Gaurav Munjal Likely To Hold Larger Stake In Airlearn Post Spin Off

Gaurav Munjal might hold a larger stake in Unacademy’s artificial intelligence-powered language learning app Airlearn than he currently holds in the parent entity.

A Mint report, citing people familiar with the matter, said that the expected move comes at a time when the edtech cofounder prepares to spin off Airlearn into a separate entity.

Currently, Munjal holds 3.4% stake in Unacademy and is eyeing a larger share in Airlearn.

This also comes close on the heels of Munjal and his fellow cofounder Roman Saini reportedly stepping away from their day-to-day roles.

Sources further told Mint that Munjal is in discussions with existing investors Peak XV and Nexus Venture Partners regarding additional funding amid spin-off plans.

“As of now, the discussions are ongoing and there are many moving parts, but investors like General Atlantic and SoftBank are expected to retain mirror shareholding in the hived-off entity,” a source said.

Inc42 has reached out to Munjal for comments on the development. The story will be updated based on the response. 

Munjal, Saini and Hemesh Singh founded Unacademy in 2015 which offers online learning services to students and professionals preparing for competitive examinations.

Munjal’s role is reportedly to be taken over by Unacademy’s board member Sumit Jain. 

While Munjal and Saini each hold 3.4% stake, Singh, who moved on from Unacademy to an advisory role last year, holds 2.2% stake in Unacademy.

Munjal’s Focus On Tech-Led Business 

It is pertinent to note that Unacademy’s revenue majorly comes from its offline business. However, Munjal was interested in a tech-led model and couldn’t commit to leading Unacademy’s offline business, sources told Inc42. 

They further said Munjal wanted to return to a tech-first edtech model, where Airlearn is the latest bet. 

“Munjal is squarely focussed on Airlearn only for more than a year now, whereas Saini had long back lost interest in taking Unacademy forward,” insiders aware of the developments at Unacademy told Inc42 a week back.

To build Airlearn alongside Munjal, TapChief cofounder Shashank Murali who sold his startup to Unacademy in 2021 is also planning to hop on. 

They also told Inc42 that Munjal had signalled to the board that he can no longer commit to leading Unacademy’s offline tuition centre business which contributes to 40%-50% of the company’s revenues. 

Earlier, Munjal and Unacademy’s efforts to sell off the company at a $800 Mn-$1 Bn valuation to potential acquirers such as Allen Career Institute or K-12 Techno Services also did not materialise. 

Unacademy has raised more than $838.50 Mn till date from investors such as Temasek, SoftBank, General Atlantic and Blume Ventures among others.