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Business-to-business(B2B) edtech startup AntWalk has raised $7.5 Mn in its Series A funding round led by GSV Ventures. The round saw participation from Y Combinator and existing investor Matrix Partners.

With this fresh capital, the edtech startup wants to strengthen its Learning Experience Platform (LXP) using gamification and building its content pedagogy through R&D. Aiming for a wider customer base, it plans to expand its sales and marketing team as well.

AntWalk was founded by former McKinsey consultants, ex-bankers and former educators, including Joybroto Ganguly, Basav Nagur, Sriramkumar Sundararaman, Sumit Gupta and Sudhanshu Shekhar in 2019.

The idea of setting up AntWalk emanated from the realisation that there is a need for contextual knowledge transfer as employees join, grow and shoulder on larger responsibilities, the startup said in a statement. 

As per the startup, the enterprise learning and development (L&D) industry is expected to touch the $402 Bn mark by 2025.

“The name ‘AntWalk’ was inspired by the way ants communicate and share intelligence with each other when they walk, reflecting the act of ‘collaborative social learning.’ We are well on our way to building a robust ed-tech company focused on the global skilling opportunity, by leveraging this power of collaborative learning,” Joybroto Ganguly, cofounder and CEO of AntWalk said.

AntWalk claims to have more than 5000 experts and 400 brands on board to offer effective solutions to improve employee development, enhance the competencies of employees and develop newer ones that align with business goals.

According to Sriramkumar Sundararaman, cofounder and COO, AntWalk, the edtech startup’s offerings are designed to cater to the nuances of an employee’s needs based on the function and role they are in. For example, while an entry level sales associate would need a mix of self-paced content and 1:1 mock sessions to become better, a senior leader would need 1:1 coaching and live cohort sessions to learn with peers, he explained.

The fundraising announcement comes at a time when the edtech industry in India is going through a crisis. Several edtech startups such as Matrix Partners-backed Crejo.Fun, Gurugram-based Udaay have shut their shops amid the economic downturn.

On the other hand, edtech unicorns such as Unacademy, Vedantu, Eruditus, BYJU’S-owned WhiteHat Jr have laid off employees along with FrontRow and Yellow Class, Lido Learning, among others.

In 2021, edtech startups raised $4.7 Bn from 165 deals, emerging as the third-largest funded sector. However, the funding amount has reached $1.9 Bn after nearly six months of the year, as of June 18, 2022.