Indian Edtech companies have recently made headlines for a variety of reasons. They have had the chance to truly shine during the lockdown. Schools and coaching groups had to rely on technology to continue teaching during the lockdown.
Published on 24 Jan 2022
The term “EdTech” is a combination of the phrases “Education” and “Technology.” It refers to technology that is intended to improve educational results. These startups are embracing tools like virtual reality, videos, robotics, interactive screens and online classes to make education increasingly entertaining and approachable.
Only wealthy families could formerly afford a good education. Therefore, Edtech has worked hard to ensure that everyone has access to high-quality education. Discrimination exists, regardless of money or place. This is something that educational technology can change. Thanks to EdTech, high-quality education can be offered anywhere. Furthermore, online learning sites and mobile learning apps can offer recognised courses from reputable colleges.
In today’s time, the EdTech business in India is the world’s second-largest, and it is just growing. It is estimated to reach US$ 4 billion by 2025, growing at a 39.77 per cent CAGR. This expansion is being driven by the increased value of non-academic courses from tier II and III cities, along with the need for customization in the EdTech field.
There has been a lot of action recently in the EdTech world. Almost all Edtech companies have noticed tremendous growth in traffic. Furthermore, EdTech businesses are recruiting more and continuing to finance more in their development.
These Edtech startups in India are altering the Indian education landscape with the intent of making education engaging. They all address different student key problems and have varying budgets. These startups go on to illustrate that anyone with a desire to learn can do so.
India’s Top 10 EdTech Companies
Listed below are the top 10 Indian EdTech companies that have seen tremendous success in recent years.
1. BYJU’s
Byju’s has now become synonymous with online education in India. BYJU’s app was created by Think and Learn Pvt. Ltd, a firm founded in 2011 by Byju Raveendran and Divya Gokulnath. Started as a coaching class, it has now grown to become one of the world’s top EdTech companies.
BYJU’S is an educational tutoring software that operates on a freemium model, with freely accessible content limited to 15 days after enrollment. It was established in August 2015, with educational content for children in grades 4 to 12, and an early learning programme for grades 1 to 3 began in 2019.
It also prepares students for exams in India like IIT-JEE, NEET, as well as worldwide exams such as GRE and GMAT. Byju Raveendran and his wife Divya Gokulnath started this EdTech firm in Bangalore. They have even worked with companies like Disney to make education more fun. BYJU’s is valued at US$ 21 billion as of December 2021, and there are over 115 million registered users.
To make learning entertaining, they use engaging video courses, tailored learner journeys, endless practice tests, and interesting quizzes. It offers lessons, beginning with class 4 and progressing to CAT or IAS exam preparation. It includes UPSC, CBSE NCERT, ICSE, IIT-JEE, and NEET online classes.
They have developed a learning software for kids called BYJU’S for Kids, which focuses on early education for children in grades 1 through 3. WhiteHat Jr. and SPAN Thoughtworks Pvt. Ltd. are two of their well-known subsidiaries.
2. UnAcademy
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Unacademy is a Bangalore-based Indian online ed-tech startup. Gaurav Munjal established a YouTube channel in 2010, which was later formed as a company in 2015 by Roman Saini, Gaurav Munjal, and Hemesh Singh.
The organisation has over 12,000 tutors and provides preparation material for a variety of professional and academic entrance exams. Unacademy teachings include free videos, PDF notes and subscriptions. It provides a variety of paid and free courses.
Many prominent and notable individuals and public figures, including Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma, Shashi Tharoor, Kiren Bedi, Mary Kom, and Saurav Ganguly, have tutored learners through live classes as part of Unacademy’s educational programme called ‘Legends on Unacademy.’
Ankit Goyal’s Kreatryx created in 2014, was bought by Unacademy in early 2020 to extend its Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering and Engineering Services Examination preparation services.
WiFiStudy was also bought by Unacademy for $10 million in 2018. Dinesh Godara founded WiFiStudy, in 2013, an online test preparation platform to prepare students for competitive public-sector tests like the Staff Selection Commission, banking and railways.
3. UpGrad
UpGrad is one of India’s top Edtech startups. Ronnie Screwvala, Mayank Kumar, Phalgun Kompalli, and Ravijot Chugh started the company in 2015 based in Mumbai. The company is the Indian Government’s official education partner for the Startup India programme.
The EdTech firm provides online programmes in IT, Data Science, Management, and Technology to working people, college students, and corporations. UpGrad has partnerships with several prominent universities, allowing students to obtain career-enriching skills.
They are also India’s largest online higher education company, assisting students in obtaining online degrees from the world’s finest universities. What distinguishes them is their one-on-one mentoring and placement assistance. They offer MBA programmes in a variety of fields, including business, law, insurance, software, blockchain, and others.
UpGrad purchased Pyoopil, a mobile SaaS-based application, in 2016 to offer B2B online corporate training courses. Acadview was bought by the corporation in 2018 to join the higher education industry for college students. In 2019, upGrad purchased CohortPlus, a product management and data science-focused online community platform.
4. Vedantu
In 2011, Vedantu was founded as a live online education platform in Bengaluru. Vedantu is derived from the Sanskrit words Veda (knowledge) and Tantu (network). Vamsi Krishna, Saurabh Saxena, Anand Prakash and Pulkit Jain launched the company.
It provides students with tailored lessons. It primarily serves students in Grades 4 through 12 of the Indian Certificate of Secondary Education (ICSE) and the Central Board of Secondary Education.
The core business of the organisation at the moment is live online coaching in STEM, Hindi, English, Sanskrit, German, French, Environmental Science, and Social Science. For their 1-1 student-teacher class plus in live sessions, it employs a White Board Audio Video Environment (WAVE) technique. It offers test preparation classes for the IIT-JEE, NTSE, NEET and the PSA.
Due to constant reviews, Vedantu’s W.A.V.E platform has been given an IP Patent for ‘Measuring the Effectiveness of An Interactive Online Learning System,’ which assists teachers in recognising a student’s attention level, increases students’ engagement, doubt-solving, participation in game-based quizzes, and offers customizable teaching patterns.
5. Classplus
Classplus is a smartphone SaaS system that allows coaching institutions, tuition centres, and private tutors to bring their businesses online and automate content distribution, payments, interaction, and online exams through an all-in-one teaching app. Classplus was founded by Mukul Rustagi, Vatsal Rustagi, Bikash Dash, Nikhil Goel, and Bhaswat Agarwal.
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Classplus gives the perfect coaching institute management software and smartphone app solution for private instructors, tuition centres, and coaching institutes. Innovative features and technology have been included in teaching and learning methodologies, allowing educators to become future-ready.
This startup, established in Delhi in 2018, intends to modernise the country’s tuition sector. Classplus, a mobile-first solution, enables teachers to communicate with students by delivering information, assignments, online examinations, and video lectures. Classplus has seen a 200K+ growth of users as a result of its electronic payments and simple tutoring.
Classplus’s tagline is “Aapki Coaching, Aapki App,” which is aimed at bringing all tutoring institutes, tuition facilities, and private tutors online, empowering them to become India’s best educators with their very own app.
6. Almabetter
AlmaBetter is one of the top education providers in the country for individuals interested in learning Data Science. Integrated with a unique pay-after-placement model, this ed-tech platform offers 100% placement guarantee, personalized mentorship sessions, and a cohort-based approach, allowing learners to study in a risk-free environment. The curriculum of AlamBetter’s Full Stack Data Science program is designed in accordance with current industry requirements, helping students equip skills that are most relevant in the job market. Their placement program offers students the opportunity to be placed with their network of 500+ active hiring partners which includes MNCs and start-ups pan-India.
7. Ekeeda
Ekeeda is regarded as one of India’s leading EdTech startups. Their goal is to give specialized technical education to students at any time and from any location. Professor Mahesh Wagh founded Ekeeda in Mumbai in 2009. Mahesh founded Ekeeda while still a student of engineering and information technology.
Ekeeda, is a platform that facilitates e-learning for engineers and is on its way towards becoming a career-building ecosystem powered by a combination of academic and talent resources. Ekeeda connects students’ professional aspirations with the skills and expertise needed to achieve those goals.
They have developed over 40000 videos that cover 400+ courses and have advanced the careers of over 1 million students. Today, the website includes courses and video lectures including over 40 of India’s premier colleges. On YouTube, Ekeeda has more than 40 million views. Some refer to it as the “Google of Engineering.” Ekeeda’s focus on improving the customer experience was a crucial distinction in its success.
Their distinguishing characteristics include understanding individuals’ needs and interests, suggestions for potential job choices and abilities required, providing students with the necessary knowledge. Giving students the information they need to make an informed decision and directing learners to relevant Ekeeda platform resources. Mentorship, guidance and assistance in the selection of the best course of action provide the appropriate mix of academic and skill-based resources, as well as facilitate student recruitment.
8. Edukart
Edukart, an Edtech firm in India, is an online platform that aims to provide learners with higher education. EduKart is a higher education enrolment website in India. Mayank and Ishan Gupta founded the company in 2011.
Edukart offers MBA, Executive MBA, MCA, MSc IT, MA, MCom, BA, BCom, BBA, BCA, and BSc IT programmes from domestic and international universities such as NMIMS, Indian School of Business, and London School of Business. All major educational organisations, including India’s UGC, recognise the degrees conferred through this platform.
Edukart also assists students with job placement. On the corporate platform, Indian and international course providers provide programmes such as MBA, Executive MBA, and BSc IT. Distance education and online learning are both offered.
There are other certificate courses in retail, banking, telecommunications, online marketing, programming, project management, and information technology. Top colleges throughout the world offer online degrees, diplomas, and certifications through this platform.
9. CueMath
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Cuemath is an ed-tech startup that began as a mathematics enrichment programme after school in 2013. They are among Edtech startups in India that focus on gamified learning and has changed the way both teachers and students understand arithmetic. It takes the ‘learning-by-doing’ approach. It also attempts to encourage ‘out-of-the-box’ thinking and a love of arithmetic among school children.
Manan Khurma, an accomplished writer with McGraw Hill publishing, created the company. Cuemath also empowers female tutors and offers them significant job prospects. Cuemath has about 1200 educators. Until 2019, the company has raised 5.5 million dollars in round B funding.
Cuemath is a mathematical learning programme for children ages four to fourteen (Kindergarten to Grade 8). Cuelearn Pvt Ltd, a Bengaluru mathematics education company, developed this programme, which is available at home-based centres across India. As of October 2019, Cuemath had approximately 5000 professors and 50,000 learners, according to their website.
The Cuemath programme corresponds to the school curriculum. Teachers develop tailored learning programmes based on the CBSE, ICSE, state board, or international board. Worksheets, tab-based games and arithmetic, and logic problems are used to cover all topics. Cuemath ties everything together with a game-based layer of comic characters.
10. Doubtnut
Doubtnut is an Indian Edtech business that makes it easy to master a language. To answer students’ questions, this interactive multilingual learning tool employs advanced technologies. Aditya Shankar and Tanushree Gupta launched the company in Haryana, India, in 2016.
Doubtnut, an Indian educational software, is available as an Android app in the Google Play Store or on its official website. It presently responds to inquiries in 11 Indian languages, making it immensely popular in Tier 2 and 3 cities.
The platform employs picture recognition technologies to answer some mathematical and scientific queries. To find the answer to a question, you must first upload an image of the question. The software extracts text from the image and attempts to match it in its dataset of pre-answered questions with recorded video responses.
If a match is found, the result is supplied to the user; otherwise, the user is asked to post their inquiry publicly for instructors on the platform to provide a video clarifying their query.
Doubtnut achieves this through the application of NLP and picture identification in the field of artificial intelligence.
Conclusion
All these are India’s top EdTech companies. They are pushing the boundaries of what it means to study and reinvent how learners understand. It contributes to making education easy and accessible to everybody.
Additionally, these startups assist students in discovering the excitement of learning something new. As a result, they will be able to establish the habit of studying, which will be beneficial to them in the long run.
In a few years, India will be the largest online learning consumer market. The sudden shutdown of schools owing to Covid-19 has accelerated the already changing educational environment in India. The sector has enormous potential in the coming years, which is why investors are rushing to acquire a piece of the action before it’s too late.
In India, this is a terrific year for digital learning enterprises. India is expected to have a US$ 3.2 billion market size for EdTech by 2025. EdTech in India grew significantly in the last few years as a result of education digitization and policy stimulus through NEP.