Turkish mobile games studio Mindtail has raised $2 million in pre-seed funding. The round was led by APY Ventures, with Inveo Ventures and Ak Portföy GSYF joining as co-investors.
Mindtail will use the capital to expand its team, develop AI-based production tools, and carry out early marketing experiments. The studio is working towards roughly tripling its team size in the short term. A first game title is in development and will be announced in the near future.
Hybrid casual puzzle games built with AI at the centre
Mindtail was set up by R. Tamer Özgen, Umut Yıldız, Sarper Karabağ, and Doğuşcan Öztürk. The studio targets the hybrid casual puzzle segment and places AI production tools at the heart of its process. The founders bring hands-on experience from Dream Games, King, Tactile, Ace Games, and Codeway. Their previous roles touched titles including Royal Match, Royal Kingdom, Lily’s Garden, Candy Crush Soda, and the Braindom series, which together have served hundreds of millions of players. Ece Özgüle leads art direction at the studio.
Keçeli: “Game production as a capital efficiency game”
APY Ventures Fund Manager Mustafa Keçeli said: “What sets Mindtail apart is a founding philosophy that views game-making not just as a creative discipline, but as a capital efficiency game — where economics, production architecture, and timing align. A team with critical roles in globally successful titles placing AI-native production at the core of the company’s DNA from day one turns the per-iteration economic disadvantage of a hit-driven category into an advantage.”
Inveo Ventures’ Haluk Nişli noted: “Mindtail’s track record of working together, depth in product and growth, and rapid prototyping culture reflect what differentiating studios need in this new era. We’re proud to be among the first investors to back this newly founded studio.”
Ak Portföy GSYF’s Hüseyin Çelik added: “Mindtail stands out with its internationally proven founding team and AI-driven production approach. Türkiye’s recent billion-dollar exits clearly demonstrate the ecosystem’s global potential, and we believe Mindtail will be a major player as the AI transformation accelerates.”
Özgen: “Aiming to set a new standard”
Mindtail Co-Founder and CEO R. Tamer Özgen said: “This round is the moment our collective experience materializes. We aim to combine what we’ve learned from products serving hundreds of millions of players with an AI-native production model to set a new standard in hybrid casual puzzle. We’ve also created a meaningful option pool for those joining us — founder-employee alignment from day one is a top priority.”
About Mindtail
An Istanbul-based mobile gaming studio building hybrid casual puzzle games with an AI-native production model.