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HQ Trivia and Vine co-founder found dead

Colin Kroll believed to have died from drug overdose on Sunday morning

The CEO and co-founder behind mobile quiz game platform HQ Trivia has been found dead this past weekend.

Colin Kroll was pronounced dead by police at 12.18am on Sunday morning after an apparent overdose in his New York apartment, Time reports.

The site reports a woman was with Kroll at the time of the overdose and called the police. The investigation is ongoing, with a police spokesperson saying they currently do not know what drugs were on the scene.

Kroll's death was confirmed in a statement by HQ Trivia, which said: "We learned today of the passing of our friend and founder, Colin Kroll, and it's with deep sadness that we say goodbye. Our thoughts go out to his family, friends and loved ones during this incredibly difficult time."

In addition to his work at HQ Trivia, Kroll also helped to form video app Vine back in 2013. While initially popular, interest in the platform waned and it was shut down in 2016.

HQ Trivia - which allows players to win cash prizes by taking part in live quizzes with other mobile players - launched in 2017 and became hugely popular on mobile, with more than two million concurrent users back in March.

In April, the firm raised another $15 million and its market value lifted to $100 million. However, Recode reported last month that the app's audience was shrinking rapidly - one of many problems the company faced. It even reports that Kroll was forced out of the company.

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James Batchelor

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James Batchelor is Editor-in-Chief at GamesIndustry.biz. He has been a B2B journalist since 2006, and an author since he knew what one was