Interviewbit Software Services LLP, which runs coding-focussed education-technology startup InterviewBit, has raised $20 million (approximately Rs 142.58 crore at current exchange rates) in its Series A funding.
The funding round was led by Sequoia India and the US-based Tiger Global Management, among others, InterviewBit said in a statement.
The company will use the funds to scale up its enrolment processes, launch products in new markets, and invest in curriculum and live teaching service, it added.
Anshuman Singh, co-founder at InterviewBit, said the company was aiming to bridge the gap between relevant technical skills and recruitment processes of global companies for computer engineers.
“There is a huge global scarcity of high-quality software talent, and we have experienced it first-hand across the portfolio,” Sequoia Capital (India) Singapore managing director Shailendra Singh said.
Pune-based InterviewBit, founded in 2015 by Singh and Abhimanyu Saxena, is also part of Sequoia’s accelerator programme, Surge.
The startup recently launched an advanced online computer science program for college graduates and young professional software engineers, called Scaler Academy.
Scaler Academy, the firm says, has received over two lakh applications in the nine months since it launched. Graduates from the Academy have been placed at firms such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Samsung, Uber, Myntra, Dunzo and Flipkart.
Students are given coaching in skills required for technology jobs and in recruitment processes. InterviewBit’s service also provides referrals for opportunities in the software industry. The startup claims to currently have over a million registered software developers and more than three lakh monthly active users.
Deals in the ed-tech segment
The larger ed-tech segment in India has been the object of investor attention over the last few years, with companies such as Byju’s and Unacademy scoring big cheques from marquee names.
However, there has been heavy activity for startups in their early funding and operational stages.
Earlier today, cognitive skills-focussed WizKlub announced that it has raised Rs 7 crore (around $1 million) in seed funding led by Incubate Fund-backed Incubate Fund India, and joined by social-impact investor Insitor Impact Asia Fund.
Also this month, growth-stage investor Iron Pillar led a Rs 60 crore (around $8.3 million) Series B round in Testbook, which operates a platform focused on government examination preparations.
In December last year, career upskilling solutions provider Springboard raised $11 million (around Rs 78 crore) in a post-Series A financing round led by education-focused Reach Capital. Other investors included Pearson Ventures and the World Bank’s International Finance Corporation (IFC).