South African e-learning platform Go1 raises R 2.9 billion, valuing business at R15 billion
[ad_1]
Go1, one of the world’s largest corporate training content centers for on-demand training and resources, recently announced a $ 200 million or R 2.9 billion D Series, valuing the company at over a billion dollars or 15 billion rand.
The e-learning platform, co-founded by South African Melvyn Lubega and Australian Andrew Barnes with their high school friends, will use this new investment to forge new partnerships, expand its edtech product offerings and increase its physical presence globally to support its more than 3.5 million learners in more than 1,600 client organizations around the world.
This Series D funding round was led by new investor SoftBank Vision Fund 2, alongside AirTree Ventures, Salesforce Ventures, Blue Cloud Ventures, Larsen Ventures, TEN13 and Tiger Global. Previous investors include Endeavor Global Catalyst, M12 (Microsoft’s venture capital fund), Madrona Venture Group, SEEK, and Y Combinator. To date, the company has raised a total of US $ 280 million, including previous rounds.
Upon achieving unicorn status, Lubega shares: “It is extremely humbling to reflect on how far we have come as a team. It’s crazy to think how far we’ve come, but our pole star has remained the same which is that we exist to unleash the positive potential of people through a love for learning. I think that ultimately this increase validates the size of the problem we are trying to solve and the size of the opportunity to solve this problem.
In 2015, Go1 has set itself the goal of becoming a learning and professional development resource for organizations and an essential distribution partner for content providers. Its easy integration and breadth of content has led to widespread adoption on both sides – companies who now have a single subscription for all workplace training needs and creators of corporate learning content whose ideas can find their way to a larger audience.
Go1’s content aggregation approach reinvents corporate training, enabling organizations to use learning, training and certification content from a variety of resources through its SaaS platform or in s ” integrating into existing learning systems.
“When people think of music, they often think of Spotify and access to unlimited music for a single subscription. We believe Go1 is the leader in the emerging category by providing a similar experience for corporate learning. Powered by AI and machine learning, Go1’s platform provides an intuitive experience and creates an opportunity for individuals to broaden their professional development goals and explore resources to achieve them, â€says Nagraj Kashyap , managing partner at SoftBank Investment Advisors.
“With leading training providers such as EdX, Coursera, Skillsoft and Harvard as part of the Go1 subscription, organizations can organize learning content to meet the needs and interests of their workforce. ‘work. We are excited to partner with Melvyn, Andrew and the Go1 team to advance their vision of reaching a billion learners. “
The New Unicorn will focus on strengthening its team and partnerships with new content and resources on the platform. The company has grown its user base by over 300% year over year, largely thanks to rapid expansion in key markets and government contracts with the Malaysian and Singaporean governments. Go1 anticipates further expansion opportunities in the United States and Europe through its growing integration with Microsoft Teams, Workday, and SAP, among others. Additionally, there is an opportunity for Go1 to serve South African businesses and the public sector, which the company has yet to tap into.
“Right now, every 1.3 seconds somewhere in the world, a ride is completed on Go1 and we know that’s just the start. Having been a part of Go1’s journey since 2017 when Andrew and Melvyn were selected as Endeavor Entrepreneurs, we have no doubt that not only will they achieve their ambitions, but they will also continue to give back to the entrepreneur ecosystem and to ensure that future generations have access to opportunities for personal growth and community advancement, â€Alison Collier, MD of Endeavor South Africa.
“Melvyn is playing a very important role in contributing to the wider South African entrepreneurial community through her involvement in many organizations to promote entrepreneurship in Africa. He is also a member of several advisory and oversight bodies, including serving as a board member of Endeavor South Africa as well as ministerial adviser on the 4th Industrial Revolution and the Ministry of Science and Innovation. He is a true example of “pay it forwardâ€.
Lubega concludes by saying: “Across the continent, in recent years, there has been greater interest and greater valuation of businesses founded by African entrepreneurs or under construction on the continent. This is part of the groundswell that shows how supporting African entrepreneurs as an investor and attracting capital to the ecosystem is actually a very compelling value proposition. And, at the same time, it signals African entrepreneurs that they can achieve the impact they want to have on the world, no matter where they start from.
[ad_2]
