As we bid farewell to 2023, we're excited to unveil our last #WeArePlay blog post of the year. From Lisbon to Dubai, let’s meet the creators behind the game-changing apps supporting communities, bringing innovation and joy to people.

Discover more founder stories from across the globe in the #WeArePlay collection.

Another month, another series of #WeArePlay stories from apps and games we all love. From a Salt Lake City-based music editing app to successful game studios from Indonesia, Uruguay and Türkiye - discover the inspiring founders behind them.

This time we’re starting in the US with Geraldo. Inspired by his mom’s studies in computer engineering, he decided to start his own tech company at just 16 years of age. But he was also a keen musician and merged both his passions in Moises, alongside childhood friend and co-founder Eddie. The app uses artificial intelligence to remove vocals and instruments from any song. Geraldo describes the process as like “getting a smoothie and removing only the banana” – complex, to say the least, but Moises makes it easy. He hopes “to democratize access to cutting edge audio tools for everyday musicians.”

Next up, we’re crossing the Pacific over to Indonesia where colleagues and game enthusiasts Diori and Agung decided to collaborate outside of the office on their own independent project. This culminated in the launch of their studio, Minimo, with their most successful game, Mini Racing Adventures, accumulating over 38 million downloads to date. The pair channeled Agung’s passion for cars and mechanics into this particular release, but next they’re shifting genres and working on a new shooter game.

Now we’re heading down to Uruguay where friends Pablo, Gonzalo and Alvaro had a dream of making games for a living and created Ironhide Game Studio in 2010, learning how to code for mobiles from scratch. As Pablo puts it: “Over the years we’ve realized that what we have is special, because we have the passion, but we also work really hard. This has allowed us to create something great.” Their popular title, Kingdom Rush: Tower Defence, is a strategy game set in a medieval settlement and chock-full of action-filled battles. Looking to the future, they’re hoping to branch into multiplayer games and expand their Kingdom Rush saga.

And finally we’re crossing over to Europe to meet Rina. While working in private equity and meeting an array of business heads, she was inspired to pursue an entrepreneurial path herself. Seeing how popular gaming was becoming, Rina delved into creating titles for a Turkish audience. She struck gold with her first studio becoming a tech unicorn, and soon followed it up with Spyke Games, launched alongside her brother Remi and friends Mithat, Barkin and Fuat. Their title Tile Busters combine social multiplayer fun and skill-based puzzle solving. Soon, they’re releasing a follow-up, Blitz Busters, keeping their goal of being “great content developers creating games that people crave more of.”

Discover more global #WeArePlay stories and share your favorites.

This month, we’re sharing new #WeArePlay stories from inspiring founders creating apps which help people improve their quality of life. From a diabetes management tracker to an upskilling platform for women, hear the stories behind some groundbreaking apps on Google Play.

Firstly, meet Nikhil and Ayushi from Bengaluru, India. During the Covid-19 lockdowns, Nikhil watched as his mother picked up new hobbies and tried making different dishes in the kitchen. Seeing his mom researching new recipes and cooking resources, it struck him that there was a lack of educational platforms in India specifically targeted at women. This gave him and his wife, Ayushi, the idea to create Alippo: an upskilling app for women that provides classes and training materials. It also has resources to help women launch and manage their own businesses using their newly acquired expertise. In the future, they want to add more learning materials, business guides and even financing options.

Next up we have Ed, Ken and Erin from Taiwan. Ed comes from a family with a history of diabetes. But his grandma always stayed on top of her condition thanks to her habit of regularly noting down her blood sugar levels and sharing them with her doctor. Partnering with product manager Ken, whose mother also has diabetes, and former colleague Erin, he launched Health2Sync: a digital blood sugar tracker with a range of other features for tracking and managing diets, exercise and medication. Thanks to the app’s new AI-based food recognition feature, people can now track the contents and nutrients of their meals just by uploading a picture of their food.

Now, Lorenzo and César from Brazil. Growing up, they both had personal experiences with cancer having lost their mothers to the disease. When they met some time later, via a mutual friend, they discussed their experiences, both agreeing that the hospital visits were tiring for their moms, and often unnecessary when measures could be taken to provide care at home. This inspired them to partner up and create WeCancer, a cancer treatment support platform where patients can receive support and medical care from the comfort of their own home, with monitoring and advice from doctors. In Lorenzo's own words, the app provides "qualified care outside of hospital walls to make life easier for patients”.

Last but not least, Laura, Erich and John from the US. When they were colleagues, it was sharing their experiences around chronic pain that bonded them and brought them together as friends. When John began to teach the others some alternative methods he’d learnt for managing his pain, all three began to see huge improvements in their various conditions. Elated by how much these techniques and practices had helped them, they wanted to share the practices with others, inspiring them to team up to create Curable. On the app, chronic pain sufferers can follow a guided recovery program with a range of science-backed methods, including cognitive behavioral therapy and soothing meditation.

Discover more #WeArePlay stories from across the globe and stay tuned for more.