Jakarta, March DD, 2021: Jakarta-based edtech start-up CoLearn has secured USD 10 million Series A funding co-led by Alpha Wave Incubation (AWI) and GSV Ventures along with existing investors Sequoia Capital India’s Surge and AC Ventures, bringing the total funds raised to USD 16.75 million (IDR 241 billion) since August 2020.
CoLearn was founded at the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic in August 2020 with a mission to bring Indonesian students, who currently perform in the bottom 10% in math, science and reading in ‘PISA’ rankings, to the top 50%.
The recent rounds of funding, less than 6 months apart, make CoLearn one of the most well-funded edtech start-ups in Indonesia, a country offering huge opportunities in the education sector.
Over the past six months the company has attracted 3 million K12 school students who use its free AI-powered app and WhatsApp interface to solve problems.
CoLearn’s AI powered problem-solving feature removes the friction associated with offline tutoring centres. Once they remove their initial fear of difficult subjects such as Math with the help of step-by-step video solutions created by the best tutors in the country, students are encouraged to attend live online interactive classes that help strengthen their conceptual foundation. The app’s popularity has been growing rapidly – with over 5 million questions being asked every month.
“Despite having the world’s fourth largest education ecosystem with 50 million students, three million teachers and half a million schools, the quality of education in Indonesia has remained much below its real potential for several decades. The scope for motivating students and ensuring they can thrive in a globalised world is what really drives us all at CoLearn,“ said Abhay Saboo, Co-Founder and CEO, CoLearn."
Some of CoLearn’s other investors include Leo Capital, TNB Aura, S7V, January Capital, Alpha JWC, Taurus Ventures, Alter Global, and Mahanusa Capital.
This fresh infusion of capital will help the company invest in product, technology, development and marketing.
Heavily focused on teacher training programmes to improve the quality of education, CoLearn expects to have more than 200 trained teachers over the next two years who can effectively supplement students’ learning from school, particularly in the area of STEM.
