Gaurav Munjal, the co-founder who built Unacademy into one of the most valuable education technology companies of India's pandemic boom, is stepping down as chief executive, closing a decade-long chapter for one of the country's best-known startup founders.
Munjal said on Wednesday, November 11, that he will become executive chairman of Unacademy, and that Akhilendra Kumar, the company's chief business officer, will take over as chief executive, according to Business Today and Inc42. The change comes about two months after upGrad, the education group led by Ronnie Screwvala, completed its acquisition of Unacademy in September.
In a post on X, Munjal sought to reassure employees, learners and investors that he would remain closely involved. "To be clear, I'm not going anywhere," he wrote, according to Business Today. He said he would stay involved in day-to-day operations and support upGrad's proposed initial public offering.
He also praised his successor. "Akhilendra is one of the sharpest operators I know," Munjal said.
The upGrad deal
upGrad's acquisition of Unacademy was an all-stock transaction in which Unacademy's shareholders received upGrad shares, according to Business Today. The deal valued Unacademy at just over $200 million, a decline of about 94% from its peak valuation of roughly $3.4 billion in 2021.
Under the deal, Unacademy's brands and businesses were retained, including its test-preparation operations and its subsidiaries PrepLadder, which prepares medical students for exams, Graphy, a platform for creators to sell courses, and Airlearn, a language-learning app. At the time of the acquisition, Munjal said he would continue as chief executive and oversee Unacademy's businesses under upGrad.
His decision to hand over the role now suggests that the integration has reached a stage where the founders' focus is shifting towards the combined group's strategy and its plans to list on the stock market.
From boom to reset
Unacademy's story mirrors the rise and fall of India's edtech sector. Founded as a YouTube channel by Munjal and later built into a company with co-founders including Roman Saini and Hemesh Singh, Unacademy became a leading platform for students preparing for competitive exams such as civil services, engineering and medical entrance tests.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, when schools and coaching centres closed, demand for online learning surged. Unacademy raised billions of dollars from investors including SoftBank, General Atlantic and Tiger Global, and its valuation peaked at about $3.4 billion in 2021.
But once schools and coaching centres reopened, the company faced monetisation problems and ballooning losses, according to Inc42. Students returned to offline classes, and the high marketing spending that had fuelled growth during the pandemic became unsustainable.
Cost cuts and a franchise model
Unacademy responded with deep cost cuts, multiple rounds of layoffs and a shift in strategy. It cut costs and refocused on online education products, and earlier this year announced plans to move from company-operated offline learning centres to a franchise-led model, according to Business Today.
The company had experimented with offline centres to compete with traditional coaching institutes and new offline-first rivals, but running physical centres required significant capital. A franchise model allows Unacademy to expand its offline presence with partners bearing much of the cost.
Who is Akhilendra Kumar?
Kumar has been Unacademy's chief business officer, according to Inc42. As chief executive, he will be responsible for running Unacademy's businesses within the upGrad group, including its core test-preparation platform and subsidiaries. Munjal's description of him as an operator suggests that the company's priority is execution and profitability rather than rapid expansion.
