Surgeup Technologies Pvt Ltd, which runs gaming-focussed edtech platform upsurge, on Friday said it has secured pre-seed funding of $370,000 (around Rs 3 crore) from venture capital firm JCBL India.
The New-Delhi based firm plans to use the fresh funds for product development and geographical expansion.
Founded by Karan Baweja in 2021, upsurge aims to impart financial literacy and life skills to Gen Z through a gamified manner. It claims that through its proprietary games, interactive game-based courses and rewards, children can learn about money management, entrepreneurship and other life skills.
“At upsurge, the mission is to inspire and empower the next generation with the knowledge and skills they need to succeed in an evolving economy,” said Baweja.
The edtech sector has been going through one of the toughest cycles with educational institutions re-opening after the effects of the pandemic tapered off. Along with this, a funding winter for the overall startup ecosystem fuelled by tough macroeconomic conditions has led to layoffs at edtech companies becoming a common sight as they struggle to raise cash amid tough market conditions.
More than 8,000 employees working in the edtech segment were affected last year. Some of the largest Indian edtech companies to have let go of employees include Byju’s, Unacademy, and Vedantu with Edtech unicorn Lead School being the latest startup to hand pink slips to its employees. The startup has sacked nearly 60 more staff in its second round of layoffs in less than six months.
Despite the funding crunch, some edtech startups have managed to raise funds, albeit of smaller value.
Early this week, learning management system startup Toddle said it has secured $17 million led by Sequoia Capital India in a Series A fundraise.
In 2022, Virtual Reality (VR) edtech startup iXRLabs raised $0.8 million in a seed round led by an angel investor from the infrastructure development industry. Similarly, Uolo has raised $22.5 million in its Series A funding round. B2B edtech startup AntWalk raised $7.5 million in its Series A round.
