Unpredictable Hits Tripledot’s Akin Babayigit: Hard Work Over Know-How, Rising Hubs & the AI Era
Oct 19, 2025
Akin Babayigit, co-founder of Tripledot Studios and expert in mobile gaming, shares his fascinating journey from Turkey to building one of Europe's fastest-growing game companies. He discusses the vital role of risk and resilience in entrepreneurship and the challenges faced during Tripledot's inception. Akin also offers insights into the competitive landscape of mobile gaming, emphasizing the rise of Turkish and Chinese studios. Plus, he reveals how AI can redefine game development and shares crucial advice for aspiring founders to act now and stay committed.
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From Teen Hustles To Yale And McKinsey
- Akin moved alone from Turkey to the U.S. at 16 and built a path through engineering, Yale and McKinsey.
- Early hustles included doing classmates' homework and organizing paid snooker tournaments as a teen in Turkey.
Building Facebook's Gaming Partnerships
- Akin joined Facebook in 2012 to run games partnerships in Europe and helped launch the original Audience Network.
- He worked closely with developers and even helped build patented tooling for game partners.
Tripledot Began With A Solitaire Tinker
- Tripledot started from side tinkering (a solitaire prototype) and conversations with trusted co-founders Lior and Eyal.
- They debated building versus buying companies before committing to build and scale together.