CNBC today announced that Skillz, the worldwide leader in mobile eSports, has joined the CNBC Disruptor 50 list. Now in its fifth year, the list ranks the world’s most ambitious and innovative private companies that are changing the economy and business landscape. Along with Skillz (No. 41), this year’s list featured tech luminaries including Airbnb (No. 1), SpaceX (No. 14), Pinterest (No. 31), Blue Apron (No. 42) and Warby Parker (No. 47).
Skillz has become the first eSports company to make the list, further validating an industry projected to become a $5 billion global business by 2020. Recognized for inventing the mobile eSports category, Skillz has grown to over 46 percent of all eSports prizes in just four years since inception. The company has hosted more than 100 million mobile eSports tournaments and grown its user base to over 12 million players, 53 percent of which are female. Two weeks ago, Skillz announced that it had doubled its revenue run-rate in the past eight months to exceed $100 million.
“When we started in 2012, the vast majority of people had never heard of eSports,” said Andrew Paradise CEO and founder of Skillz. “Now, the eSports industry continues to grow at an exponential rate to disrupt the future of sports, a three thousand year old industry and one of humanity’s oldest and most celebrated institutions.”
