In an announcement made on Monday, the edtech company Think and Learn, renowned for its Byju's brand, disclosed that founder Byju Raveendran will assume responsibility for the firm's day-to-day operations following CEO Arjun Mohan's resignation. This pivotal change comes alongside a significant restructuring effort within the company, consolidating its business into three distinct divisions: The Learning App, Online Classes and Tuition Centers, and Test Prep.
The decision to implement these changes follows a meticulous seven-month review of operations and cost optimization spearheaded by departing BYJU'S India CEO Arjun Mohan. As part of this new phase, Byju Raveendran will adopt a more hands-on role in guiding the company's daily operations.
Raveendran’s wife, Divya Gokulnath, 33 is cofounder and a director on Byju’s board.
As a teenager, Byju Raveendran discovered his knack for education while tutoring older students in math. Fast forward to 2006, he launched Byju’s, now the world’s most valuable education technology company, initially focusing on test-prep classes. Today, Byju’s boasts 35 million students using its math and science tutoring app in India.
Raveendran's journey is driven by passion rather than business acumen. With a recent funding round valuing Byju’s at $5.5 billion, he aims to expand globally, targeting Australia, the U.K., and the U.S. This expansion aligns well with the booming edtech industry, projected to reach $562 billion by 2022.
The latest funding, led by Qatar Investment Authority, adds to Byju’s already impressive funding history, including investments from General Atlantic, Tencent, Naspers, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board. With over $1 billion in total funding, Byju’s is poised for further growth and innovation in the education sector.
Raveendran's vision extends beyond profits; he sees education as a lifelong passion. Byju’s success story underscores the transformative power of combining passion with entrepreneurial spirit in the ever-evolving landscape of education technology.
Raveendran got the first inkling he might have a future in education as a teenager tutoring 11th and 12th graders clamoring for his help to pass their exams.
Raveendran, 38, hails from a family of educators. After completing his mechanical engineering degree in Kerala, India, he embarked on a career as a globetrotting engineer at a shipping company in Singapore in 2001. Despite his demanding job, Raveendran found time to assist friends in preparing for India’s prestigious business school entrance exam, the Indian Institutes of Management test. Surprisingly, he decided to take the exam himself twice, achieving exceptional scores in the top 1% both times.
In 2005, Raveendran made a pivotal decision to leave his job and return to India to focus on coaching business school aspirants full-time. Within a remarkably short span of six weeks, he gathered an impressive following of 1,200 students. This prompted him to expand his reach to nine cities, but he soon realized a critical gap in his students' foundational knowledge in math and science. To address this issue, he founded Think & Learn in 2011, the precursor to Byju’s.
Notably, Raveendran’s passion for teaching left a lasting impression on Ranjan Pai, a prominent figure in the education and healthcare sector. Despite his initial shock at Raveendran's audacious request for $8 million, Pai was won over by his conviction. In 2012, Pai became one of Byju’s earliest investors, acquiring a significant 26% stake in the company, a decision that has proven lucrative as he still holds a 1% stake today.
Revolutionizing Education: Byju’s Transformative Impact on India’s EdTech Landscape
India's education landscape presents a ripe opportunity for edtech ventures. With 260 million school-age children facing challenges in a system marred by underqualified teachers, the demand for quality education is evident. The country's tech-savvy economy, coupled with nearly ubiquitous smartphone usage, affordable internet access, and the convenience of digital payments, sets a favorable stage.
Byju’s, founded in 2015, seized this opportunity with its innovative approach. Launching apps catering to math and science education for various grade levels, Byju’s introduced a dynamic learning platform. Offering video lessons coupled with real-time assessment capabilities, the app personalizes learning experiences, a feat often unattainable in traditional classrooms.
Byju’s has raised more money than any other edtech startup
The response was remarkable, with two million downloads within three months of launch. Presently, Byju’s boasts an impressive 35 million student enrollment, with a significant portion opting for paid subscriptions ranging from $150 to $200 annually. Despite its modest $200 million in annual revenue, Byju’s profitability and rapid growth underscore its potential.
Byju’s strategic focus on reaching students in smaller cities signals a promising trajectory, with projected revenue doubling to $440 million by the next fiscal year. While Byju’s may trail behind giants like Japan's Benesse Holdings, its innovative model and market penetration position it as a frontrunner in India's evolving edtech landscape.
Byju's faces competition from Vedantu and Toppr in the edtech sector, with China's TAL Education Group supporting Vedantu. Byju's secured significant investments, including $50 million from Sequoia Capital and Mark Zuckerberg's Chan-Zuckerberg Initiative in 2016, and $40 million from Tencent in 2017. With plans to expand its curriculum to include English and social sciences, Byju's acquired Osmo for $120 million and launched a Disney co-branded app for 5 to 8-year-olds. By leveraging a team in Bangalore, Byju's aims to create engaging content for 3 to 8-year-olds, emphasizing locally developed animated characters to maintain appeal and market share.
