China-based online education platform Knowbox has closed a $150m series D round led by e-commerce and internet group Alibaba, 36Kr has reported.
Founded in 2014, Knowbox operates an online education platform that specialises in mathematics, relying on games and competitions to teach the subject to students. Teachers can use the platform to assign and grade homework, and the company claims it is used by 70% of primary schools in China.
Knowbox has not revealed how it intends to spend the funding, but founder Liu Ye had previously disclosed that the company was aiming to develop artificial intelligence technology with a view to making education more affordable.
Education provider TAL Education Group invested in a $100m series C round for Knowbox in April 2018 that was led by private equity firm Yunfeng Capital.
Bertelsmann Asia Investments, a corporate venturing subsidiary of media group Bertelsmann, led the company’s $30m series B-plus round in 2017 that included TAL Education, real estate conglomerate New World Development and Baidu Ventures, an investment arm of internet company Baidu.
Legend Star, an early-stage investment vehicle for conglomerate Legend Holdings, provided $1m of seed funding for Knowbox in 2015. It returned for a $10m series A featuring TAL Education and Liu Qiangdong the same year, and for a $15m series B round led by Genesis Capital in 2016.
