Infinite Reality (iR), a leading global provider of virtual and AI-powered immersive experiences, announced it signed a definitive agreement to acquire the Drone Racing League (DRL). This $250 million acquisition supports Infinite Reality’s capabilities and IP and boosts its valuation to $3.5 billion.
DRL marks Infinite Reality’s latest acquisition as the company expands its portfolio, which includes spatial web design pioneer Ethereal Engine, fully integrated entertainment production company iR Studios, e-sports franchises Team Rogue (League of Legends) and London Royal Ravens (Call of Duty), and digital media, content and creator services.
The ownership of DRL’s transformative technology, media, and sports ecosystem will drive Infinite Reality efforts to elevate how consumers engage and transact with brands and content, making the experience more immersive, and in the case of sports and entertainment, as exciting as attending a live event.
DRL previously received investments from notable sports, media, and technology entities, including RSE Ventures, Liberty Media (owner of Formula One & MotoGP), Exor (owner of Ferrari), ISOS Capital, WWE, T-Mobile Ventures, CAA Ventures, Lux Capital, Lerer Hippeau, Courtside Ventures, Sky and Hearst Ventures.
DRL and Infinite Reality will integrate their teams, which share decades of senior leadership positions at top brands including Amazon, the NBA, Discovery, and Peloton. As part of the deal, DRL CEO and founder Nicholas Horbaczewski will be promoted to Infinite Reality Global President, and DRL President Rachel Jacobson will be promoted to Infinite Reality President, Global Business Ventures and Partnerships.
Since launching in 2016, DRL has put drones at the center of culture, reimagining sports through groundbreaking technology, electrifying fans with high-speed drone races, dominating social media with viral drone videos, unveiling award-winning STEM programs and elevating the world’s best pilots as the most competitive drone racers and sought-after Hollywood drone cinematographers.
DRL reached over one billion annual digital video views and has a global broadcast footprint of 320 million households through top sports networks and streaming distribution agreements. In the past two years, DRL doubled its social media audience to over 15 million followers, including 5.4 million on TikTok, more than other major sports leagues.
Infinite Reality and DRL will unveil professional drone racing stadiums, a Formula One-inspired global circuit of Championship DRL events, and AI-powered sports and entertainment experiences. These will provide expanded value for blue-chip partners such as the U.S. Air Force, Vodafone, WarnerMedia, and Universal Music Group, among others.
With the addition of DRL and following its proposed go-public transaction with Newbury Street Acquisition, it will be better positioned to continue expanding its reach and trailblazing the multi-billion-dollar immersive technology, digital media, and entertainment industries.
The deal is subject to regulatory approvals and certain closing conditions and is expected to close in the second quarter of this year.
KEY QUOTES:
“Infinite Reality revolutionizes fan and customer engagement across platforms, making every moment more interactive, accessible and captivating. DRL epitomizes our belief that fans don’t just want to sit in a stadium or watch broadcast highlights on social media. The future of sports and entertainment involves new and disruptive formats that are wildly more immersive. Now, with our combined assets, iR and DRL are set to usher in a new era of sports entertainment, powered by cutting edge tech and fueled by fandom, creativity and community.”
- John Acunto, CEO of Infinite Reality
“We created the Drone Racing League to bring the sport from the future to millions of fans who weren’t as excited about traditional sports from the past. The DRL team advanced the technology, media capture and race competition to deliver a sport of constant innovation, cultural relevance and thrilling action. Today, we are incredibly excited to join Infinite Reality, a company that has the vision and resources to take drone racing and our core technology to infinite heights.”
- Nicholas Horbaczewski, CEO & Founder of the Drone Racing League
“I still remember the day Nick walked into RSE’s office in 2015 armed with nothing more than a deck and a vision for a new immersive technology driven sport. ‘What person on earth doesn’t dream of flying?’ That was Nick’s simple premise, and in the years since, he has made that childhood dream a reality for hundreds of millions of people worldwide. To get there, he had to invent and patent technology that would overcome such novel technological hurdles. How do you make a drone fly 100 MPH through a stadium and transmit signals through cinder block walls with near zero latency before the pilot even realizes they’ve crashed? What once seemed so improbable a decade ago is now inevitable thanks to Nick, Rachel and the incredible team at DRL. I’m so excited to see how the big creative minds at Infinite Reality extend drone racing into a truly immersive experience that will captivate an entire new legion of fans.”
- Matt Higgins, RSE Ventures Co-Founder & CEO
“Nick epitomizes all that is so great about the entrepreneurial fire that burns so bright in the United States. He saw something others missed or just didn’t believe, and he was determined to fight for his dream until the world realized he was right all along. To build a sport from nothing is near impossible and I’m so proud to have witnessed the entire journey from day one. We can’t wait to see where DRL and the Infinite Reality team take this still young sport that has earned its wings.”
- Stephen Ross, RSE Ventures Co-Founder & Chairman
“When we acquire companies at Infinite Reality we like to get to know the founders to make sure they fit our culture and share our passion, mindset and vision of the future, and there are no better examples of this than Nicholas and Rachel whose leadership and impressive experience bring tremendous value to iR.”
- Amish Shah, Co-Founder & Chief Business Officer of Infinite Reality
“When I joined the Drone Racing League four years ago, we set out to blitzscale the growth of the league across our fans and media, and I am so proud of the DRL team and this milestone. Together with Infinite Reality, we are well-positioned to accelerate the future of technology-driven media and entertainment. We will blur the line between the digital and the real like never before and ignite massive fandom with younger generations who demand the most immersive experiences.”
- DRL President Rachel Jacobson
“The Drone Racing League has grown as fast as their drones fly, rivaling major tech and entertainment brands that have decades of experience on them. DRL will position Infinite Reality as a global leader in the tech and media space.”
- Eric Hippeau, CEO of Lerer Hippeau
