🦙About Upland

Building the Largest Digital Open Economy

Our Story

Imagine a world where the digital and physical converge—a world where every street, building, and piece of land is yours to explore, own, and develop in virtual reality. This visionary concept inspired the creation of Uplandme, Inc. in July 2018. Inspired by the classic game of Monopoly, our founders envisioned a platform where users could engage in real estate trading within a metaverse that mirrors the real world—enhanced with the power of blockchain technology. The goal was to create an open, player-driven economy where digital assets could be truly owned, traded, and monetized, fostering a new era of digital entrepreneurship.

The Team

Uplandme, Inc. was brought to life by a trio of innovators:

• Dirk Lueth (Co-founder & Co-CEO), a serial entrepreneur with a PhD in Economics, has a career spanning FinTech and digital media ventures across Europe and the US. His foresight in blockchain technology and passion for creating a digital open economy led to the conceptualization of Upland.

• Idan Zuckerman (Co-founder & Co-CEO), an expert in product development and technology, brought the necessary skills to turn the vision into reality. His background in gaming was instrumental in shaping Upland’s unique gameplay.

• Mani Honigstein (Co-founder and board member), with extensive experience in game development and venture building, contributed significantly during Upland’s incubation phase from 2018 to 2022.

Headquartered in Mountain View, California, Uplandme operates as a globally distributed organization with an R&D center in Ukraine and team members across Europe and the United States. This hybrid structure reflects its commitment to fostering innovation across borders and cultures.

Investors

Our journey has been supported by some of the most forward-thinking investors in the blockchain and gaming sectors worldwide:

• Animoca Brands (Hong Kong) led our $18 million Series A round in 2021, recognizing Upland as a leader in the NFT and blockchain gaming space. Their involvement has been pivotal in scaling our vision to global audiences, with Yat Siu, Animoca Brand’s founder, joining Upland’s board in 2021.

• C3 Venture Capital (Germany) was one of our earliest believers, providing seed funding to kickstart our development phase. Stefan Schuetze, a partner at C3, joined Upland’s board in 2021.

Other investors include AV Blockchain Fund (USA), Block.One (Cayman Islands), Rocket Internet Capital Partners (Germany), EOS Network Ventures (Canada), Overton VC (USA), G5 Entertainment (Sweden), Gaingels (USA), Global Founders Capital (Germany), Kingsway Capital (United Kingdom), OneTeam Partners (USA), Come2Us (South Korea), and Korea Investment Partners (South Korea).

Why Upland Stands Out

What makes Upland unique is its fair and accessible model. There are mobile apps (iOS and Android) plus web browser access. The platform accepts PayPal, Credit Cards, and Crypto, and users can sell their digital goods for fiat currency (US$) - everything that demystifies and simplifies the complicated world of blockchain technology.

Since its beta launch in 2020, Upland has grown exponentially. With 4 million registered wallets and over 6 million virtual assets minted and sold, it has become one of the most widely adopted Web3 platforms. Its integration of real-world economics with gamified experiences has attracted partnerships with global brands like FIFA and the NFL Players Association. This ecosystem is enriched with diverse activities such as property trading, world-building, car racing, and virtual shops.

Vision for the Future

Upland aims to create the digital layer of the real world, fueled by the largest digital open economy. The company continues to pioneer new use cases for gamified interactions and beyond. But Upland is not just a game—it’s a digital universe where creativity thrives, ownership is redefined, and community drives ideas and has a lot of fun.