Unacademy To Pivot Offline Business To Franchise Model By April

After failed acquisitions talks with upGrad, Bengaluru-based edtech unicorn Unacademy plans to exit its offline business by converting company operated centres into franchise partnerships.

In an internal email accessed by Inc42, Unacademy group CEO Gaurav Munjal told employees that the franchise model would allow the startup to employ an asset-light, capital-efficient business. The transition is expected to be completed by April. 

“The franchise model has already shown that it works: great local operators run operations, and we provide the academics, technology and reach. It is asset-light, capital-efficient, and aligned with who we are,” the mail read.

Aligning with the startup’s bid to shift to a more capital-efficient model, Munjal said that Unacademy would be doubling down on its bread-and-butter online business. 

“Unacademy has always been exceptional at one thing: building great online learning products. So we are going back to our strengths. Unacademy will be an online first company moving forth. Like it was when we started in 2015,” a company spokesperson told Inc42. 

The development comes almost a week after the amalgamation between Unacademy and upGrad fell off due to valuation indifference. As per report, the Munjal-led startup was seeking a valuation of around $300 Mn to $400 Mn for the acquisition. 

Prior to upGrad, Unacademy was also in talks with K-12 Techno Services, and recently listed PhysicsWallah for an acquisition. But, both the talks had also failed. 

While prior attempts at an acquisition have failed to materialise, the Softbank-backed startup is now looking to realign its focus on its online vertical. In the mail, the cofounder claimed that Unacademy’s online test prep businesses continue to compound while Airlearn, its language learning offering, is becoming a serious global language platform. 

Further, he said that Unacademy’s UPSC, NEET PG, CAT along with multiple other verticals have turned contribution-margin positive. “PrepLadder and Graphy were cash-flow positive for the full year. Airlearn grew from ~$200K ARR at the start of 2025 to almost $3M ARR by year end,” Munjal’s mail to employees read.

In a social media post earlier in December, Munjal claimed that the startup had managed to trim its burn to less than INR 175 Cr in 2025 from INR 1,400 Cr in 2022. Besides, he said that the startup’s top line touched INR 600 Cr in the year, with profitability in sight for next year and a healthy balance sheet “with decades of runway”. 

Once the darling of VCs during the capital-fuelled pandemic era, Unacademy’s fortunes took a hit once learning centres began to reopen. Many of the acquisitions undertaken by the unicorn failed to materialise while competition from offline rivals continued to weigh on its operations.