Slapping "AI" on your startup’s pitch deck is basically table stakes right now. When a founder raised $20 million from Cathie Wood's ARK Invest for an eSports gamification loyalty startup without those two letters in the spotlight, it got us wondering how the conversation even started — especially when ARK had already been burned by a company operating in the same space.

On this episode of TechCrunch's Equity podcast, Julie Bort sits down with Dylan Robbins, founder and CEO of Lucra, the white-label platform turning friendly competitions into loyalty programs for brands like golf courses, arcades, and pickleball clubs.

Listen to the full episode to hear about:

How Dylan met his ARK connection over a game of darts at a New York City bar

Why pitching a non-AI company in peak AI fundraising season meant addressing it head-on, even when it had nothing to do with his business

How being honest with investors about what wasn't working yet actually helped him close the round

Why Lucra pivoted from consumer to B2B in 45 days (and why that pivot is what convinced ARK they weren't looking at another Skillz).

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