Mindway AI partners with DraftKings on responsible gambling initiative

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2025/10/02: PrizePicks partners with safer gambling software supplier Mindway AI 2025/05/15: Lori Kalani outlines ambitious responsible gambling agenda for DraftKings and beyond 2025/07/01: DraftKings launches new responsible gambling tool 2025/03/06: DraftKings extends its responsible gaming initiatives

The Backstory

A bigger bet on prevention

DraftKings’ latest move to deepen its responsible gambling toolkit comes amid a broader industry pivot toward earlier, data-driven interventions that aim to catch risky behavior before it escalates. Over the past year, the Boston-based operator has rolled out product features that nudge players to set limits and track their activity while also funding community programs and pressing peers to standardize protections. The approach mirrors a wider shift among U.S. operators who are trying to balance rapid market growth with mounting scrutiny from lawmakers, regulators and public health advocates.

The company’s strategy hinges on embedding safeguards into the customer experience and normalizing their use. That philosophy surfaced in an interview this spring, when DraftKings’ chief responsible gaming officer, Lori Kalani, laid out an expansive agenda to reduce harm and raise the bar across the sector. In remarks at a major industry conference, Kalani described the goal of getting all customers familiar with safer play features and argued that operators should compete on product but not on protections. Her comments detailed how the company is backing shared standards through the Responsible Online Gaming Association and exploring cross-operator self-exclusion to close loopholes that let at-risk players switch platforms. Those priorities were outlined in Kalani’s agenda for DraftKings and beyond, which positioned prevention as core to the business model.

That prevention push is now intersecting with the rise of third-party analytics and neuroscience tools designed to flag problematic patterns earlier and with less stigma than traditional questionnaires. The logic is straightforward: if most customers will not seek help until harm is obvious, operators need behind-the-scenes systems that can prompt timely check-ins, reminders or cooling-off periods based on real behavior rather than self-reporting alone.

Product controls move from optional to expected

DraftKings has accelerated the rollout of product-level controls over the past year, reflecting a shift from passive disclosures to active budgeting. In late 2024, the company launched a feature that walks users through deposit, wager, time and loss parameters and gives them the option to lock in limits for set periods. The tool also offers reminders tied to play patterns and prevents increases until the chosen time window ends. The company framed it as a personalized, proactive step that fits into everyday use, not a last resort. Coverage of that debut, which highlighted its availability across sportsbook, fantasy and casino, appears in reporting on DraftKings’ new limit-setting tool.

That release built on earlier efforts to make account activity easier to digest. DraftKings’ usage dashboard has drawn millions of visits since launch and gives players a running view of deposits, time on site, wagers placed and net results. The company says those insights have helped destigmatize responsible gambling features by packaging them as performance stats that many sports bettors already track. By making the information persistent and visual, DraftKings aims to prompt self-correction before overspending becomes habit. The company has also tied these product tools to marketing and league-backed messaging to broaden awareness.

Industry peers signal a data-first consensus

The shift at DraftKings mirrors a wider embrace of behavioral analytics among operators, including daily fantasy leaders. PrizePicks recently said it would implement real-time monitoring to identify subtle signs of risk, such as more frequent sessions or faster spending, and route players to tailored nudges, timeouts or self-exclusion if needed. The company framed the approach as both protective and commercially sound, arguing that earlier interventions sustain long-term engagement. Details on that deployment are in PrizePicks’ partnership to adopt behavioral risk detection.

The adoption pattern underscores a point Kalani made in her call for industry collaboration: product competition is fierce, but on safeguards, convergence serves everyone. Operators that rely on the same scientific frameworks and cross-operator lists can reduce system gaps that at-risk customers exploit, particularly when they self-exclude on one platform and pivot to another. The Responsible Online Gaming Association, where DraftKings is a founding member, is working on a shared self-exclusion database among participating companies. Kalani has argued that enforcement against illegal sites must complement those private-sector steps, but harmonized tools within the regulated market are a practical start. Her perspective and timeline on those initiatives are outlined in her responsible gambling agenda.

Spending beyond the app to build safeguards

DraftKings has also extended its responsible gaming strategy outside the product, renewing a funding program that supports state problem gambling councils and the National Council on Problem Gambling. Since 2022, the initiative has underwritten public education, training and outreach in dozens of states, with more than $2 million distributed and another round slated for 2025. That effort sits alongside national advertising that urges players to set limits and make informed choices, with league partners helping amplify the message during awareness campaigns. The latest on that program is covered in DraftKings’ extension of its responsible gaming initiatives.

The education push is expanding across the industry as access grows and age limits collide with youth culture, esports and college sports. Rush Street Interactive, for instance, is piloting a high school curriculum in Delaware and New Jersey to help teachers address gambling risks head-on. The program, built with a compliance consultancy, aims to give students practical guidance in an environment where data shows widespread exposure. It also seeks to surface feedback from classrooms to tailor future materials. That initiative is detailed in coverage of Rush Street’s gaming literacy rollout for teens.

Taken together, the mix of product controls, shared standards and community funding points to a maturing strategy: protect customers in the app, harmonize rules across operators and educate the next generation before risky habits form.

What to watch next

As operators embrace behavioral analytics, the question is whether voluntary tools and nudges will scale fast enough to satisfy regulators and public health groups. DraftKings’ plan places heavy emphasis on normalization and ease of use. It also leans on cross-industry collaboration to reduce friction for at-risk users who move between platforms. The next test will be execution: how well the company integrates new detection technologies into its existing dashboard and budget features, how effectively it measures outcomes and how quickly shared self-exclusion becomes real for consumers.

The competitive stakes are high. Operators that can demonstrate credible prevention may face fewer regulatory headwinds and lower customer churn tied to harm. Those that lag risk reputational damage and stricter rules that could limit product flexibility. With peers moving in the same direction, the industry appears to be coalescing around a prevention-first model that treats responsible gambling not as a compliance checkbox but as a core customer experience. The pace of adoption across major brands suggests the market has moved past pilot programs toward a new baseline for safeguards.