Education startup Unacademy lays off 250 employees in fresh round

According to sources familiar with the situation, around 100 of the affected employees are from core functions such as business development and marketing, while the remaining are from the sales department, reported the Economic Times.

“As part of our ongoing efforts to streamline operations and enhance business efficiency, we have recently undergone a restructuring exercise. This was necessary keeping in mind the company’s goals and vision for the year, as we focus all our efforts on sustainable growth and profitability. Consequently, some roles have been impacted,” the company, which counts Peak XV Partners and General Atlantic among its investors, said in a statement.

With this Unacademy concluded its third round of layoffs in three years. In March 2023, the company cut its workforce by 12%, impacting about 380 employees. In April 2022, roughly 1,000 full-time and contractual employees were dismissed.

Last month, co-founder Hemesh Singh stepped down as Chief Technology Officer and moved into an advisory role.

On May 31, ET reported that Unacademy, after an initial boom due to the COVID-19 pandemic, saw a slowdown in its online business.

Consequently, the company shifted its focus to expanding its offline presence in the test preparation segment, competing with Byju’s-owned Aakash, Bodhi Tree-backed Allen Career Institute, and GSV Ventures-backed PhysicsWallah.

Company’s CEO Gaurav Munjal, informed employees last December that the company had Rs 1,800 crore (nearly $216 million) in reserves, providing a cash runway of four years.

He also mentioned that Unacademy had reduced its cash burn by 60% in 2023 and aimed to extend its runway to eight years in 2024 through further burn reductions.

The Bengaluru-based startup's losses narrowed by 41% to Rs 1,678 crore in FY23, while revenue increased by 26% to Rs 907 crore during the same period. Unacademy has yet to disclose its financial results for FY24, the report said.