Cognitive Skills Startup WizKlub Raises INR 7 Cr in Seed Round

WizKlub - a holistic cognitive development ed-tech startup that builds excellence for school children through its HOTS (Higher Order Thinking Skills) and SmartTech programs, has raised a seed round of funding of INR 7 crore led by Incubate Fund India with participation from Insitor Impact Asia Fund, bringing the total funds raised to INR 9 crore so far. The company plans to use the fresh capital for product and market expansion.

WizKlub was founded in February 2018 by serial entrepreneur Amit Bansal who has had two successful ed-tech exits, along with a leadership team with rich experience in education. WizKlub’s HOTS and SmartTech programs develop cognitive skills in children aged 5-15 years through an AI powered tech platform that delivers a personalised learning path for every child. The WizKlub HOTS Program, develops higher order thinking skills to ensure that every child is a smart reader and a smart problem solver.

The WizKlub SmartTech Program, a first-of-its-kind for children as young as 6 years, builds lifelong skills and confidence to create tech products by application of coding, robotics, smart devices and AI. The startup has 150+ centers in Bengaluru and has progressed 3000+ children through its programs. The company also offers HOTS and SmartTech programs on a subscription model and is on track to on-board 10,000+ children over the next few months.

Commenting on the investment, Nao Murakami, Incubate Fund India, an early-stage VC fund of Japan, said, "After-school-education for K6 segment in India has been highly fragmented. At the same time, the rise of middle class allows parents in urban India to start thinking seriously about giving a quality after-school-education to their kids. So, platforms like WizKlub, which provide standardised quality and easy access to after-school-education has been waited for long time among parents of K6 students. As WizKlub's model is highly scalable and monetizable, we strongly believe that they will create a great impact to Indian K6 education space."

Abhijit Nath, Insitor Impact Asia Fund, a VC fund headquartered in Singapore, added, "Insitor is excited to partner with WizKlub on their journey to transform education from rote based learning to building cognitive and critical thinking skills. The team is focused on creating a holistic approach to education through an affordable, structured and outcome-based learning solution."

Amit Bansal, Founder & CEO, WizKlub, said, “Supplemental education beyond curriculum is the greatest need in the Indian education system today and we are addressing this area with our research-based learning programs. Technology is transforming the world at an unprecedented pace, which necessitates children of this generation to be lifelong learners and adept problem solvers. Further, this generation needs to grow up with the confidence to be creators than just being passive consumers of technology. Our HOTS and SmartTech programs are designed for maximum impact in these areas. We are grateful to our investors for supporting our efforts to empower young children succeed in this rapidly changing world.”

Global movement of education, high stake exams and rewarding careers towards aptitude-based skills has sparked the need for such supplementary education for Indian students who otherwise, grow up in an environment dominated by “rote learning”. India alone has a potential market size of $15 bn for supplementary education.