What Night Kitchen Interactive does

Night Kitchen Interactive is a Philadelphia-based digital studio founded in 1997 (originally as Night Kitchen Media, rebranded in 2006) that designs and produces custom interactive experiences for museums and cultural institutions. The firm's core offerings span interpretive touchscreens and touchwalls, immersive 360-degree dome video, AR/VR experiences, 3D animation, online exhibitions, websites, mobile applications (including AR walking tours), and serious games. Production is end-to-end, covering digital strategy, storytelling, design, development, content management integration, and on-site installation, with multilingual support and integration into each client's content management systems. Representative projects include the Blacktip Reef interpretive touchscreens and reef ecosystem simulation game for the National Aquarium, the People of Paterson multilingual digital mural touchscreen, the In Peace as in War immersive dome video for the Camden Shipyard and Maritime Museum, and digital learning platforms for Smithsonian entities.

The company operates a project-based professional services model, pricing each engagement on scope and client requirements rather than via disclosed unit pricing or SaaS subscriptions. Go-to-market is enterprise field sales: direct relationships with museum directors, curators, and technology officers, supplemented by industry-conference presence and a portfolio-driven website (whatscookin.com). The client base is concentrated in three primary verticals - museums and cultural institutions, science and nature centers, and government cultural agencies (including 20+ Smithsonian museums and affiliates) - with a long tail of regional history museums, aquariums, and heritage sites. Notable repeat and multi-project customers include Philadelphia Museum of Art (since 1998), the Smithsonian network, the National Aquarium, Mütter Museum, and the Thomas Jefferson Foundation at Monticello.

Ownership and governance are founder-led: Matthew Fisher has led the firm since founding, with a small specialized team of producers, interactive designers, developers, and media designers (most trained at Drexel University). The studio is privately held, bootstrapped, and operates as a remote/hybrid team from a Victorian brownstone headquarters in Philadelphia. There is no disclosed outside capital, parent company, or M&A history.

Name

Night Kitchen Interactive

Legal name

Night Kitchen Interactive

Website

https://whatscookin.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1997

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Night Kitchen Interactive is a Philadelphia-based digital studio founded in 1997 that designs custom interactive installations, immersive videos, AR/VR experiences, websites, and educational games for museums and cultural institutions.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Museum Interactive Experience Design

akta.pro primary industry

Educational Games & Kids/Families Game Studios (MPAFAAAI)

Keywords

• Interactive museum exhibits
• Digital experience design
• Cultural heritage technology
• Immersive media production
• Museum interactive installations

Headquarters

HQ city

Philadelphia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Project-Based Digital Development: Custom digital experience projects for museums and cultural institutions, including interactive installations, websites, games, and educational platforms. Projects range from interpretive touchscreens to full immersive experiences.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Night Kitchen Interactive is a custom digital studio that designs and develops interactive installations, immersive dome videos, AR/VR experiences, websites, mobile applications, educational games, and online exhibitions for museums, aquariums, science centers, and cultural heritage institutions. The studio delivers end-to-end project-based work from digital strategy and storytelling through design, development, and physical installation.

Product overview

Night Kitchen Interactive is a full-service digital studio specializing in creating compelling digital solutions for museums and cultural institutions. The company operates as a project-based custom development studio rather than a SaaS platform, offering a portfolio of professional services including interactive installations (touchscreens, touchwalls, dome videos), AR/VR experiences, online exhibitions, website development, mobile applications, games, and animation/video production. Key projects include Blacktip Reef Interpretive Touchscreens and Gallery Game at the National Aquarium, People of Paterson Interpretive Touchscreen, and In Peace as in War Immersive Dome Video. The company provides end-to-end services from digital strategy and storytelling through design, development, and installation.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Blacktip Reef Interpretive Touchscreens and Gallery Game

Quantifiable outcome

• Award-winning digital experiences recognized by major industry bodies including MUSE Awards, Vega Digital Awards, AASLH Awards
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• World of Warships DevelopercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNight Kitchen partnered with the developer of the popular game World of Warships for creating 3D capabilities and high-quality digital renders for the In Peace as in War immersive dome video at Camden Shipyard and Maritime Museum.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Tellart: Design and technology studio building interactive exhibits, installations, and digital experiences for cultural and commercial clients. Direct peer in interactive cultural-institution work.
• Second Story: Interactive experience studio with deep museum and cultural-institution portfolio, known for interpretive installations and exhibition interactives. Direct competitor in the same niche and bid pool as Night Kitchen.
• C&G Partners: Design studio specializing in museum, wayfinding, and brand environments with significant digital exhibition work. Direct peer in museum interpretive and exhibition design.
• Ideum: Designs and manufactures interactive touchscreen exhibits and tables for museums and cultural institutions. Direct peer in the interpretive touchscreen and gallery interactive product category.
• Bluecadet: Philadelphia-based digital experience studio that designs interactive exhibits, websites, and apps for museums and cultural institutions. Closely comparable in geography, vertical focus, and project-based service mix to Night Kitchen Interactive.
• Local Projects: New York-based studio specializing in interactive and immersive experiences for museums, civic, and cultural clients. Direct competitor on Smithsonian-class digital commissions and similarly awards-driven.
• ESI Design: Experience design firm (now part of NBBJ) producing museum, brand, and cultural installations with integrated digital and physical storytelling. Direct peer at the higher-budget Smithsonian-class project tier.
• Potion Design: Designs interactive digital experiences and installations for museums and cultural institutions. Direct competitor on interpretive interactives and exhibition digital experiences.
• RLMG (Riggs Leung Mears Group): Experience design firm serving museums, zoos, and cultural institutions on interpretive and exhibition projects. Direct peer in the museum experience design bid pool.

Broad incumbents

• Thinkwell Group: Larger experience design and production company with museum, theme park, and brand environment work. Broader incumbent that competes on larger immersive commissions but operates well beyond the museum niche alone.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/nightkitchen
• Facebookfacebook.com/NightKitchenInteractive
• Instagraminstagram.com/nightkitcheninteractive

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Night Kitchen Interactive