Byju start-up secures $50m funding

Byjus, India’s leading education technology provider, has raised $50m from Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI), Sequoia, Sofina, Lightspeed and Times Internet venture capital partners to fund its expansion plans.

Byjus founder and CEO Byju Raveendran hails from Azhikode in Kannur, Kerala, said “ We will deploy the fund to fuel international expansion and inspire additional funding from leading companies the world over. CZI, the philanthropic arm of the online social media network Facebook’s co-founder Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan. Is its first funding in an Asian start-up firm.

Byju said “ Our application (K-12 app), which has registered 5.5 million downloads, has 250,000 paid annual subscribers across the country in India. The K-12 app offers learning programmes for students in classes 4-12 and can cover competitive exams like JEE, NEET, CAT, IAS, GRE and GMAT”

“Our K-12 app is reinventing how students learn in the age of mobile devices, as our approach combines teachers, pedagogical methods and data science to deliver personalised learning, feedback and assessments for school students.”

Vivian Wu of CZI said “Byju represented an opportunity to help and inspire more students, develop love for leaning and unlock their full potential.