Thanks to the advent of the Internet and the progress made by technology, education has become more accessible than ever, in part due to the numerous startups that have emerged in this field. At the beginning of February 2014, Crunchies organized their 7th annual award ceremony, where they nominated some of the best startups and Silicon Valley companies in a range of fields, from education and health to hardware and social impact. Based on their results, we would like to present you with the top 5 startups in education. Their selection process involved selecting 5 startups and companies for each category, based on suggestions received from the public; the startups that had received the most nominations made it to the top 5. Afterwards, the public was once again asked to vote for their favorite. Below, you can find a short overview of each of the education startups that made it to Crunchies’ short-list. Let’s take a look at the countdown.
No. 5: Treehouse
Treehouse is an education startup that aims to provide affordable education to anyone interested in learning more about technology. The platform uses quizzes, short videos, and badges, which help its members learn more about web design and development. There are several types of monthly subscriptions members can choose from, ranging from $29 to $49. At the end of January, 2014, Treehouse received $4.7 million in its Series A funding.
No. 4: Khan Academy
Founded back in 2006, Khan Academy is an educational startup that aims to offer high-quality courses in a variety of subjects, from history and mathematics to physics, economics, and astronomy. Khan Academy is open for use to anyone wishing to further their education. Their mission is to always provide free access to anyone who wants to grow and learn.
No. 3: CreativeLIVE
CreativeLIVE offers budding entrepreneurs around the world free video tutorials and premium lessons from prized teachers and instructors, such as bestselling authors, award-winning professionals, or Pulitzer Prize winners. Since its inception, CreativeLIVE has attracted over 1 million students from more than 200 countries around the globe. At the end of 2013, CreativeLIVE gathered over $21 million in its Series B funding.
No. 2: Code.org
Code.org was this year’s runner-up on Crunchies’ list. The non-for-profit organization, run by the Partovi brothers, aims to help students around the world learn how to code, through free lessons. In addition, the startup also aims to raise awareness regarding the need to implement computer science courses with schools.
No. 1: Duolingo
Based on public votes, Duolingo emerged as the top startup in education. Basically, Duolingo is an online and mobile platform that allows users to learn a new language, through the aid of lessons, games, and the translation of online articles. The service, which is completely free, is continuously expanding through the help of its large community that adds new languages every month. The startup, which has more than 5 million active members per month, recently received $20 million in its Series C funding.
