Saudi Arabia-based gaming technology startup Qwacks has raised SAR 1.8 million (about US $480,000) in a pre-seed funding round led by investment firm Merak Capital, the company and local financial press reported.
Founded in 2024, Qwacks is developing a unified technology platform to support the full lifecycle of game creation, including backend services, AI-enhanced playtesting and market insights tools designed to help game developers accelerate production and refine live operations.
Merak Capital’s investment will be used to expand Qwacks’ technology stack, deepen product integrations and onboard more game studios in Saudi Arabia and the broader region, executives said. The startup aims to address increasing demand within the Kingdom’s growing gaming ecosystem as it shifts focus from consumer participation toward game production and developer-focused infrastructure.
Qwacks’ platform includes Flock, a scalable backend-as-a-service for online and multiplayer games; Protokite, an AI-assisted playtesting system to connect developers with real users; and DataDuck, a market intelligence engine that aggregates data from major platforms to guide game validation and opportunity identification.
Abdulelah Alsharif, Vice President at Merak Capital, described the investment as aligned with the firm’s strategy to support technology ventures that contribute to Saudi Arabia’s broader ambitions in the gaming sector, part of Vision 2030’s economic diversification goals.
Qwacks CEO and co-founder Anas Alsahli said the funding marks a “major step” toward accelerating development of the startup’s unified platform and providing tools that reduce friction and shorten production cycles for local and regional game developers.
The pre-seed round underscores continuing investor interest in the emerging Middle East gaming technology market, where venture firms and accelerators have been increasing support for startups across game development and related services.
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