This Binny Bansal-backed firm is upskilling to keep sailing in edtech downturn

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Binny Bansal-backed PlanetSpark is expanding its focus beyond school students to include white-collar workers, as upskilling for officegoers remains a bright spot in the otherwise struggling edtech sector.

This transition, along with other measures, is aimed at steering the company out of mounting losses during a challenging period for the Indian edtech sector, particularly in the kindergarten-to-grade 12, or K-12, space. “We realised that the demand in this segment (working professionals) is growing much faster," Kunal Malik, co-founder of PlanetSpark, told Mint during a virtual interaction earlier this week.

PlanetSpark raised $13.5 million from prominent investors including former Flipkart founder Binny Bansal and venture capital firm Prime Ventures in December 2021, when startups offering vocational courses were gaining popularity and companies like WhiteHat Jr., which Byju’s acquired, attracting significant interest. However, as funding for the edtech sector declined following the pandemic as students returned to traditional classrooms, many companies struggled to cope with the slowing demand.

Vocational training startups such as WhiteHat Jr, FrontRow, and BrightChamps have either struggled or taken significant measures to survive. In contrast, startups focused on upskilling, such as Eruditus and UpGrad, have managed to sustain and even thrive amid the broader edtech sector’s challenges.

Founded in 2017 by Malik and Manish Dhooper, PlanetSpark initially offered live one-on-one classes in public speaking, creative writing, debating, and other soft skills for the K-8 segment. Now, the extended segment covering students of grades 9 to 12 and working professionals has contributed