Liverpool tech firm Draw & Code secures funding for augmented reality toy

Tech agency Draw & Code is set to bring its augmented reality toy SwapBots to market after securing a slice of the £4m UK Games Fund.

The Liverpool firm was one of 23 winners chosen out of 235 applicants in the fund’s latest round.

Draw & Code said its SwapBots product “bridges the gap” between digital and physical play, bringing the nuances of gameplay away from the screen and into the player’s hands.

John Keefe, the firm’s co-founder and director, said: “The support of the UK Games Fund will be invaluable to SwapBots from a funding perspective, but most importantly as validation of our unique approach to this emerging space within the gaming market.”

SwapBots has been developed for mobile devices using Apple and Android operating systems.

John continued: “For tech such as augmented reality to become a mainstream success it needs to be appealing and accessible, which is what we are aiming for with SwapBots.”

Pictured: SwapBots in action.

The Minister for Culture and the Digital Economy, Ed Vaizey, revealed the winners during an event at Westminster earlier this week.

He commented: “The UK’s creative industries are one of our greatest success stories, generating more than £84bn a year for the UK economy.

“Our fund is helping developers take their ideas from the drawing board and into production.”

Draw & Code is now focused on driving development of SwapBots as it works towards a 2017 release.

UK Games Talent and Finance CIC MD Paul Durrant said of the result: “With 235 applications, there was unprecedented demand for our funding in this round so these successful applicants really do represent the best of the UK’s emergent games development talent.”

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