BackerKit
BackerKit is a crowdfunding platform focusing on creative projects with an emphasis on tabletop games and fantasy books. On ethical grounds, BackerKit bans projects containing art produced by Generative AI.
History
BackerKit was founded in 2012 by Maxwell Salzberg and Rosanna Yau as a pledge management, payment processing, shipping, audience engagement, and pre-order tool for Kickstarter campaigns. In 2018, Backerkit established The Creative Fund, with the goal of donating one dollar to a wide range of projects on Kickstarter.
In 2022, BackerKit announced its own crowdfunding marketplace in response to criticisms within the tabletop role-playing game industry against Kickstarter's investment in Blockchain. The first major crowdfunding campaign on BackerKit was for Gloomhaven's Grand Festival, which raised over $5 million. Other early successes included Return to Dark Tower ($2 million) and Spirit Island: Nature Incarnate ($1.2 million).
In 2024, the premium edition of Brandon Sanderson's novel Words of Radiance raised $16 million on BackerKit, breaking the platform's record.