Pokémon Go creator Niantic has recently undergone major changes. After selling its game portfolio to Scopely, it laid off 68 employees as part of its restructuring initiative. This decision marks a crucial moment for the developer famous for its augmented reality games.
The sale of Niantic’s game business, which included popular titles like Pokémon Go, Pikmin Bloom, and Monster Hunter Now, was confirmed in March 2025 and fetched a whopping $3.5 billion. With this acquisition, the teams behind these successful projects transitioned to Scopely, while Niantic opted to simplify operations by letting go of employees involved in other initiatives.
The company intends to rebrand itself as ‘Niantic Spatial,’ focusing on developing geospatial AI technology. In its press release regarding this change, Niantic stated: “Second, we are spinning off our pioneering geospatial AI business into a new company, Niantic Spatial Inc., enabling it to accelerate and scale even more rapidly.” The newly formed entity will be led by John Hanke and supported by an impressive $250 million investment package—$200 million from Niantic’s own resources alongside $50 million from Scopely.
“Why? Because we’re in the midst of seismic technological changes,” remarked CEO John Hanke. He addressed how traditional mapping techniques are evolving with advancements in AI: “Existing maps were built for people to read and look at but now there is a need for a new kind of map that makes the world intelligible for machines.” This evolution aims at creating sophisticated models that could help AI systems better comprehend physical surroundings.
“With $250M in funding, some of the world’s best geospatial AI talent, access to proprietary data, a strong customer pipeline, and a rapid product cycle,” Hanke believes Niantic Spatial is set up for success like its gaming predecessors.
