SBC has selected five startups to compete in the 2026 edition of its First Pitch competition, in partnership with BettingStartups, with the finalists using artificial intelligence and other technology to address challenges across betting and gaming.
Betsy, Gmonitor, InsightPlay.ai, Safefy and Whizgen AI (Whizdom AI) will compete on Oct. 1 on the Product Innovation Showcase Stage at SBC Summit 2026.
Each finalist will have three minutes to pitch its product and growth plans, followed by a three-minute question-and-answer session with a panel of judges.
The winner will receive a prize package valued at €139,400 ($162,375), including technology services, marketing support, legal services and exhibition opportunities intended to support the company’s next phase of growth.
Betsy is a social prediction gaming platform designed to turn bets and predictions into shareable content, while Gmonitor uses AI to track market activity such as promotions, games, advertising, rankings and regulation to provide competitive intelligence.
InsightPlay.ai provides autonomous AI agents for player acquisition, retention, reactivation and customer support. Safefy uses AI to monitor transactions for suspicious activity and potential losses, while Whizgen AI provides tools for player support, personalised game recommendations and identifying players at risk of leaving an operator.
The competition is part of SBC Summit’s expanded Startup Hub, hosted by BettingStartups, which combines exhibition space, networking and startup-focused content aimed at connecting emerging companies with investors, operators and potential commercial partners.
“What stands out about this year’s finalists is the range of problems they’re trying to solve — from player retention to transaction monitoring and competitive intelligence,” Paul Mills, Senior Event Director at SBC, said. “Each one is tackling a genuine industry challenge, but from a completely different angle.”
“One thing’s for sure, the judges are going to have their work cut out for them given the amount of talent on stage this year,” Mills added.
The prize package includes one year of API access to sports, gambling and engagement data from Are You Watching This?! and MetaBet worth €42,000 ($48,922), a 3×3-metre booth and other benefits from SBC Events worth €15,000, and six months of advertising and editorial support from SBC Media worth €11,000.
It also includes €10,000 in AWS promotional credits, a 12-month CertiIQ compliance platform subscription and add-on worth €7,400, a Square in the Air marketing package worth €5,000, €4,000 in gaming-related legal services credit from Royer Cooper Cohen Braunfeld, a €3,000 branding or web design package from Vegas Kings and a GameOn media package worth €2,750.
The judging panel comprises Rob Duboff, Director at Velo Partners; Willy Joseph, Global SA Leader, Games, Betting & Gaming and Sports at Amazon Web Services; Paris Smith, Founder & CEO of Defy the Odds; Tom Waterhouse, Founder and CIO of Waterhouse VC; and David Williams, Partner at Discerning Capital.
“First Pitch gives founders a unique opportunity to demonstrate what they have built in front of people who can help them move forward,” Jesse Learmonth, Founder of BettingStartups and host of SBC First Pitch, said. “The pitch itself may only last a few minutes, but the introductions, feedback and conversations that come from it can have a much longer-term impact.”
SBC Summit 2026 will bring together more than 40,000 betting and gaming professionals from Sept. 29 to Oct. 1 at the Feira Internacional de Lisboa and MEO Arena.