Minneapolis-Based OTTO SPORT AI Raises $16.5M Seed Round to Build Youth Sports Technology Platform
Youth sports management platform debuts AI-powered products backed by Rally Ventures and Mamba Growth
– 1 min read
Minneapolis-based Minnesota startup OTTO SPORT AI announced $16.5 million in seed funding on January 15, 2026, to accelerate development of its AI-powered youth sports operating system and expand its Athlete Intelligence (AI) Lab.
The round was co-led by Mamba Growth Equity and Rally Ventures. The new capital will support product expansion across club management, league and tournament operations, ticketing, and athlete recruitment, as well as continued hiring of AI and product talent.
Founded by veterans from SportsEngine, TeamSnap, NCSA, and FloSports, OTTO SPORT AI is focused on modernizing youth sports infrastructure. The company’s first product, OTTO PILOT, is an AI-powered chat assistant designed to reduce administrative workload by answering common parent and athlete questions using an organization’s own content and knowledge base.
According to the company, the funding will help accelerate new AI-driven features and integrations throughout 2026, targeting inefficiencies in a U.S. youth sports market where families spend an estimated tens of billions of dollars annually but organizations often rely on outdated software.
Read the full announcement in the company press release.
This article was created with the assistance of AI to summarize and curate local tech news.
