Kleiner Perkins is a venture capital firm specializing in investing in early-stage, growth, and incubation companies. The firm continues that legacy, investing in founders with bold ideas that span industries and continents, partnering with them from inception to IPO and beyond to maximize the potential of their ideas. They also focus on early computer firms using their devices and programming and service companies. It also invests in the digital, life sciences, and healthcare industries.

Kleiner Perkins

Bessemer Venture Partners helps entrepreneurs lay strong foundations to build and forge long-standing companies. Their portfolio includes pinterest, shopify, twilio, yelp, linkedin, pagerduty, docusign, wix, fiverr, and toast, and has $19 billion of assets under management.

Bessemer Venture Partners

Karman Ventures (fka Moving Capital) is a venture capital firm backed by early employees of Uber and other decacorn startups.

Karman Ventures (fka Moving Capital)

Hannah Grey they make investment's for business development.

Hannah Grey

Four Acres is a pre-seed and seed stage venture capital fund focused on software-first technology companies with a competitive moat. It seeks entrepreneurs with a technical background, business acumen, laser-like focus, and unrivaled hustle. It offers post-investment support and services that address the most pressing needs of early-stage founders, giving them the tools and relationships they need to scale their businesses.

Four Acres Capital

TRB Advisors LP is a private investment firm. TRB engages in a broad range of investment activities and seeks superior risk-adjusted returns through a long-term, patient, and flexible investment mandate. The firm’s investment professionals are led by Heath L. Watkin, President and Chief Investment Officer, and operate from TRB’s offices in New York City.

TRB Advisors

Early Stage Technology Oriented Venture Capital

Sachem Partners

Owl Ventures is a venture capital fund that invests in education technology companies. The firm has invested in 24 companies across the education spectrum encompassing early childhood, K-12, higher education, and career mobility/professional learning. Owl leverages its deep domain expertise and takes an active hands-on approach to help entrepreneurs scale their businesses into transformative category-leading companies. The firm was founded in 2014 and has over $600 million in assets under management.

Owl Ventures

SoftBank provides fixed-line, mobile telephony, internet, telecommunications, and digital television products. It is a multinational telecommunications and internet corporation focused on broadband, fixed-line telecommunications, e-commerce, the internet, technology services, finance, media and marketing, and other businesses. The company operates through four segments. The mobile communications segment provides mobile communications services, produces and distributes online games for smartphones and other devices, offers mobile broadband services, provides supply chain solutions, handset protection, and insurance, buy-back and trade-in services, omnichannel solutions, and financial services, and sells mobile devices such as iPhones, iPads, and SoftBank smartphones. The Sprint segment offers mobile and fixed-line voice and data transmission services for individual consumers, businesses, government subscribers, and resellers in Puerto Rico and the U.S. and sells mobile devices and accessories. The fixed-line telecommunications segment offers telecom services such as fixed-line telephone and data communications services to corporate customers and broadband services to individual customers. The internet segment is engaged in the operation of the Yahoo! Japan portal, the sale of internet advertising, the operation of e-commerce sites, the provision of membership services, the sale and marketing of data centers, the provision of online automobile-related information, and the operation of the internet affiliate system. SoftBank also generates and sells electricity from renewable energy sources; provides payment processing, invoice collections, and computation services for businesses; distributes video, voice, and data content via media; operates the IT information site ITmedia; provides solutions and services for online businesses; and operates online games and software downloads. Additionally, it is involved in the ownership of professional baseball teams, the operation of baseball games, the management and maintenance of baseball stadiums and other sports facilities, and the procurement of funds by issuing preferred securities.

SoftBank

Hispanic Scholarship Fund supports the higher education of Latino families.

Hispanic Scholarship Fund

Evolution-VC is involved in investments and strategic partnerships to create a global platform that unites leaders, investors & corporates.

Evolution Ventures

Subject

Launched to meet the needs of today's learners, Subject is revolutionizing online education with a cinematic curriculum designed to engage and empower high school and middle school students. At Subject, we believe that education should adapt to the learner, not the other way around. Our accredited courses are brought to life through immersive, multimedia experiences that resonate with digital natives. Our curriculum is built for today’s students—savvy consumers of high-quality digital experiences. With video lessons that average 3-8 minutes in length.  Subject is committed to breaking down language barriers. Our content is culturally adapted, with full translation and support services for Spanish-speaking students, ensuring equitable access to learning for all. Our approach is backed by rigorous research and proven by real-world results. We are proudly accredited by Cognia and WASC, and our courses are approved by UC-AG, NCAA, and the College Board.  At Subject, we’re dedicated to empowering school districts to achieve the highest impact with every student. Our partnership goes beyond providing curriculum. Let us help your district elevate your outcomes and reach your goals.

<div>Founded in 2020 by Felix Ruano, Michael Vilardo, and Jon Quiros, Subject (formerly Emile Learning) provides a one-on-one blended learning platform (launched in October 2020) that is designed to offer classes for credit, test prep, and supplementary classes, allowing families to organize their own curriculum. It also offers a full-time, virtual middle and high school. Initially helping students prepare for advanced placement (AP) exams, the company added accredited high school classes in mid-2021. The company charges an annual fee ranging from USD 100 - 200 to use its platform but plans to eventually establish government contracts with public high schools. As of May 2021, Emile Learning hosts more than 20 classes on its platform with plans to increase the number to 30 by September and reports that more than 50,000 students have used its platform.</div>

Remote learning is driving an education technology revolution.

EdTech: K-12

<div>
 
 Founded in 2020 by Felix Ruano, Michael Vilardo, and Jon Quiros, Subject (formerly Emile Learning) provides a one-on-one blended learning platform (launched in October 2020) that is designed to offer classes for credit, test prep, and supplementary classes, allowing families to organize their own curriculum. It also offers a full-time, virtual middle and high school. Initially helping students prepare for advanced placement (AP) exams, the company added accredited high school classes in mid-2021. The company charges an annual fee ranging from USD 100 - 200 to use its platform but plans to eventually establish government contracts with public high schools. As of May 2021, Emile Learning hosts more than 20 classes on its platform with plans to increase the number to 30 by September and reports that more than 50,000 students have used its platform.
 
 
 In March 2022, the company rebranded to Subject, as it believes it reinforces its commitment to provide access to opportunities. Subject also raised 
 <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/9346">
 USD 29.4 million in a Series A funding
 </a>
 round led by Owl Ventures, and will use the funds for product development and market expansion. The round follows its 
 <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/2080">
 USD 3 million seed round in May 2021.
 </a>
 
</div>

Founded in 2016, BookNook is an online literacy platform designed for learners in grades 1-5. Partnering with school districts and non-profit organizations, the company focuses on human-to-human learning and works with children one-on-one or in small groups, enabling it to gather rich, observational data. As of June 2021, the company partnered with hundreds of schools, school districts, and non-profits across 35 states.BookNook differs from other digital literacy tools by not requiring students to take formative assessments to check for their understanding. Rather, the platform lets teachers record qualitative data on oral fluency, such as whether a student pauses at punctuation marks as they read aloud, or reads in set phrases. Students can also record self-reflections on the platform.In June 2021, the company partnered with MIND Research Institute, a neuroscience and education social impact organization and creator of the PreK-8 visual instructional program ST Math, to deliver a High Dosage Tutoring program (HDT) for math to K-8 students to address unfinished learning. BookNook tutors will deliver tutoring sessions using the ST Math program over BookNook’s synchronous learning platform. The company launched a new teacher application portal at booknooktutor.com in October 2021, giving experienced teachers the opportunity to apply to become BookNook virtual tutors on its platform. BookNook intends to engage 10,000 virtual teachers to support 80,000 students by the end of the 2021-2022 school year.

BookNook

Story2 uses its proprietary Moments Method writing system, its StoryBuilder software, and live online group coaching to help high school students and professionals improve their writing, speaking, storytelling, and collaboration skills.The company aims to help different segments with their specific needs: students with college admission and scholarship essays, professionals preparing for interviews and creating cover letters, and business teams to improve sales, recruiting and company messaging through effective storytelling.Since 2013, Story2 has worked with more than 200,000 individuals in 21 countries with college admission essays, interview preparation, and pitching ideas. The company is expanding into China and India in 2020 and plans to focus on helping science and technology students improve their communication and leadership skills.

Story2

<div>
 
 Vooks offers a subscription-based, ad-free curated library of children's books converted to video with narration and some slow-paced animation, allowing children to read along while watching. Aimed at young children aged 6 months to 8 years, Vooks promotes reading aloud to develop fluency and comprehension. The company was founded by siblings Marshall Bex and Shannon Bex, and Russell Hirtzel, and is reportedly the first-ever streaming service for books with illustrations, read-along text and animations.
 
 
 In February 2020, Vooks raised USD 12 million in Series A funding; however, the investors and purpose of the funding were not disclosed. In November 2020, the company raised USD 21.9 million in equity investments from more than 30 investors.
 
 
 In November 2020, Vooks partnered with United Way of Metropolitan Dallas (UWMD), a community-based, nonprofit social change organization, and Atmos Energy, a natural gas distributor, to provide around 78,000 one-year Vooks subscriptions for children aged 3 to 6 and early education teachers in the Greater Dallas area. The program is funded by a USD 1 million contribution from Atmos Energy, and contributes to UWMD’s Aspire United 2030 education goal of increasing the number of North Texas students reading at grade level by third grade by 50%. Similarly, in March 2021, the company partnered with Reach Out and Read Of Greater New York (ROR GNY), a nonprofit organization of healthcare providers who promote early literacy. The partnership aims to provide more than 75,000 preschool children with one-year Vooks subscriptions starting in March 2021.
 
 
 In July 2021, it was reported that Vooks is offering its service to authors and producers as a way of quickly testing ideas with audiences through simple animated shorts. Thereby, Vooks expands its library of original content while authors and producers get real-time performance data.
 
</div>

Vooks

Xeropan offers an AI-powered, game-based approach to learning English through 14 of the most widely-spoken languages. As of October 2020, the app had more than one million players.

Xeropan

<div>
 
 GoGuardian is a provider of student security software solutions to help educators identify learning patterns, protect students from harmful and distracting content, and support students at risk of self-harm and suicide. As of August 2021, the company had partnered with more than 10,000 schools in the US, covering more than 22 million students.  
 
 
 In November 2020, GoGuardian announced a 
 <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/1863">
 merger with Pear Deck
 </a>
 to deepen the support provided to students and teachers and improve their in-class experience. Founded in 2014, Pear Deck is a student engagement platform that allows teachers to create, edit, and launch multimedia content and formative assessments on students' devices to increase student engagement. At the time of the merger, Pear Deck was used by 8 million educators and students in more than 17,000 schools worldwide. Pear Deck co-founder and Chief Educator, Michal Eynon-Lynch, will join the GoGuardian Board of Directors. In May 2022, the company acquired 
 <a href="https://sp-edge.com/updates/10683">
 TutorMe,
 </a>
 Zovio’s tutoring services business, for USD 55 million in cash to strengthen its product offering. 
 
 
 Funding and financials
 
 
 In August 2021, GoGuardian secured a USD 200 million investment from Tiger Global Management. The funds will be allocated for product innovation, talent acquisition, and business development. 
 
 
 
</div>

GoGuardian

Businesses providing education delivery solutions such as learning management systems (LMS), and tech solutions for data analytics, administration, and other services to educational institutions.

Businesses delivering curriculum-based learning, particularly relating to science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) education to educational institutions and individual students.

Mostly for-profit corporations running state-funded, tuition-free schools as an alternative to traditional public schools.

Businesses providing extra-curricular education relating to the arts, hobbies, and life skills, and entities providing college and career guidance.

Businesses delivering English language arts (ELA) education, and language learning and literacy support to educational institutions and individual students.

Platforms providing students with after-school tutoring support on an individual or group basis.

Businesses delivering early childhood education, special education, and social-emotional learning (SEL) programs to educational institutions and individual students.

Entities providing professional development resources and tools for teachers, and those providing testing and assessment solutions to educational institutions and educators.

Platforms providing student-parent-teacher-school communication and networking solutions, and those providing search, reference, and marketplace solutions.

Companies that use GenAI as a core part of their product offering for EdTech: K12 solutions

Uses GenAI to provide interactive AI tutors, create personallized learning pathways,  and gamified learning solutions

Uses AI/ML to create personalized learning plans, adaptive learning platforms, and intelligent tutoring systems

Adaptive learning platforms, personalized learning plans, and AI-powered analytics provide insight into student performance

Learning platforms that promote an inclusive and equitable educational culture for underserved communities

Subject

About EDGE

Contact Us

Resources

Area of Focus

Technology Research Made Effortless