Science-based esports organization Basilisk Esports is calling on esports fans worldwide to save science with multiple new partnerships.
Basilisk has announced new working relationships with the California Institute of Technology (Cal Tech), a new breakthrough in esports partnerships. The new ties are specifically with the Institute for Quantum Information and Matter (IQIM) and The Planetary Society. Instead of the traditional financial exchange, the new sponsorships aim to raise awareness of the potential links between competitive gaming and scientific research.
The official press release stressed that the partnership’s primary goal is awareness. Basilisk co-founder Christopher Bothur cited that the two institutes grant ties to over 7 million science enthusiasts across the globe. Meanwhile, Planetary Society COO Jennifer Vaughn explains that the partnerships will pique the interest of millions of esports fans.
“Basilisk promotes science in fun and exciting ways, exactly what we strive to do at The Planetary Society… This collaboration helps us connect with gamers and science lovers in a whole new way and grow the movement for space science and exploration,” said Vaughn.
Basilisk Esports fields players in chess and StarCraft 2 and sponsors content creators in Magic: The Gathering and general science.
Even with its unorthodox approach, Basilisk sports an impressive roster across multiple games. The organization sponsors Joona “Serral” Sotala, one of the greatest StarCraft 2 players of all time. It also sponsors Riccardo “Reynor” Romiti, a Zerg player best known for winning Gamers8 2023 along with dozens of other competitive events. Rising Protoss player Yoon “trigger” Hong rounds out Basilisk’s list of StarCraft 2 players.
Image Credit: StarCraft Historian
In addition, Basilisk sponsors German chess grand master Vincent Keymer. He is the highest rated player in Germany and recently won the Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess Grand Slam, defeating Magnus Carlsen and Fabiano Caruana on his way to the win.
Lastly, Basilisk maintains a small content team. Magic: The Gathering YouTube essay creator Rhystic Studies and general science content creator Kyle Hill make up its social media team.
Its new partnerships with IQIM and The Planetary Society mark the first public partnerships for the organization. The partnerships area of the website is otherwise empty. The recent announcement did not disclose the price of the deal, nor the length of the agreement. Basilisk’s funding remains one of the most mysterious parts of the science-based esports team.