Giant, an interactive storytelling platform that enables children to become cartoon characters and design their own worlds, has raised $8 million in seed funding. The round was led by Matrix, Decasonic, and Griffin Gaming Partners, with participation from Perceptive Ventures, Flex Capital, Arbitrum Gaming Ventures, Unpopular Ventures, and LightShed Ventures.
The San Francisco-based company said the new capital will be used to expand its platform, which is designed to transform children from passive content consumers into active creators. Giant lets kids star in personalized stories, interact with characters who remember them, and build evolving story worlds shaped by their imagination.
Since launching in May 2025, Giant has surpassed 1 million minutes of conversation between children and its AI-powered characters. The platform has also generated more than 200,000 personalized episodes, reflecting strong early traction and high repeat usage.
Giant’s product experience centers around three core features: Create, which enables children to design their own episodes and shape their adventures; Watch, where kids become cartoon characters starring in personalized shows featuring their name, voice, and interests; and Talk, which allows children to engage in ongoing conversations with characters that listen, remember, and respond meaningfully.
Giant emphasizes safety and privacy, operating without ads, tracking, or data collection. The platform was developed with input from child development experts and is certified safe for young users.
Founder and CEO John Kobs previously founded Apartment List, where he served as CEO for 14 years and scaled the platform to power approximately 3% of rental moves in the United States. He launched Giant to create a storytelling product aligned with the kind of creative digital experiences he wanted for his own children.
Giant is currently available on iOS and Android. And the company recently won the Interactive Media category at Lightspeed’s Game Changers competition, selected from more than 1,000 applicants.
KEY QUOTES:
“The internet is optimized for attention, while kids need imagination. Storytelling shapes who kids become. We turn kids from consumers into creators, building what we want our own kids to grow up with.”
John Kobs, CEO and Co-Founder of Giant
“I’ve been investing in John since 2013. Giant is the most ambitious expression of his long-term vision, building a category-defining product that combines creativity, emotional intelligence, and AI at scale.”
Dana Stalder, General Partner at Matrix
“Giant combines a first-principles understanding of kids’ creativity with AI that adapts as children turn ideas into stories and stories into worlds. John brings rare founder authenticity as a parent, and the team delivers with real competitive intensity. We believe Giant is defining a new category in AI-powered creative storytelling for the next generation.”
Paul Hsu, CEO at Decasonic
“We were immediately drawn to John and the team’s energy and conviction. They combine repeat-founder experience with a rare sensitivity to their users, which clearly comes through in the magical experience they’re building.”
Pierre Planche, Partner at Griffin
“Giant’s approach combines emotional intelligence, personalization, and AI designed with parents’ trust in mind to create an experience kids genuinely want to engage with. John and the Giant team bring rare depth of experience, paired with strong early validation. We believe Giant has the potential to define a new category that resonates with kids and parents alike, and we’re excited to support them as they scale.”
Rick Johanson, Partner at Arbitrum Gaming Ventures