Airshop

What Airshop does

Appfactory (operating under the Airshop firmographic record; legal entity Appfactory S.r.l.) is an Italian boutique digital studio headquartered in Genoa that delivers custom web and mobile applications, gamification platforms, AI integration, IT services, and digital marketing to primarily Italian enterprise and startup clients. The studio designs, develops, and operates bespoke digital products end-to-end, using a modern full-stack architecture spanning React, Node.js, Next.js, NestJS, Flutter, Laravel/PHP, MongoDB, Elasticsearch, and AWS serverless infrastructure. Its marquee-owned properties are the FantaSanremo fantasy game ecosystem for the RAI Sanremo Music Festival (third consecutive year in 2026) and the FantaOlimpiadi fantasy game developed as the official application for the Milano Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics in partnership with the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI).

The company operates a services-led business model under Appfactory S.r.l., with quoting-based custom project pricing and multi-year contract cadence. Revenue is generated through project-based custom development fees, ongoing professional services retainers (IT, digital marketing, AI as a Service), and engagement models tailored to each client. Go-to-market is consultative direct sales, anchored by the 'Startup Factory' sub-brand targeting early-stage ventures, with marketing executed primarily through owned website content, social channels, and project portfolio showcases including named customers such as Noisefeed (since 2016), Tassani (since 2019), Excelsior Palace Hotel (since 2023), and FantaSanremo/FantaOlimpiadi. The firm maintains ISO 27001 and ISO 9001 certifications, employs 24 'Appsters', and has delivered 197 projects totalling 16M+ application downloads across its portfolio.

Name

Airshop

Legal name

Appfactory S.r.l.

Website

https://airshop.io

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Appfactory is an Italian boutique digital studio in Genoa that designs and develops custom web and mobile applications, gamification platforms, AI integration, and IT services primarily for Italian enterprises and startups, with marquee fantasy-game products including the official FantaSanremo (RAI) and FantaOlimpiadi (Milano Cortina 2026).

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Custom Software Development Services

NAICS

Custom Computer Programming Services (541511), Software Publishers (5132)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Outsourced Art/Audio Production Services (2D/3D, Animation, VFX, Audio/VO) (MPAFAKAM)

akta.pro secondary industry

3D Product/Explainer Animation (MPAHACAD)

Keywords

• Custom web development
• Mobile app development
• Gamification platforms
• AI as a service
• Digital marketing services

Headquarters

HQ city

Milan

HQ country

Italy

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Digital Development: Project-based development of web applications, mobile apps, and digital solutions tailored to client needs. Revenue generated through upfront project fees for design, development, and deployment.
2. Professional Services: Ongoing IT services, digital marketing, and AI as a service offerings providing recurring revenue through maintenance contracts and service retainers.
3. Gamification Services: Development and operation of fantasy game platforms (FantaSanremo, FantaOlimpiadi) demonstrating technical capabilities and serving as marketing collateral for acquiring development clients.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Airshop (data describes Appfactory S.r.l.) is an Italian digital studio that designs and develops custom web applications, mobile apps, and gamification platforms for clients. It also delivers AI as a Service, IT services, and digital marketing, and operates a Startup Studio program that helps entrepreneurs turn ideas into digital products. Notable proprietary projects include the FantaSanremo fantasy game ecosystem (developed for three consecutive years) and the FantaOlimpiadi fantasy game for the Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics.

Product overview

Appfactory is a digital studio offering a comprehensive suite of digital services including web and app development, gamification, AI as a service, IT services, and digital marketing. The company also operates a Startup Studio program to support early-stage ventures. Their portfolio includes notable projects like FantaSanremo (fantasy game for the Sanremo Festival), FantaOlimpiadi (fantasy game for Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics), Noisefeed, Excelsior Palace Hotel, and Tassani. The offering is structured as a services-based model rather than a packaged software product, providing customized solutions tailored to each client's needs.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Startup Factory: A startup studio service that transforms ideas into successful businesses using Appfactory's expertise in digital solutions.
• FantaSanremo
• FantaOlimpiadi

Products and services

• Web and App Development

Quantifiable outcome

• 197 successful projects delivered
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• RAI (Radiotelevisione Italiana)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial partner for FantaSanremo fantasy game - third consecutive year developing the official fantasy game ecosystem for RAI's Sanremo Festival broadcast
• CIO (Comitato Olimpico Nazionale Italiano)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOfficial partner developing FantaOlimpiadi fantasy game for Milano Cortina 2026 Olympics

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Bending Spoons: Milan-based technology company that builds, acquires, and operates consumer apps and digital products. Comparable as an Italian app and digital-product studio with similar full-stack development capabilities and a track record of scaling consumer-facing applications.
• Centrical (formerly gamEffective): Enterprise gamification and employee-engagement platform. Comparable as a gamification vendor targeting enterprise buyers, the same buyer profile Appfactory's gamification practice addresses via custom builds.
• Sociabble: Employee-engagement and advocacy platform with gamification mechanics. Comparable to Appfactory's gamification practice for enterprise customers, both targeting engagement and participation-driven experiences via points, badges, and leaderboards.
• Jakala: Milan-headquartered martech and data-driven marketing services company. Comparable as an Italy-based digital agency serving enterprise and consumer brands across martech, data, and digital transformation — directly competing with Appfactory for the same Italian enterprise client pool.
• Mambo.io: Gamification-as-a-Service platform for customer engagement and brand experiences. Directly comparable to Appfactory's gamification service line — both sell gamified engagement solutions to brands and agencies, though Mambo.io is productized whereas Appfactory's gamification is largely bespoke.

Regional players

• Musixmatch: Bologna-based music-technology platform serving global audiences. Comparable as a successful Italy-born digital product company that scaled from a domestic app to a worldwide platform — a relevant trajectory benchmark for Appfactory's own Italian-rooted consumer apps.
• Avvale: Milan-based digital transformation and technology consulting firm. Comparable as an Italy-headquartered digital services competitor; Avvale appears among Appfactory's listed clients/partners, indicating they coexist in the same Italian enterprise ecosystem rather than head-to-head across all bids.

Broad incumbents

• DraftKings: Large-scale fantasy sports and gaming platform. Relevant as a broader incumbent that operates fantasy-game ecosystems tied to major sporting events — the same category FantaOlimpiadi/FantaSanremo occupy — though at vastly larger scale and with productized technology.
• Accenture Interactive (now Song): Global digital agency arm of Accenture. Relevant as a broad incumbent that competes for large Italian enterprise digital-transformation mandates, setting the upper bound on deal sizes and capability expectations that Appfactory must match to win larger engagements.

Emerging players

• Spin (by Optix): Community-engagement platform with gamification features for brands. Comparable as an emerging player in the brand-engagement gamification space, partially overlapping with Appfactory's gamification projects for media and consumer clients.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/Appfactory2020
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/airshop
• Instagraminstagram.com/appfactorysrl
• Xx.com/airshopcommerce

Compliance2 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

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 Airshop