What Does FirstBlood Do?

Total employees17
HeadquartersBoston
Founded2016

FirstBlood was an innovative esports platform designed for competitive gaming, tournaments, and skill-based matchmaking. Founded in 2015, it aimed to provide a fair and rewarding experience for gamers by leveraging technologies including blockchain for transparency in its early iterations. In June 2022, FirstBlood's assets and IP were acquired by Emerge Gaming (ASX:EM1), an Australian-listed company, with plans to integrate its technology into Emerge's Arcade X platform. The original FirstBlood.io platform appears to be no longer independently operational under its original branding and team.

Where Is FirstBlood's Headquarters?

HQ Function

Served as the central hub for platform development, software engineering, business operations, marketing, and strategic planning for the FirstBlood platform.

Notable Features:

As a tech startup, the office likely featured collaborative workspaces and modern amenities typical for such companies. Specific architectural highlights are not widely publicized.

Work Culture:

Reportedly fast-paced, innovation-driven, with a strong passion for gaming and esports. The culture likely emphasized collaboration and iterative development.

HQ Significance:

The Boston HQ was the birthplace of the FirstBlood platform and where its core technology and community were initially developed and grown before its acquisition.

Values Reflected in HQ: The HQ environment likely aimed to reflect values of innovation, competition, community in gaming, and technological advancement.

Location:

As an online esports platform, FirstBlood aimed to serve a global community of gamers. Its services, including matchmaking and tournaments, were accessible internationally. Post-acquisition, its IP contributes to Emerge Gaming's global strategy.

Street Address:

75 State St

City:

Boston

State/Province:

MA

Country:

USA

Where Else Does FirstBlood Operate Around the World?

No additional office locations available.

Buying Intent Signals for FirstBlood

Highperformr Signals uncover buying intent and give you clear insights to target the right accounts at the right time — helping your sales, marketing, and GTM teams close more deals, faster.

Notable news
Hiring actively
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
Corporate Finance
*Example signal, not calculated in real time

Who's Leading FirstBlood? Meet the Executive Team

As of April 2025, FirstBlood' leadership includes:

Joe Zhou - Co-founder & former CEO
Zack Kelling - Co-founder & former CTO
Anik Dang - Co-founder
Marco Cuesta - Co-founder & former COO

Who's Investing in FirstBlood?

FirstBlood has been backed by several prominent investors over the years, including:

Techstars (Boston)
GFS Ventures
Indicator Ventures
Right Click Capital
Stellar Development Foundation
Digital Currency Group
Boost VC

What Leadership Changes Has FirstBlood Seen Recently?

Hire0
Exits2

The most significant event was the acquisition of FirstBlood's assets and IP by Emerge Gaming in June 2022. This led to the cessation of FirstBlood as an independent operational entity and a transition for its leadership. There is no public information about new hires to a standalone 'FirstBlood' executive team in the last 12 months as it no longer operates independently.

Departures

Joe Zhou, Role as CEO of independent FirstBlood concluded with the company's asset acquisition by Emerge Gaming.
Zack Kelling, Role as CTO of independent FirstBlood concluded with the company's asset acquisition by Emerge Gaming.

What Technology (Tech Stack) Is Used byFirstBlood?

Discover the tools FirstBlood uses. Highperformr reveals the technologies powering your target accounts — helping your sales, marketing, and GTM teams prioritize smarter and close faster.

FirstBlood Email Formats and Examples

Prior to its acquisition, FirstBlood likely used standard corporate email formats based on its domain 'firstblood.io'. The most common patterns for tech startups include [first].[last]@[domain].com or [first_initial][last]@[domain].com. These formats are no longer active for the original team.

[first].[last]@firstblood.io

Format

joe.zhou@firstblood.io (historical example)

Example

10%

Success rate

What's the Latest News About FirstBlood?

ASX (Australian Securities Exchange) Announcement by Emerge GamingJune 2, 2022

Emerge Gaming Acquires FirstBlood Esports Platform Assets and IP

Emerge Gaming Limited (ASX:EM1) announced the strategic acquisition of the assets and intellectual property of US-based competitive gaming platform FirstBlood.io. The acquisition, for a consideration of US$150,000, is aimed at integrating FirstBlood's technology and user base into Emerge's Arcade X social gaming platform to enhance its tournament and competitive features....more

TechCrunchFebruary 17, 2017

FirstBlood raises $5.5 million to let esports players earn money with a blockchain-based platform

FirstBlood, a decentralized eSports platform based on Ethereum, announced it has raised $5.5 million in a crowdsale that lasted only a few minutes. The platform allows players to compete in games like Dota 2 and earn rewards, leveraging blockchain for transparent prize pooling and distribution....more

FirstBlood Blog (Medium)December 1, 2020

FirstBlood Partners with Epics.gg, Bringing Digital CS:GO Collectibles to Competitive Platform

FirstBlood announced a partnership with Epics.gg, a platform for officially licensed digital CS:GO collectibles. The collaboration aimed to integrate these collectibles into the FirstBlood tournament experience, offering new types of rewards and engagement for players....more

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