TLDR: SpeakX.ai, an AI-driven edtech firm specializing in spoken English tutoring, has successfully raised $16 million in a funding round led by WestBridge Capital. This investment, which values the company at $66 million post-money, underscores the growing confidence in AI-led educational technology. The Gurugram-based company, which pivoted from its previous avatar Yellow Class, utilizes generative AI to offer personalized, voice-first English learning experiences, primarily targeting learners in India’s Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
SpeakX.ai, a pioneering AI-led edtech company, has announced a significant funding round, securing $16 million in investment. The round was spearheaded by WestBridge Capital, with notable participation from existing investor Elevation Capital, Goodwater Capital, and prominent angel investors including Ronnie Screwvala of Upgrad and Shyamal Anadkat of OpenAI. This latest capital infusion values SpeakX.ai at $66 million post-money, marking a substantial increase from its $25 million valuation in 2021 when it last raised $6 million as Yellow Class.
The Gurugram-based startup’s journey has been one of strategic transformation. Originally known as Yellow Class, the company focused on extra-curricular activities for children aged 3-12. However, a post-Covid slump in January 2024 necessitated a hard pivot to its current model, which leverages generative AI for spoken English tutoring.
Speaking about the challenging transition, CEO Arpit Mittal stated, “The hard pivot came at a cost. I had to bring down my team from 200 to 20. We had about $1.5 million left and my cofounder also decided to move out.” He further added, “After the pivot, raising capital seemed very far-fetched because we had zero revenue. We had to start the entire journey from scratch. Our first goal was to make the company profitable, as there was no clarity on when funding would come or how to manage the business with the burn.”
SpeakX.ai’s core offering is a mobile-first app that provides personalized, voice-first conversational English tutors, described as ‘agentic AI.’ The platform employs speech recognition and natural language understanding to simulate real conversations, moving beyond scripted lessons. It tailors learning through adaptive algorithms, offers real-time feedback on pronunciation, grammar, and fluency, and incorporates agentic prompts to maintain student engagement. Mittal emphasizes the goal of making each learner feel like they are interacting with a personal tutor rather than a rigid AI script.
The company primarily serves learners in India’s Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities, as well as lower-income groups, who are seeking English fluency to access better job opportunities. Operating on a subscription model, the app charges ₹300 per month (approximately $3.60 USD). SpeakX.ai has demonstrated strong financial health, claiming an annual recurring revenue (ARR) of $7 million and an EBITDA run rate of $3 million, and achieved EBITDA profitability during the fourth quarter of FY25.
The newly secured funds will be strategically deployed to accelerate engineering and AI-driven product development. This includes enhancing its proprietary AI infrastructure, expanding its technology stack, scaling the platform, and improving user engagement across its offerings. The investment reflects a broader trend of increasing venture capital interest in AI-enabled personalized education, even as the overall edtech sector has faced scrutiny.
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The global edtech and smart classrooms market is projected to grow significantly, from $214.73 billion in 2025 to $445.94 billion in 2029, at a compound annual growth rate of 20.0%. In India alone, hundreds of millions are learning English, with data indicating that 60% of lower-income learners prefer speaking-based tools, highlighting SpeakX.ai’s alignment with a substantial market need.
