Edtech startup Riiid Inc (Riiid) has raised $175 million investment from SoftBank Vision Fund 2. To accelerate the pace of capturing opportunities in the global education market, SoftBank Vision Fund 2 led the round as the sole investor, bringing Riiid’s total funding to $250 million. It is Riiid’s largest funding round to date.
“Riiid wants to transform education with AI and achieve a true democratization of educational opportunities,” said Riiid CEO YJ Jang. “This investment is only the beginning of our journey in creating a new industry ecosystem, and we will carry out this mission with global partnerships,” he added.
Over the past year, Riiid Labs, the global arm of Riiid, has expanded the company’s market across the US, South America, Middle East, and Asia with partners such as Kaplan, ConnecME, Grupo INICIE, and Casa Grande; combining Riiid’s AI technology and the content provided by those companies to create personalized learning services.
Aiming to solidify its technological & industrial leadership in the field of AI for Education
Riiid will use the new funding to strengthen its AI technology further and extend its global technology lead in AI for education. Riiid is establishing R&D centers and data labeling centers in the U.S., Canada, and Ghana to attract global talent and build out its technical infrastructure.
Riiid continues to attract top global talent in education, including Marten Roorda, the former CEO of testing non-profit organization ACT, and Jim Larimore, who brings two decades of education leadership experience at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Dartmouth College, Swarthmore College, NYU Abu Dhabi, and Stanford University.
“Riiiid is driving a paradigm shift in education, from a ‘one size fits all’ approach to personalized instruction. Powered by AI and machine learning, Riiid’s platform provides education companies, schools, and students with personalized plans and tools to optimize learning potential,” said Greg Moon, Managing Partner at SoftBank Investment Advisers. “We are delighted to partner with YJ and the Riiid team to support their ambition of democratizing quality education around the world.”
