Edtech startup WhiteHat Jr has secured $10 million in a Series A funding round led by existing investors Nexus Venture Partners and impact investor Omidyar Network. The round has also seen participation from Silicon Valley-based firm Owl Ventures as a new investor.
The new funds will be utilized by the company to strengthen its technology platform, expand the course curriculum as well as increase consumer awareness.
Karan Bajaj, CEO of WhiteHat Jr, said, “Our mission is to harness the natural creativity of kids and shift their mindset from an early age – from being consumers to creators of technology. It’s been heartening to see the projects of kids in the first 6 months of launch as they’re creating immensely creative, high utility digital applications that are bound to have a long-term impact.”
Started in November 2018, the Mumbai-based WhiteHat Jr helps kids between ages 6 to 14 build commercial-ready games, animations and apps online using the fundamentals of coding. Earlier, the startup had raised $1.3 million in seed funding from Nexus and Omidyar Network India.
WhiteHat Jr claims to have seen more than 150,000 student trials, over 500 teachers onboarded and 100% month-on-month student and revenue growth.
Anup Gupta, Managing Director, Nexus Venture Partners, said, “We have been privileged to partner with Karan from the concept stage of the company, and been very impressed with their execution and rapid growth. We are excited to strengthen our association with WhiteHat Jr’s mission of creating the next generation of innovators and thinkers.”
Amit A Patel, Managing Director of Owl Ventures, stated, “This is our second investment in India and WhiteHat Jr has created something that is unique, scalable and very relevant, not only in India but across other markets.”
Namita Dalmia, Principal, Investments, Omidyar Network India, added, “We invested in WhiteHat Jr with an aim to improving cognitive skills and we’re heartened to see the impact of its curriculum on kids through improvements in creativity, concentration and logical thinking as well as teachers who’re highly educated women tech professionals returning to the workforce.”
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