

The recent raise will give the startup around 21 months of runway, he added.

"Bpifrance is delighted to support Dogami, an emblematic player in the Web3 ecosystem, in its next stage of development,” said Guillaume Simonaire, principal at Bpifrance, in the statement. “In less than a year, the teams have built a powerful and committed community of over 200,000 people paving the way for a global IP. With the release of the mobile game in early December, NFT owners will be able to experience the full power and functionality of their virtual pet.”

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