Prediction markets and super apps at NYC 2026

Prediction Markets and Super Apps Discussion at NYC 2026 offered a revealing snapshot of where US-facing gaming businesses think the market is heading next. At the NEXT Summit New York, three executives laid out very different strategies, but all were responding to the same reality, the rules around prediction markets, sweepstakes gaming, and sports betting are still evolving, and operators are being forced to build for uncertainty rather than stability.

That tension made the discussion especially important for anyone tracking the future of iGaming. What emerged was not a single winning model, but a set of competing bets on regulation, product design, and consumer reach. In many ways, the panel captured a core truth about the industry in 2026, companies are no longer simply trying to launch the next gaming product, they are trying to future-proof their business against a moving legal and commercial landscape.

Why NYC 2026 mattered

The panel, moderated by CNBC correspondent Contessa Brewer, brought together Novig CEO Jacob Fortinsky, Betty co-founder and group CEO Justin Park, and Betr CEO Joey Levy. Their comments mattered because they came from operators that have actively tested different market entry models, from sweepstakes and social products to prediction markets and casino expansion.

What made the conversation stand out was how openly each executive discussed strategic correction. NYC 2026 was not framed as a victory lap for any one vertical. Instead, it became a forum for explaining why certain models are being abandoned, why others are being expanded, and how businesses are trying to preserve optionality as regulation continues to shift.

Novig bets on federal structure and sports trading

Jacob Fortinsky used the panel to confirm one of the biggest announcements tied to the event, Novig has closed a $75 million funding round that values the company at $500 million. That alone signals investor confidence, but the more revealing point was what Novig plans to do next.

The company intends to migrate its entire operation later this year to a Commodity Futures Trading Commission regulated Designated Contract Market framework. That means moving away from the sweepstakes model it had previously used as an interim approach while pursuing federal licensing.

Fortinsky presented this not as a reinvention of the product, but as a regulatory pivot. In his telling, the commercial prize remains sports trading, and the change is about placing that product inside what Novig sees as the right legal framework.

His argument also carried a competitive angle. Fortinsky suggested that larger and more established operators are too encumbered to pursue this opportunity aggressively. That is a notable claim in a market where scale is often treated as the main advantage. In this case, agility and willingness to align with a federal structure are being positioned as the more valuable assets.

He also expressed confidence about the long-term direction of the category, saying federal oversight of sports trading is inevitable. Just as importantly, he linked regulation with innovation rather than restriction, saying proper guardrails can create the conditions for builders to build.

“[My] view is that a federal regulatory framework around prediction markets is inevitable and is necessary. We’re big believers that proper regulation actually facilitates innovation. I’m very encouraged with Chairman Selig’s attitude towards putting in the guardrails and the framework to allow builders to build.”

For analysts watching the US market, that message is significant. It suggests some operators now see prediction markets not as a workaround at the edge of gaming regulation, but as a category that may eventually demand its own nationally coherent rulebook.

Betty moves on from sweepstakes and refocuses on execution

Justin Park delivered perhaps the panel’s bluntest self-assessment. He described Betty’s earlier move into sweepstakes as a failure, attributing it to poor execution, a misaligned team culture, and a lack of market research.

That level of candor is rare in public industry conversations, and it matters because it shifts the focus from abstract market potential to operational discipline. Sweepstakes gaming, in Park’s framing, did not fail in theory alone, it failed because the company was not set up to execute effectively within that space.

Betty has now exited sweepstakes entirely. Its growth strategy is centered instead on retail and online casino operations in Canada, with Alberta identified as the next domestic market, while the company also tests its model in the UK.

Park also introduced a particularly interesting strategic idea, reversing the traditional sequence that takes casino brands from land-based operations into digital channels. Instead, he raised the possibility of building a strong digital product first and then translating that into physical retail venues.

That thought reflects a broader shift in how gaming brands may be built in the future. Rather than treating digital as an extension of a legacy footprint, companies could increasingly view digital distribution as the primary proving ground for brand, product fit, and customer loyalty.

Park reinforced the scale of the opportunity by pointing to the US commercial and tribal casino market, which he estimated exceeds the combined size of the global video games and film industries. Even without additional figures in the discussion, the comparison served its purpose, it underlined why operators continue to rethink their route into casino, retail, and digital convergence.

Betr pushes the super app thesis

If Novig represented a bet on federal prediction market infrastructure, and Betty represented strategic retrenchment and refocus, Betr represented diversification. Joey Levy confirmed a partnership with Polymarket that will add prediction markets as a fifth product vertical within Betr’s gaming super app strategy.

Betr already operates fantasy pick’em in 34 states, a social sportsbook in 32 states, a social casino soft-launched in 30 states, and a skill games product in 38 states. The addition of prediction markets is designed to broaden that footprint even further.

Levy made the case that super apps could become one of the most transformative ideas in iGaming because they are built to absorb regulatory variation. Instead of relying on one product and one licensing path, the model spreads risk across multiple categories that can remain viable under different state-by-state outcomes.

“[We’ve] built this strategy where whether it’s Fantasy Pick’em, whether it’s Social Sportsbook, whether it’s Social Casino, whether it’s prediction markets, whether it’s skill games, we’ll have really strong user experiences under all of those regulatory frameworks and have a lot of optionality to offer our super app in the majority of the country, regardless of what the regulatory environment ends up looking like three to five years from now.”

This is an important strategic reframing. In the past, product expansion in gaming was often discussed in terms of cross-sell and lifetime value. At NYC 2026, the conversation sounded different. Multi-vertical platforms are now being presented as a hedge against legal fragmentation.

Levy also pointed to DraftKings’ recent movement toward a similar super app model as validation of Betr’s multi-year strategy. Even without going beyond the source material, that reference matters because it suggests the super app thesis is no longer a niche concept. It is increasingly part of how major and emerging operators alike think about resilience.

The bigger theme is optionality

Across all three speakers, one word effectively defined the mood of the panel, optionality. Each executive acknowledged that predicting the regulatory environment for prediction markets over the next three to five years is impossible.

That shared uncertainty did not produce caution alone. Instead, it produced different forms of strategic design. Novig is leaning into a federally regulated market structure, Betty is narrowing focus after a failed experiment, and Betr is building a broad product ecosystem that can flex with changing rules.

For the wider iGaming sector, this is a telling moment. The market is no longer dividing neatly between sports betting, casino, social, and prediction products. Those lines are becoming more porous, not necessarily because the products are identical, but because operators are increasingly forced to think across adjacent regulatory and user experience frameworks.

What this says about the US iGaming market in 2026

The discussion at NYC 2026 showed that the US market remains deeply dynamic, but not yet settled. Companies are still testing what belongs under gaming law, what belongs under financial market oversight, and what kinds of consumer products can travel across those categories.

That uncertainty can be destabilizing, but it can also drive innovation. Prediction markets are attracting attention not only because of their novelty, but because they sit at the intersection of sports engagement, trading mechanics, and regulatory experimentation. At the same time, super apps appeal because they promise continuity in a market where single-product dependence increasingly looks risky.

Just as notable was the tone of the executives themselves. There was little sense of a fixed blueprint. Instead, there was realism about failed experiments, confidence in selective bets, and a clear understanding that regulatory agility may become just as important as product innovation.

Key takeaways from the panel

• Novig has closed a $75 million funding round at a $500 million valuation and plans to migrate fully to a CFTC regulated Designated Contract Market framework later this year,
• Betty has exited sweepstakes after what Justin Park described as a failed effort shaped by poor execution, team misalignment, and weak market research,
• Betr is adding prediction markets through a Polymarket partnership, extending its super app model across five product verticals.

Each of those moves reflects a different answer to the same question, how do you build a gaming business when the rules are still being written.

Final thoughts

The Prediction Markets and Super Apps Discussion at NYC 2026 did not produce consensus, and that is precisely why it was valuable. It revealed an industry in active transition, where the biggest competitive edge may not come from picking one category perfectly, but from building an organization that can adapt faster than the market around it.

For readers following iGaming trends, the panel offered a concise map of where the pressure points are now. Regulation, product diversification, and execution quality are no longer separate conversations. They are becoming the same conversation.

If there was one unifying message from New York, it was this, the next phase of online gaming will likely be shaped not just by what players want, but by which companies are best prepared to operate across multiple futures at once.