Jest Raises $7M to Challenge Mobile App Stores with Messaging-First Gaming Platform

San Francisco startup Jest has emerged from stealth with 7 million dollars in seed funding to transform the messaging inbox into a primary gaming platform. Led by Innovation Endeavors, this round supports the launch of the world’s first marketplace dedicated to messaging games. The company aims to provide a friction-free environment where software lives directly inside daily conversations.

By utilizing Rich Communication Services (RCS), Jest is positioning itself as a legitimate alternative to the long-standing duopoly of Apple’s App Store and the Google Play Store. The platform bypasses traditional download requirements, allowing users to launch high-fidelity games instantly within their existing text threads. This shift moves the mobile gaming experience from a siloed application to a social, persistent interface.

Early data from over one million gaming sessions suggests that Jest offers structural advantages that traditional stores cannot match. The company reports user acquisition costs that are 35% to 60% lower than standard mobile app installs. Additionally, day-seven retention rates are three to four times higher, as the games reside within the most frequently used app on any smartphone.

The strategy relies on the recent global standardization of RCS adoption across both Android and iOS devices. This technological inflection point has created a unified addressable market of approximately 3.8 billion daily active users. Developers can now build for a universal runtime that supports rich media and interactive buttons without the need for complex carrier integrations. To accelerate this ecosystem, the company is introducing the Jest Games Fund to deploy up to 1 million dollars per title. This progression-based capital model supports creators through three stages: Explore, Scale, and Flagship. Partnerships with studios like Pocket Gems and Global Worldwide already indicate strong industry interest based on one million proofs of engagement. CEO Deyan Vitanov, a veteran of the instant gaming sector, believes messaging is the next major distribution surface for all software. By focusing on the largest category in the mobile market, Jest intends to prove that the inbox is more than a communication tool. As the platform opens, the team is actively recruiting developers to pioneer this once-in-a-generation shift in how software is consumed.