Source: The Financial Express

Edtech platform Kyt on Wednesday said it has raised USD 5 million (about Rs 36.5 crore) in funding led by Alpha Wave Incubation (AWI), a venture fund managed by Falcon Edge Capital. The series A round also saw participation from Sequoia Capital India’s Surge, January Capital, Titan Capital and other angel investors, a statement said.

“The funds raised will be used for deeper investment in technology and product, to enhance the overall experience of the students and to accelerate global expansion. Kyt already has students from India, UAE and Singapore and is looking to scale its footprint to the US, Canada, UK and Australia,” it added.

As part of this investment from AWI, Kyt will expand its operations to Abu Dhabi and use the Emirate as its regional headquarters for targeting the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and other global markets, the statement said.

Kyt is also working on building a team of data scientists, product managers and engineers located in Abu Dhabi. Founded in June 2020, Kyt runs online-only extracurricular courses by combining live classes with video-based revision materials for children from ages 5-15 years, in a full-stack model. It offers one-on-one and small group sessions for courses such as yoga, dance, music, chess and others.

The company is backed by prominent angel investors including Allen Penn, Kunal Bahl, Rohit Bansal, Amrish Rau, Kunal Shah, Jitendra Gupta, Martin Li, Apremeya Radhakrishna, Anand Chandrasekaran and Akhil Paul.

“With Kyt, we are going beyond the conventional academic learning by building an academy that nurtures holistic and all-round development of children. It is essential to foster children’s interests and encourage learning that equips them with creative and real-world skills; thereby molding their individual strengths and making them more confident,” Kyt co-founder and CEO Bhavik Rathod said.

This new investment will help boost the company’s efforts in providing a well-structured curriculum, designed by pedagogy experts and education consultants to help each child realise their potential, he added.

The platform has more than 20 teachers onboard and plans to increase this to 500, over the next 12 months.

It has secured exclusive partnerships with top educators and artists, including Indian Chess Grandmaster Vidit Gujrathi, Mumbai-based vocalists Kamakshi and Vishala, Philippines’ hip-hop legend Ruel Varindani, and celebrity yoga instructor Sabrina Merchant. Kyt plans to add more courses, including speech and debate, spelling bees, guitar and keyboard among others, the statement said.