ABCmouse Creator Valued at $3 Billion With TPG-Led Funding Round

(Bloomberg) -- Age of Learning, the creator of digital education platform ABCmouse, which exploded in popularity during the pandemic, more than doubled its valuation to $3 billion with a funding round led by TPG.

The Qatar Investment Authority and Madrone Capital Partners also participated in the $300 million round, as did Tencent Holdings Ltd., which invested in the Glendale, California-based firm last year at a valuation of about $1.4 billion, Age of Learning Chief Executive Officer Paul Candland said in an interview.

“We’ll use proceeds to fuel our international expansion and accelerate the development of our next generation,” Candland said.

Age of Learning, founded in 2007, does business in countries including China and Japan and may push into South Korea, Indonesia, Vietnam, India and Brazil, he said. Its flagship adaptive-learning offerings -- math and reading -- are in English, with Spanish alternatives available in the U.S., and it may add science and music as subjects. The company also offers a logical-thinking course in China.

With the pandemic forcing many children to learn remotely, Age of Learning’s revenue surged more than 50% last year, said Candland, declining to provide more specifics.

“Lots of families turned to us and we saw a rise in usage, measured by the number of minutes per week,” he said. “Even with schools going back, we haven’t seen a drop-off, so it appears to be a permanent change that has moved the business forward by two to three years.”

Age of Learning, which has a subscription model and historically operated on a direct-to-consumer basis, began working directly with schools last year, starting with pilot programs in Florida, Texas and California.

“These are super powerful tools for teachers,” Candland said, noting that more schools will be added in the fall and that they could account for 30% of revenue within three years.

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The firm, which caters to children ages 2 to 8, said an average of 3 million users logged 9.8 million hours a month on its platform in 2020 and that ABCmouse, the top children’s education app in the U.S., helped educate 10 million students throughout the year.

“Age of Learning was built on the vision of helping children everywhere develop a love of learning, and we are excited to partner with them to accelerate that mission,” TPG partner David Trujillo said in an emailed statement.

TPG is investing in the company through its TPG Tech Adjacencies fund.

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