INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
from blockbuster to nearly bust
Two sources said HQ recently only had around $6 million in the bank but was burning over $1 million per month, meaning its runway could be
But its early investors are reluctant to hand Yusupov any more cash
trivia game in August 2017 where players all competed live in twice-daily shows with anyone who got all the answers right split a cash
The games felt urgent since you could only participate at designated times, fun to play against friends or strangers, and winning carried a
significance no single-player or non-stop online game could match
When TechCrunch wrote the first coverage of HQ Trivia in October 2017, it had just 3500 concurrent players
But by January it had climbed to the #3 game and #6 overall app in the App Store, and grown to 2.38 million players by March
Quickly, copycats from China and Facebook entered the market
de facto face of the startup.Yet HQ had some shaky foundations
bad manager, Recode reported
Rapid growth and an investigation by early HQ investor Jeremy Liew that found no egregious misconduct by Kroll paved the way for a $15
sustained growth and product innovation
His public behavior had already raised flags
But beyond bringing in some guest hosts and the option to buy a second chance after a wrong answer, HQ ceased to evolve
Thrones.Pawns In A CEO WarLiew pushed for HQ to swap Kroll into the CEO spot in September 2018 while moving Yusupov to Chief Creative
Officer, which was confirmed despite an HR complaint against Kroll for aggressive management
However, three sources tell TechCrunch that Yusupov pushed that HQ employee to file the complaint against Kroll
Yusupov suggested Rogowsky, a comedian with no tech or management experience, be made CEO of HQ Trivia
He even suggested the company film a reality show about Rogowsky taking over
That idea was quickly shot down as preposterous
Kroll passed away in DecemberThen tragedy struck in December
Kroll, then CEO, was found dead in his apartment from a drug overdose
Employees were distraught over what would happen next
game type HQ Words modeled after Wheel Of Fortune
Two sources confirm that 20 of the roughly 35 employees signed a letter asking the board to remove Yusupov and establish a new CEO
One source suggested Yusupov might rather have seen the whole startup come crashing down with the blame placed on the product than have it
come to light that he played a large hand in the fall
Liew told the company his fund Lightspeed would support a search for a new CEO to replace Yusupov, and provide that new CEO with funding for
Until a new CEO is found, HQ must subsist on its existing funds
Other employees had been cautious about standing up to Yusupov
Engineers and other staffers with strong employment prospects began to drain out of the company
Those left were just trying to hold onto their jobs
Without inspiring leadership or a strategy to reverse user shrinkage, recruiting replacements would prove difficult.Yusupov remains on the
board, along with Tinder CEO Elie Seidman who Yusupov appointed to his additional common seat
Liew retains his seat until the new CEO is found and given that seat
Lightspeed and Cyan of Founders Fund declined to respond to requests for comment.[Update: Seidman tells TechCrunch that the he sees the
internal struggle for the CEO role as over now that Yusupov has accepted that a new CEO will be installed
That search is moving along, and the CEO chosen will report to the board but otherwise be given full autonomy to run the company as they
That includes having hiring and firing power over Yusupov
turn those ideas into a steady business.]Losing FaceTensions at HQ and a desire to diversify his prospects led Rogowsky to pick up a side
gig hosting baseball talk show ChangeUp on the DAZN network, TMZ reported this week
properly locked in with an adequate equity vesting schedule at HQ, he could leave
He is extremely manipulative in an unproductive way
Sensor Tower estimates that HQ saw just 8 percent as many downloads in March 2019 as March 2018.After the loss of its spirit animal
And all of the in-fighting could scare off any talent hoping to turn HQ around
Unfortunately, securing an extra life for the game will take a more than a $3.99 in-app purchase.
