Gaming platform Roblox acquires Imbellus assets ahead of IPO

By Joshua Franklin and Anirban Sen

Dec 1 (Reuters) - Roblox Corp said on Tuesday it had acquired the intellectual property assets of cognitive assessment start-up Imbellus to sharpen the U.S. online gaming platform's recruitment practices before a planned initial public offering (IPO).

Imbellus, based in Los Angeles, develops simulation-based tests that measure human thought processes. The company, which was valued at $57.5 million in a 2018 private fundraising round, has talked publicly about its application as a substitute for standardized U.S. tests such as the SAT college entrance exam.

"We are creating a new team within Roblox, led by Imbellus' visionary founder Rebecca Kantar to build a system on Roblox for fair and objective assessments that will help us broaden our sources of potential talent from more diverse backgrounds," a Roblox spokesman said in an emailed statement.

Roblox's platform offers users a host of different games across mobile devices and games consoles.

The San Mateo, California-based company has filed to go public through an IPO on the New York Stock Exchange which could come later this year. (Reporting by Joshua Franklin in Miami and Anirban Sen in Bangalore; Editing by Tom Brown)