Simon Davis, founder of GOAT Gaming and Mighty Bear Games, joins Sam to unpack how they’re using Telegram, AI agents, and meme culture to scale Web3-native games.

He breaks down their AI-powered assistant “Amy,” the technical challenges of building engaging agents, and how GOAT reached 6M+ users with Telegram-first distribution. They also discuss player retention, designing social-first games, and why the future belongs to AI-native studios using crypto as the default payment layer.

Whether you're a builder, gamer, or curious founder—this episode is packed with Web3 insights.

Key Timestamps

• [00:00:00 ] Intro: Simon from GOAT Gaming joins to talk AI, gaming, and Web3.

• [00:01:00 ] Simon’s Background: From music to QA to founding Mighty Bear Games.

• [00:02:00 ] Early Crypto Journey: Buying BTC in 2015 and going full-time Web3 in 2021.

• [00:03:00 ] Why Telegram?: 6M players through native distribution and UX.

• [00:05:00 ] Retention vs Airdrop Farming: The difference between community and extractors.

• [00:06:00 ] Amy the AI Agent: How she engages players with chat-native games and events.

• [00:07:00 ] Launching Grand Theft Pepe: A meme-inspired game with real NFTs.

• [00:08:00 ] Native vs Opportunistic Builds: What separates successful Telegram games.

• [00:10:00 ] Telegram Gaming 2.0: Shift from airdrop farming to social-first experiences.

• [00:12:00 ] Game Habits: Simon shares how he stays current across genres.

• [00:14:00 ] Designing Amy: From boring chatbot to a unique personality with narrative depth.

• [00:16:00 ] Gaming as Social Glue: Why players show up for people, not just gameplay.

• [00:17:00 ] Guardrails & Responsibility: Ethical design for AI agents in public spaces.

• [00:19:00 ] Rebuilding Today: How AI would change team size, speed, and funding approach.

• [00:20:00 ] Billion-Dollar Studios with 3 People?: Why it’s not just possible—it’s near.

• [00:21:00 ] AI x Crypto: Why LLMs and Web3 are natural complements for the agent economy.

• [00:23:00 ] Biggest Challenge: Hiring AI-native talent in a fast-changing world.

• [00:24:00 ] Final Ask: Try GOAT Gaming on Telegram, give feedback, and connect if you’re building.
  

Connect

CEO & Co-Founder: https://x.com/skilllevel7 

Telegram Miniapp - https://t.me/goatgamingbot/goatgaming?startapp=src_Gens 

Telegram Community: https://t.me/goatgamingtribe

Telegram Announcements: https://t.me/playgoatgaming

Telegram AlphaGOATs Announcements: https://t.me/alphagoatsai

Twitter: https://x.com/playgoatgaming 

Website: https://goatgaming.com 

Discord: https://discord.gg/goatgaming 

YouTube: https://youtube.com/@playgoatgaming

Disclaimer

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