Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences

What Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences does

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (AIAS) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit trade association founded in 1991 and headquartered in Los Angeles, California, dedicated to advancing and recognizing excellence in the interactive entertainment industry. It serves video game industry professionals through a membership spanning Creative/Technical practitioners (designers, producers, artists, animators, programmers, audio designers, musicians) and Business/Affiliate members, who participate in peer-validated awards voting, networking, and industry dialogue. Voting for the D.I.C.E. Awards is conducted through a confidential online balloting system certified by Votenet Solutions/eBallot, and a peer panelist process narrows submissions to finalists before general member voting.

The Academy's core product is the annual D.I.C.E. Awards, now in its 29th year, recognizing excellence across 22 categories including genre awards, craft categories, and special honors such as the Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement Award. Supporting products include D.I.C.E. Summit (annual industry conference since 2012), D.I.C.E. Europe/D.I.C.E. Athens (regional networking event since 2016), D.I.C.E. Conversations (discussion series), The Game Maker's Notebook podcast (launched 2020, distributed on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube), and the Game Maker's Sketchbook artistry showcase (launched 2021, co-produced with iam8bit and fortyseven communications and exhibited at Summer Game Fest: Play Days). The AIAS Foundation operates as an affiliated charitable entity supporting game arts education.

As a non-profit, AIAS operates on a membership-based revenue model with corporate and individual members, supplemented by event registration fees and likely event sponsorships; specific pricing is not publicly disclosed. The organization is governed by a Board of Directors elected from its membership and maintains independence with no venture capital, private equity, or parent company involvement. Distribution occurs through the interactive.org website, major podcast platforms, in-person events in North America and EMEA (USA, UK, Greece), and partner exhibitions.

Name

Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences

Legal name

Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences

Website

https://interactive.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1991

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences is a 501(c)(6) non-profit trade association founded in 1991 that serves video game industry professionals through the D.I.C.E. Awards, D.I.C.E. Summit, D.I.C.E. Europe, the Game Maker's Notebook podcast, and member-led peer-validated recognition and networking programs.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Inglewood

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) is a 501(c)(6) nonprofit trade association that operates an interconnected portfolio of programs centered on recognizing and advancing the interactive entertainment industry. Core offerings include the annual D.I.C.E. Awards ceremony, the D.I.C.E. Summit industry conference, D.I.C.E. Europe regional event, the Game Maker's Notebook podcast, the Game Maker's Sketchbook annual artistry showcase, and a tiered professional/corporate membership program that drives peer voting and networking.

Product overview

The Academy of Interactive Arts & Sciences (AIAS) operates a platform of interconnected programs centered on recognizing and advancing the interactive entertainment industry. The core offerings include the D.I.C.E. Awards (the annual awards ceremony), The AIAS Game Maker's Notebook (a podcast), D.I.C.E. Summit (annual industry conference), D.I.C.E. Europe (regional event), and Game Maker's Sketchbook (artistry showcase). The organization also runs a peer panel process for award nominations and D.I.C.E. Conversations for industry dialogue. These programs collectively serve the game development community through awards recognition, knowledge sharing, and networking.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• D.I.C.E. Awards: Design, Innovate, Communicate, Entertain Awards - annual ceremony recognizing excellence in video game development across multiple categories
• D.I.C.E. Summit
• D.I.C.E. Conversations
• D.I.C.E. Europe
• The Game Maker's Notebook
• Game Maker's Sketchbook

Products and services

• D.I.C.E. Awards The premier annual awards ceremony recognizing excellence in interactive entertainment, with category awards across game genres, craft categories, and special honors such as Hall of Fame and Lifetime Achievement. For game industry professionals, studios, and publishers.
• D.I.C.E. Summit An annual industry summit for game developers featuring networking opportunities, panels, and discussions on game development topics. For game industry professionals and corporate members.
• D.I.C.E. Europe (D.I.C.E. Athens) A regional networking event for the European game development community held in Athens, Greece. For game industry professionals across Europe.
• The Game Maker's Notebook A podcast featuring in-depth one-on-one conversations between game makers, providing perspectives on the business and craft of interactive entertainment. Available on iTunes, Spotify, and YouTube.
• Game Maker's Sketchbook An annual celebration of artistry in interactive entertainment, showcasing visual storytelling and creativity in game worlds through official game art selections.
• D.I.C.E. Peer Panel Process Industry expert panels that evaluate and narrow submitted game titles to finalists in each award category before Academy membership voting. Ensures craft categories are decided by active practitioners.
• D.I.C.E. Conversations Event format featuring sponsor involvement and topic submissions for industry discussions and knowledge sharing among game development professionals.

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.

• Votenet Solutions / eBallotcoreTechnology or IntegrationProvides voting and ballot certification services for D.I.C.E. Awards voting. All Academy voting is conducted through confidential online balloting supervised and certified by eBallot, Inc., ensuring vote integrity.
• iam8bitmajorStrategic or Co-development Partneriam8bit partners with AIAS and fortyseven communications to produce the annual Game Maker's Sketchbook, a celebration of artistry in interactive entertainment featuring official game art selections.
• fortyseven communicationsmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerWorks with AIAS and iam8bit to produce the annual Game Maker's Sketchbook showcase celebrating creativity and visual storytelling in video games.
• Summer Game FestminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorGame Maker's Sketchbook exhibition is held during Summer Game Fest: Play Days in Los Angeles, CA, providing visibility for the annual showcase.

Scale indicators2 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The Game Awards: Annual video game industry awards show produced by Geoff Keighley. Directly comparable to AIAS in that it is a flagship industry recognition event vying for the same nominees, media coverage, and sponsor dollars, though it relies on an industry-wide jury + public vote rather than a peer-member model.
• Game Developers Choice Awards (GDC Awards): Annual awards presented during GDC by peers in the game development community. Directly comparable as a peer-driven recognition program for the same craft and genre categories AIAS oversees, co-located with the largest game developer conference.
• International Game Developers Association (IGDA): Nonprofit membership organization serving game developers worldwide. Closest direct peer as a dues-paying professional association for game industry talent, offering networking, advocacy, and community resources in parallel to AIAS's recognition focus.
• Entertainment Software Association (ESA): Trade association representing the U.S. video game industry. Comparable as the industry-level advocacy and trade body, though more focused on publishing/platform members than individual creators, and historically the organizer of E3.
• BAFTA Games Awards: Annual games awards from the British Academy of Film and Television Arts. Comparable as a high-prestige peer-recognized games awards program with international nominee reach, competing with D.I.C.E. for global craft recognition.
• IndieCade: International festival and awards body for independent games. Comparable as a curated recognition and showcase program for game craft, with a different (indie-focused) nominee pool but overlapping audience of developers and studios.
• Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences (self): Subject company.

Broad incumbents

• Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences: The peer recognition body for film (Oscars). Directly comparable operating model—member-driven voting, branch-based craft categories, Hall of Fame, and a flagship annual ceremony—scaled up to the film industry and useful as a structural blueprint for AIAS's continued evolution.
• Recording Academy (The GRAMMYs): Membership organization for music professionals that produces the GRAMMY Awards. Comparable as a craft-recognition body with peer voting across specialized categories and Hall of Fame honors, illustrating the operating model and revenue mix AIAS could evolve toward.
• Television Academy (Emmy Awards): Peer membership organization producing the Emmy Awards for television. Comparable as a long-running, member-voted recognition body in an adjacent creative industry, providing a structural parallel for governance, peer-panel voting, and event monetization.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/playlist?list=PL8nFs6m2Yq_W4FLyKGtWzHbADJc8Psi4s
• Xx.com/Official_AIAS
• Facebookfacebook.com/AcademyofInteractiveArtsandSciences

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Subsidiaries4 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Academy of Interactive Arts and Sciences