Niantic, Inc.
Niantic develops augmented reality games and experiences, most notably Pokémon GO. The San Francisco-based company has raised $770M, most recently in a Series D round in November 2021, and employs 607 people.
The growth story
Niantic, Inc. grew from 882 to 607 employees between 2021 and 2026, raising $770M along the way, most recently a Series D in November 2021.
About
Niantic creates mobile games that overlay digital elements onto the physical world using augmented reality technology. Its flagship product Pokémon GO became a global phenomenon, blending location-based gameplay with the Pokémon franchise.
The company spun out from Google in 2011 and has since grown to over 600 employees across nine global offices. With $770M in funding from investors including Nintendo and The Pokémon Company, Niantic continues to expand its AR gaming portfolio beyond its initial breakout hit.
Founders and leadership
Engineering is Niantic's largest function with 141 employees, representing nearly a quarter of its workforce. The company operates across nine offices worldwide, with its headquarters in San Francisco.
The Niantic, Inc. org chart
Germano Caronni (Chief Of Security) leads 59 mapped leaders with 4 direct reports. Click +N to expand a team; names link to the person’s public profile.
Departments, and which ones grew
Headcount by function: Engineering 180 (-12% YoY), Arts and Design 102 (-6% YoY), Marketing 53 (-16% YoY), Operations 33 (+6% YoY), Information Technology 32 (+3% YoY), Business Development 19 (0% YoY).
Talent flow
Niantic draws heavily from major tech companies, with Google being its top talent source accounting for 31 hires. Its alumni frequently move to gaming and tech firms, with Niantic Spatial and Scopely being the most common destinations.
Most common previous employers of Niantic, Inc. staff: Google (31), Microsoft (22), Amazon (18), Facebook (11), Electronic Arts (EA) (10), Apple (9). Former Niantic, Inc. employees most often moved to Niantic Spatial (68), Scopely (65), Meta (24), Google (21), Riot Games (16), Netflix (11).
Alumni worth knowing
The Niantic, Inc. mafia
Niantic alumni have founded 59 companies, including Complex AI Institute (179 staff), Mythical Games (163 staff), and Augmodo (58 staff). These startups span gaming, AI, and AR technology sectors.
63Matt Miesnieks, was Advisor until 2020John Linden, was Advisor until 2018Ross Finman, was GM of AR Headset; Founding AR Lead - Mapping/Strategy until 2022Abhinav A., was Software Engineering until 2021Casey Dockendorf, was Art Director - Project “Bluesky” until 2023Giz Gewirtz, was Head of Development of Games until 2023
Roger Luo, was Head of Machine Learning (Director) until 2023
Ayoub Chouak, was Software Security Engineer until 2022
Karla Reyes, was Product Manager / Designer until 2023
Navjeet Chhina, was SME (Augmented Reality) until 2024
Terry Redfield, was Creative Director, London Studio until 2022
Phil H., was Head of Publishing (US) until 2023
Evan Moran, was Staff Software Engineer Tech Lead until 2019
Tulkumarie Hanoomansingh, was Senior AR Development Engineer until 2008
Silvan Weder, was Research Intern until 2022
Shuo Yang, was Staff Software Engineer until 2023
Christian Rossi, was Creative Director until 2012
Soohyun Bae, was AR Mapping Eng Lead, Computer Vision until 2021
Tom Emrich, was Director of Product Management, Augmented Reality Platforms until 2024
Rigel Benton, was Staff UX Designer until 2025
Erik Murphy-Chutorian, was VP, Engineering (8th Wall, AR Ads, Scaniverse, Core AR Tech) until 2025
Ayan Bandyopadhyay, was Software Engineering Intern until 2019
Jane Mitchell, was Senior Technical Director until 2021
Davey Miller, was Project Manager until 2020
Linda Gray, was Director of Engineering, Pokémon GO until 2023
Paulie R., was UX Designer until 2022
David McGrath, was Lead VFX Artist until 2023
Anthony Maes, was Manager until 2023
Himanshu Sharma, was Pokemon Trainer until 2020
Andrew Macintosh, was Senior Global Product Marketing Lead until 2023
Charles Brandick, was Sr. Technical Game Designer until 2019
Galina Fendikevich, was Product Manager, SpotX Games (Acquired) until 2023
Michael Miller, was Augmented Reality Hardware Lead until 2025
Sheng Huang, was User Operations until 2014
Christina Vidauri, was Recruiter until 2019
Musa Sayyed, was Senior Art Director (Art,UI, UX) until 2021
Spencer McCall, was Narrative and Video Producer until 2025
Kévin Magalhaes, was Designer Graphique - Illustrateur until 2018
Eric Pollock, was Project Manager - Augmented Reality until 2023
Larry Muhlstein, was Machine Learning Engineer until 2020
Sue Waller, was Talent Team Sr. Consultant until 2019
Brian Kim, was Senior Analyst until 2022
William Chen, was Senior Director of Games Technology until 2023
Philip Marz, was Director, Regional Marketing (EMEA) until 2024
Sarah Burslem, was Director of Business Development EMEA until 2023
Yuji H., was Head Of Engineering (SVP Engineering) & Product Group Lead until 2023
Mische Kang, was Global Learning Manager until 2023
Erica Hurd, was Director, Global Real Estate & Workplace Experience until 2025
Catherine M., was Producer and Game Designer until 2021
Milena H., was Workplace Experience until 2022
Ashley Montazer, PhD, was Backend Software Engineer Intern until 2020
Christopher Tanner, was Senior Director, Software Engineering until 2023
Billy Chatterton, was Visual Data Specialist until 2013
Benjamin Dacko, was Software Engineer until 2023
Elliot Toh, was Pokemon event customer service until 2022
Andreas Tsiapis, was Director of Engineering until 2026
Sora Kalden, was Server Infrastructure Intern - Platform Components until 2020Web traffic
Traffic mix: 41% direct, 12% search, 4% social, 3% paid.
What this company is made of
Most common skills at Niantic, Inc.: Software Development (151), HTML (138), Python (Programming Language) (136), Microsoft Office (124), Java (120), Project Management (110), C++ (103), Adobe Photoshop (101).
Where the team actually sits
Niantic, Inc. people are concentrated in California, United States (115), San Francisco Bay Area (50), Tokyo, Japan (48), Washington, United States (41). 7 offices on record.
Search footprint
Niantic, Inc. attracts about 19,700 organic search visits a month, traffic worth roughly $17K a month if bought through ads. It gained 1,135 ranking keywords and lost 1,552 in the last period.
What employees say
- Compensation
- 4.20 / 5
- Career opportunities
- 3.70 / 5
- Senior management
- 3.10 / 5
- Work-life balance
- 3.90 / 5
Frequently asked
Niantic, Inc. has 607 employees as of September 2026.
Niantic, Inc. has raised $770M in total, most recently a Series D round in November 2021.
Germano Caronni (Chief Of Security) sits at the top of Niantic, Inc.'s reporting structure, with 4 direct reports.
The most common previous employers of current Niantic, Inc. staff are Google (31 people), Microsoft (22 people), Amazon (18 people).
Former Niantic, Inc. employees most often move to Niantic Spatial (68), Scopely (65), Meta (24).
At least 59 companies have a founder who previously worked at Niantic, Inc., including Complex AI Institute, Mythical Games, Augmodo.
Niantic, Inc. attracts about 19,700 organic search visits a month, worth roughly $17K a month in equivalent ad spend.
The most common skills among Niantic, Inc. staff are Software Development, HTML, Python (Programming Language), Microsoft Office, Java.
Niantic, Inc. staff are concentrated in California, United States (115), San Francisco Bay Area (50), Tokyo, Japan (48).
Niantic, Inc. has about 180 people in Engineering, down 12% over the past year, as of September 2026.
Niantic, Inc. has about 102 people in Arts and Design, down 6% over the past year, as of September 2026.
Computed from 398 current and 948 former Niantic, Inc. profiles, as of September 2026. Source: Crustdata.
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