Edtech startup Doyobi raises US$1m in round led by 500 Startups, XA

DOYOBI, a Singapore-based edtech startup that provides science and coding courses, has raised US$1 million in a pre-seed funding round led by venture firm 500 Startups and XA Network (formerly known as Xoogler Angels), a syndicate of ex-Google angel investors.

Other investors that took part in Doyobi's fundraise include venture firms Hustle Fund and Teja Ventures. Also supporting the round were several entrepreneur-turned-angel investors, namely: Roger Egan, co-founder of RedMart; Firas Alsuwaigh of Ninja Van; Sanjay Shivkumar, founder of Caarly, which was bought over by Carousell; Tu Ngo, co-founder of Yola; and Masashi Takahashi, co-founder of Voyagin. Founded early this year, Doyobi is led by entrepreneur and angel investor John Tan. The startup was spun off from Saturday Kids, a coding school for children that Mr Tan founded eight years ago.

Doyobi aims to go global, and has pilot partners in Brazil, India, US, the Philippines, Malaysia and Singapore. This month, it will roll out a "science with code" course combining block-based programming and science content aligned with Singapore's Ministry of Education syllabus.

"Doyobi's guided courses integrate videos, quizzes and projects to make teaching easy, enabling educators to teach science and coding in a fun and interactive way. With Doyobi's blended instruction and self-paced learning structure, teachers can focus their energies on supporting learners and helping them achieve their learning goals," Mr Tan said.

The startup counts associate professor Stella Christie, director of Tsinghua University Child Cognition Center, as its adviser.

The value proposition of edtech startups has grown amid the Covid-19 pandemic, as governments and parents "see how powerful alternative platforms like Doyobi can be", said Khailee Ng, managing partner at 500 Startups.

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Ashnil Dixit of XA added: "By unlocking our kids' creativity and curiosity, Doyobi is giving them the tools to navigate this exciting but unpredictable future. Doyobi's ability to deliver fun, interactive and individualised learning experiences sets it apart and we at XA are really excited to partner with them on this mission."

Virginia Tan, founding partner of Teja Ventures, said that her firm sees a gap in the market in the K-12 (from kindergarten to 12th grade in US education) space for science, technology, engineering and mathematics as well as extracurricular learning. Teja Ventures also shares Doyobi's vision in bringing innovative content to the market, she added.