Edtech Startup Harappa Grabs James Murdoch’s First Investment In India

Edtech startup Harappa Education has completed a round of funding from James Murdoch-led Lupa Systems. This is Lupa Systems’ first-ever investment in India, though the amount is undisclosed.

“The potential in India is as enormous as ever, and it continues to energise me. I am excited to help realize the inspiring vision Harappa has to become a preeminent online learning institution with a curriculum that is both foundational and unique,” said Murdoch, founder, Lupa Systems in a statement.

The newly infused capital will be used to accelerate product development, invest in high-quality curriculum creation, build a rich learning experience, and scale its presence across corporates and campuses throughout India.

Harappa Education is headquartered in New Delhi. “So far the company has been bootstrapped by cofounder Pramath Raj Sinha. This is the startup’s first round of funding,” Shreyasi Singh, founder and CEO, Harappa Education told Inc42.

“I am looking forward to a strong partnership with James and his team. We have been struck by their belief in and enthusiasm for our mission. Their validation is a tremendous source of strength for us and fuels our passion to drive transformational learning outcomes at scale,” Sinha, who is also chairman, said.

Harappa is an edtech startup founded in 2018 by Sinha and Shreyasi Singh, which enables professionals to learn life skills at scale, leveraging digital learning technologies and online pedagogical tools.

The startup offers a curriculum of ‘5 Habits’ and ‘25 Skills’, which is delivered through an online-first approach. The curriculum primarily addresses the core gap in education between cognitive (how to think, reason and problem-solve), social (how to communicate, influence and build relationships) and behavioural (how to grow, act and lead) skills that employers look for at the workplace.

The investment gives Lupa Systems a majority stake in Harappa. Lupa is a private investment firm founded by James Murdoch, son of billionaire media magnate Rupert Murdoch, in 2019. The company has offices in New York and Mumbai and has invested in Tribeca Enterprises, Vice Media and The Void, among other investments to date.

“Pramath’s passion and track record of establishing pioneering higher education institutions set us up well to build a unique enterprise,” said Murdoch. Many global marquee investors have been pumping in a great deal of money into Indian startups for some years now. Besides edtech, the sectors that have been promising for are electric vehicles, fintech, digital entertainment and agritech.

According to media reports, Murdoch had said earlier that he has been bullish on India and would be investing around $1 Bn from the proceeds of the sale of his stake in 21st Century to Disney.