The Next: Volume 12 with XST Capital Group

XST Capital Group presents The Next, a recurring series featuring founders, CEO’s, and key industry thought leaders to discuss the companies shaping innovation with the digital gaming sector. In this edition, XST Capital Group founder Joel Simkins speaks with Matt Peterson, CEO of Tallysight. This interview originally appeared on the XST Capital Group website.

“Could you give us some insight into the genesis of Tallysight and how it all began? Additionally, years down the line, what do you envision Tallysight to be in the media ecosystem?”

The idea for Tallysight sparked in 2014, shortly after I graduated college. The initial concept was straightforward - create a social sports gaming app that would appeal to casual fans rather than hardcore bettors. While working full-time jobs, I spent years refining the concept. The name 'Tallysight' emerged in 2016, as a play on tallying predictions and foresight.

Everything changed when I met my cofounder Masheed at a previous startup. We started building prototypes on nights and weekends, and after sports betting was legalized in the US, we took the leap to pursue Tallysight full-time in 2019. Our early experiments revealed a bigger opportunity: building a platform that makes sports data, odds, and picks more accessible and engaging for everyone - from major companies to individual fans.

Looking ahead, our vision is for Tallysight to be the platform that brings the entire sports ecosystem together - where creators build engaging content, and people connect and interact within a vibrant community of fans, friends, experts, and brands, all while gaming seamlessly integrates into the experience.

“Tallysight has had incredible growth with a relatively lean team and just $1.1M raised to date. Tell us how you are competing in the highly competitive sports media market and developing your product with less resources?”

We take pride in what we've built over our six years in business with just $1.1M raised. While we've had opportunities to raise more money in the past, maintaining control of our strategic direction has been valuable - especially seeing other companies raise millions only to disappear shortly after.

Our Silicon Valley background has been instrumental. We enjoy building products and serving customers, balancing custom-built solutions with no-code tools to move quickly while maintaining quality. Through close collaboration with our customers, we've built something far more robust than we could have achieved on our own. Beyond typical startup challenges, we've navigated COVID, regulatory changes, and seasonal sports cycles in a rapidly evolving industry that lacks modern infrastructure and tools. What drives us is both personal and ambitious - as lifelong sports fans ourselves, we're energized by the potential to impact the billions of people who make up the global sports community.

“How do you ensure that new offerings meet the evolving needs of your creators? When approaching product development, what is your key focus and how do you decide what is most important?“

Our product development is driven by years of direct customer feedback. We've built up a thorough understanding of both creator and market needs through 6+ years of industry experience, maintaining a comprehensive backlog of every feature request and concept we've encountered. Prioritization is our biggest challenge - sometimes the path is clear when there's immediate customer demand, other times we need to trust our instincts about where the market is heading. It's an ongoing learning process - we've made our share of wrong turns, but we've gotten better at course-correcting quickly

“I'd love to get a better understanding of the brand identity of Tallysight. What is your target demographic in terms of creators and users? Do you have any criteria for the ideal creator?“

Sports is unique because media plays a pivotal role - major networks like ESPN, NBC, and FOX connect hundreds of millions of fans through broadcast rights, while established outlets like USA Today, Bleacher Report, and The Athletic have built deep trust within their communities over many years.

Behind these brands are hundreds of thousands of creators and professionals - not just the personalities on screen, but the entire team of editors, marketers, and producers who shape the content ecosystem behind the scenes.

We started by serving this enterprise segment with self-service content and monetization tools, and have since expanded to independent creators and emerging brands. Our platform helps creators of all sizes - from large enterprises to individuals - engage with their audiences anywhere, while enriching the fan experience across the internet with integrated odds, picks, insights, and seamless gaming access.

“Users are able to compare and place bets across 30+ sports betting operators through Tallysight's platform. What does this collaboration look like with these operators, and how are you ensuring a seamless process for users?“

Sports gaming operators are like theme parks - each one investing heavily to create the most compelling experience for visitors, from competitive pricing to exclusive perks. Instead of building our own competing park, we're focused on creating the infrastructure that makes it easier for people to discover and access these destinations. Through our embeddable, no-code platform, we enable operators to distribute their experiences socially across the internet.

Our approach goes beyond traditional affiliate marketing - we give operators tools to showcase their offerings anywhere their audience is, from major media sites to individual creator channels. All of this happens without requiring any engineering resources on their end.

By empowering operators to reach users wherever they are, we're building a more connected ecosystem that benefits everyone: operators get broader distribution, partners get easy implementation and monetization, and users get seamless access to their preferred gaming experiences.

”Tallysight has also collaborated with some of the leading media brands, including The Athletic and Sportradar. How do you go about selecting and rolling out partnerships? Additionally, what does the implementation process look like for potential partners?”

When we started in 2019, the sports gaming landscape was just emerging. Most media companies didn't even have dedicated teams or budgets set aside for gaming/betting. We had to actively seek out early adopters who shared our vision for modernizing the sports gaming ecosystem.

As a small, relatively unknown company, we knew we faced skepticism from larger organizations. Our strategy was to make the barrier to entry so low that it became difficult to say no. We focused on making implementation absolutely effortless for partners.

This approach paid off - initial successes turned into expanded partnerships as the value became evident. Each win built credibility and momentum, creating a flywheel effect. Now, with established partners, we have strong references that help new partnerships develop more naturally.

”Who do you view as your competitors, and what sets Tallysight apart and in a position to outperform them?”

We've taken a fundamentally different path in sports gaming. Rather than focusing on a single segment of the market, we're building the connective tissue between fans, creators, media companies, and operators. Most solutions in this space require choosing a lane - either building consumer products, operator tools, or complex enterprise systems. We saw an opportunity to unify these traditionally separate worlds.

Our platform is unique because it serves the entire ecosystem simultaneously. We help operators expand their reach through the websites and apps people already use. We give media companies and creators powerful tools to engage their audiences without any technical overhead. And we make the experience better for fans by bringing odds, picks, and insights directly to where they already consume content.

This approach has resonated because everyone benefits. We're not trying to compete with anyone's core business; we're enhancing everyone's ability to succeed in this rapidly evolving market.

”In recent years, legacy media is being largely overtaken by a focus on independent content creation. How do you see this trend evolving, and how are you positioning Tallysight to align with that perspective?”

Content creation in sports is universal - it's just expressed at different scales. Think about any group chat with friends discussing sports. People are constantly sharing their opinions, predictions, and bets. That's content creation in its most atomic form. The shift is clear - younger generations increasingly prefer direct connections with influencers and creators over traditional media. What we do is bridge this gap, giving individual creators the same powerful tools that major enterprises use while helping legacy media reach these new audiences more effectively.

Where Tallysight comes in is elevating static, basic sharing to dynamic audience engagement. Whether someone is building a YouTube channel with millions of subscribers or sharing picks with a private group of friends, our tools are designed to help them grow and monetize their following at whatever scale makes sense for them.

”So far, you've built out your platform and established some big partnerships - what are the next steps for Tallysight? What are your plans for 2025?”

Our growth strategy for 2025 focuses on two key initiatives. First, we're actively evolving our platform with upgraded infrastructure and enhanced monetization tools that will allow us to serve partners anywhere in the world.

Second, and perhaps most exciting, we're opening Tallysight to the public. By late 2025, we'll be democratizing access - letting anyone create and share bets, engage with creators, and tap into community insights all in one place.

”As you look to scale your business, what kind of partnerships or growth opportunities are you focusing on? Where do you see the most opportunity for Tallysight?”

We see massive opportunities in expanding our partnerships with creators, media companies, and gaming operators across new markets, particularly in South America and Europe where needs are rapidly evolving. Our infrastructure allows these partners to instantly distribute engaging gaming experiences across the internet, from content that drives acquisition to seamless conversion tools. We're focusing on key relationships that can leverage this capability at scale.

While we're well-positioned with our current trajectory, we're always open to exploring new opportunities, including additional financing, that align with our vision for rapid but sustainable growth.

”How do you unwind and recharge when you're not immersed in the world of sports media? What do you like to do in your downtime?”

I try to balance things with exercise, reading, and music. But I have to admit - even when I'm not working, I'm usually watching sports. Sometimes I'll have these dramatic moments where I'll announce 'That's enough sports for today!' to prove to anyone within earshot (including myself) that I can disconnect. Then a short while later, often without even realizing it, I'm on my phone checking scores and stats.

”Question for Joel: This has been a fascinating conversation, thank you for taking the time to discuss Tallysight. With all my questions for you, I'd like to offer you the same opportunity. Go ahead and ask me anything you want on the industry.”

Thanks for the great questions. I'm curious about your view on where sports gaming is headed. We're seeing interesting dynamics play out - the US market is still evolving while regions like LatAm are just getting started. As someone deeply connected to the industry's financial side, what trends are you seeing in how operators, media companies, and creators are working together?

Great question, I think the lines are increasingly continuing to blur between gaming/media companies and creators particularly as the landscape continues to rapidly change beyond what has been the norm (ex: cable TV) for the last 30+ years. The companies that are innovating and ultimately tapping into GenZ, Millenials and even GenX will ultimately maximize the opportunity in gaming for the next few decades. We are definitely in for a fast moving backdrop across this sector over the next few years as 1-2 years in digital gaming is 7-14 “dog years” in traditional gaming. 

Matt Peterson - Biography

Matt Peterson is the Co-Founder & CEO of Tallysight, a software company transforming how sports gaming is experienced across the internet. The no-code platform connects major brands like The New York Times, individual content creators, and gaming operators like DraftKings and FanDuel in one seamless interface – helping fans discover, engage with, and act on verified insights anywhere online. Prior to founding Tallysight, Matt led sales and partnerships teams at several Silicon Valley software startups. Based in San Diego but originally from the DC area, he's driven to build a more connected future for sports gaming.