Backtracks, a pioneer in podcast analytics, today announced $2.1 million in seed funding led by Moonshots Capital. Capital Factory, Sputnik ATX, Next Coast Ventures, Bull Creek Capital, and BNSG Capital also participated in the round. The funding will be used to further product innovation and staff key positions to drive growth. As part of the funding, Kelly Perdew, co-founder and Managing General Partner at Moonshots Capital will join the board.
Backtracks is a B2B monetization and analytics platform for audio that helps to unlock meaning and value from the spoken word through podcasts. Its Open Podcast Analytics (OPA) based platform collects behavioral and performance metrics that podcasters and advertisers need to make informed decisions. Backtracks provides access to unprecedented detailed audience data including who, what, when, where, and how they're listening to a podcast. These features enable podcasters and advertisers to execute highly targeted audio campaigns using this data.
Backtracks is led by two highly technical and seasoned co-founders, Jonathan Gill and Kevin Wright. They are an audio-oriented team that have worked on over 30 albums, voted in the Grammy Awards, worked on NASA space station software, held multiple patents, and built massive e-commerce and payments systems for the likes of Dell, American Express, and Visa. They also worked together as early team members of Mozu, which successfully exited to Vista Equity Partners.
"Podcasts and spoken word audio content are experiencing massive growth with an expected 53% increase in listenership over the next four years. Backtracks allows audio content creators and brands harness the power of that growth to own their revenue and drive audience growth," said Jonathan Gill, CEO of Backtracks. "We love Moonshots Capital's experience as operators, their extensive network, and their reputation with entrepreneurs excited us. We are honored to have them and our new investors on board as we modernize this industry."
Backtracks has developed the world's most detailed and actionable set of podcast analytics built on an open source OPA standard. Podcast publishers, listening apps, aggregators, and ad networks are able to know, understand, and even predict their audience's listening and consumption behavior across native mobile apps and on the web.
"We’re extremely excited to be investing in Backtracks since it is a very compelling solution to advertisers in the growing podcast space. Jonathan and Kevin’s technical and entrepreneurial backgrounds give us confidence in the company’s moonshot potential," said Kelly Perdew. "Audio, and specifically podcasts, is one of the fastest growing consumer channels and one of the most efficient for advertisers. Backtracks’ unique and in-depth solutions for audiences, content creators, and brands unlocks extreme value in the market."
"The podcasting space is a massive market that is ripe for disruption and Jonathan and Kevin are the team to do it," said Michael Smerklo, co-founder and Managing Director of Next Coast Ventures. "They are seasoned founders with deep domain expertise on the complexities of designing an industry-agnostic platform that can integrate different offerings for customers big and small. Backtracks is not just a company that has the most cutting-edge analytics or the latest monetization tools to leverage advertising, their platform truly serves as a one-stop shop for brands that want to extend their reach and unlock the full potential podcasting has to offer."
About Backtracks
Backtracks helps audio content creators and brands know and grow their audience and revenue. Our extensible platform is audience and brand aligned while powering knowledge and revenue from behind the scenes. For more information visit https://backtracks.fm.
About Moonshots Capital
Moonshots Capital is a seed-stage venture capital firm that invests in extraordinary leadership. Great leaders are hard to come by. We believe the best ones are military-trained or trial-by-fire entrepreneurs who have the ability to motivate others to action, inspire trust, and plan heuristically. We invest with conviction when those attributes are present.
Moonshots Capital, with offices in Los Angeles and Austin, was founded by a team of veterans in 2017. The GPs have collectively operated 14 companies, and have personally invested in over 70 ventures. Beyond capital, we deploy our military and entrepreneurial experiences and networks to help world-changing companies grow.
