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14,448 startups · 29 programs

Nitrode

Active · Frontier AI research to advance game development

WebsiteYC profile

Why it ranks

How the rank works
11signal of 100 · rising 7
  • team of 8Team size · YC's directory+4.9
  • went through YCProgram · this site+4
  • hiringHiring · Titles (titles.fru.dev), YC+2

A sum of public facts, not a judgement and not investment advice.

Competitors

AIPixelfork AIShared: game development, complexityPlug and PlayAzerbaijanStartup →AIRamen VRShared: game development, believeYC S19San FranciscoStartup →AILeonardo AiShared: game developmentAWS GenAI Inaugural cohortStartup →AIStarShared: game developmentYC S22SpringfieldStartup →AICodeWispShared: game developmentYC W26San FranciscoStartup →
Companies closest to Nitrode
Company
Pixelfork AIShared: game development, complexityPlug and Play Not statedAI
Ramen VRShared: game development, believeYC S19ActiveAI
Leonardo AiShared: game developmentAWS GenAI Inaugural cohortNot statedAI
StarShared: game developmentYC S22ActiveAI, Devtools
CodeWispShared: game developmentYC W26ActiveAI

Adjacent

OtherGame ClosureShared: game development500 Global 2015United StatesStartup →OtherInactiveUnnyhogShared: game developmentYC W16Los AngelesStartup →Developer toolsRUNREALShared: game developmentspeedrun SR003Los AngelesStartup →AInunu.aiShared: game developmentYC W23ZHStartup →Developer toolsApp OnboardShared: game development500 Global 2017VietnamStartup →
Companies next to Nitrode
Company
Game ClosureShared: game development500 Global 2015Not statedOther
UnnyhogShared: game developmentYC W16InactiveOther
RUNREALShared: game developmentspeedrun SR003Not statedDevtools
nunu.aiShared: game developmentYC W23 +1ActiveAI
App OnboardShared: game development500 Global 2017Not statedDevtools

Also from W25 in AI

All of W25
AIBezelDigital AI humans that model clothes for e-commerce brands.YC W25New York CityStartup →AIMecha HealthFoundation models to automate x-ray analysis for radiologistsYC W25San FranciscoStartup →AIMundo AIThe data layer for perceptual intelligenceYC W25VancouverStartup →AIOsmosisReinforcement Learning (RL) for AI AgentsYC W25San FranciscoStartup →AIOverstand LabsNavigate any set of data - no matter how large - in minutes.YC W25New York CityStartup →AI.WaveInference for real-time AIYC W25ParisStartup →
Company
BezelDigital AI humans that model clothes for e-commerce brands.ActiveAI
Mecha HealthFoundation models to automate x-ray analysis for radiologiststeam of 4ActiveAI
Mundo AIThe data layer for perceptual intelligenceteam of 30ActiveAI, Devtools
OsmosisReinforcement Learning (RL) for AI Agentsteam of 6hiringActiveAI, Devtools
Overstand LabsNavigate any set of data - no matter how large - in minutes.team of 4ActiveAI, Data
.WaveInference for real-time AIteam of 2ActiveAI, Devtools

Founders

  • Ben KimFounder/CEO
  • Sejoon ChangFounder/COO
  • Brian LaFounder/CTO

About Nitrode

Nitrode is a research company focused on improving game development with AI. To advance game development, we believe AI models firstly need to be judged against robust evaluation frameworks that reflect the actual complexity of the field.

YC batch
W25 · Winter 2025
Status, per YC
Active
Category
AI, Data
Team size
8
Location
San Francisco, CA, USA
Founded
2024
Checked
6h ago

YC tags: Machine Learning, B2B, Data Engineering, AI

Changes seen

TagsOct 19, 2026

Newly tagged AI; no longer tagged Artificial Intelligence.

Source ↗

Nitrode in W25: 166 companies, 84% AI

LinkedIn

Nitrode: questions

Which YC batch was Nitrode in?

Nitrode was in Y Combinator's Winter 2025 batch (W25).

Is Nitrode still active?

Y Combinator lists Nitrode as active.

Who founded Nitrode?

Nitrode's founders, as listed on its YC page: Ben Kim (Founder/CEO), Sejoon Chang (Founder/COO), Brian La (Founder/CTO).

Where is Nitrode based?

Nitrode lists San Francisco, CA, USA as its location on YC's directory.