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This is the 3rd edition of the X Report, following on from our EdTechX summit, held on 18th June 2019 in London. The report aims to provide you with a bite-sized summary of what is happening in the world of learning and training. This month we look at the key themes covered at the summit as well as an overview of the EdTechX Award Winners and the Global Startup Super League.

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The key trends impacting education and training today

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Learn how innovators of today are shaping the EdTech of tomorrow

XGold100px-03Market Roundup
A global snapshot of the EdTech market

X100Teal-04M&A Highlights
Summary on mergers, acquisitions and fundraising

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NOW AND NEXT   

The key trends impacting education and training today

Learning is the New Tech
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Over 900 attendees joined us in London last month at the 2019 EdTechXEurope summit, connecting the global learning community. Over 150 speakers, 50+ startups, and 40+ investors attended to hear about trends and experiences surrounding the future of learning and work.

AI in Education (AI-ED) and the Future of Work featured as key themes, where several panels and speakers discussed emerging trends. The link between these themes and insight into the next wave of tech disruption was highlighted in the opening keynote presented by Benjamin Vedrenne-Cloquet and Charles McIntyre: with particular focus on AI-ED companies Sana Labs (Sweden), Face ++ (China) and Century Tech (UK).

The 3rd wave of tech disruption is currently underway and is centred around AI and deep learning, which involves machines using data to train themselves and make intelligent decisions. Innovation in artificial neural networks could result in machines having human capabilities by 2060, and intelligent robots which physically interact with humans (also known as co-bots) are expected to account for 90% of robots in the workplace by 2025. Digital twins are being created for a plethora of “real-world” entities, from objects to complex systems (including entire cities) and even humans. This is creating a multitude of possibilities in the design and operation of products and systems and changing the way we interact with the world around us. ObEN, a US-based AI company, is creating virtual identities for individuals who look, sound, and act like their users and function as an assistant by performing designated tasks.


AI is the fastest-growing sector in education and is expected to grow tenfold from $900m in 2019 to $9bn by 2030. Over 75 AI-ED startups have launched since the start of 2018, and these companies are revolutionising the learning environment for both learners and teachers by offering AI-driven personalised learning content, enhanced learner engagement and monitoring, and valuable student data. In the education sector, AI tutoring systems are one example of how deep learning can revolutionise the teaching process by providing online intelligent chatbots or personalised lessons based on a student’s learning style.

AI and deep learning may also offer a systemic fix to the global skills gap. While e-learnings and other training provided by employers are often a ‘quick fix’ solution to upskilling and are typically compliance driven, with the creation of digital twins for employees, we could gain unparalleled insight into what they know, how they learn and how to maximise the learning process. In addition, when AI and digital twins function as hard skills experts, we free up the human workforce to focus on soft skills and add greater value.

In a knowledge economy, learning and AI are the new engines of growth and will contribute a staggering $13 trillion to global economic growth by 2030. These technologies are fascinating examples of how we can harness the data around us to meet the demands of the workplace and learn more about how, what and why we learn.

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GLOBAL ALL STARS   

 Learn how innovators of today are shaping the edtech of tomorrow.

  Launch of Global Startup Super League

EdTechX hosted the inaugural Global Startup Super League Final Pitch Competition, to celebrate the best and brightest companies transforming the future of learning and work. 28 finalists from over 300 competitors worldwide had just 90 seconds to impress the judges with their pitch.

The distinguished judging panel included decision makers from Amazon Web Services, London & Partners, Educapital, Cooley LLP, Channel4 Ventures and Brighteye Ventures. It was their challenging task to select the best startups, evaluating their team competence, proof of success, traction, scalability and impact.

Nthato CRSP

The Bronze award winner was CRSP dsgn, a STEAM-focused robotics solution from South Africa and winner of the EdTechXAfrica Ecosystem Event in Johannesburg. Nthato Moagi impressed the judges with his vision and determination to create affordable educational resources to increase access for children in developing regions.

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Awarded Silver was InSimu, from Hungary, who focus on supporting medical students through their studies and testing their diagnostic and analytical skills on simulated patients. Andrea Herdon, CMO and Co-Founder was first selected at our partner event, the Accenture Innovation Summit and showed the judges how their tool can help innovate medical education by gaining real experience without any risk of causing harm. 

The overall Gold winner was StudySmarter, winner of the Berlin EdTechXEurope Ecosystem Event. Maurice Khudhir, Co-Founder & CMO, executed an impressive presentation highlighting StudySmarter’s focus on lifelong learning and personalised tools. By aggregating learning resources in one app, tracking personal progress and ensuring exam success for all students; StudySmarter already has over 100,000 users, with 87% reporting improved grades.

Super League

These 3 Super League winners were announced during our closing Awards Celebration which also featured our 6 EdTechXGlobal All Stars Awards winners from our Startup, Scale-Up and Impact categories. Our Super League winners were awarded celebratory champagne and will receive a selection of prizes worth £50,000+ from our partners at Amazon Web Services and Cooley LLP as well as an extensive 12-month marketing and PR campaign to our global community. 


After the success of the first Global Startup Super League, the 2020 edition will be even bigger than before, featuring more Ecosystem Events in Asia, Africa and Europe, as well as collaborating with more partners around the world. This will include a selection in the US, Middle East and South America. We invite you to help us source the best and brightest startups and scale-ups worldwide here

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MARKET ROUND UP

A global snapshot of the edtech market

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Pre K12 & K12

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UK Aid funds world’s biggest educational technology research project
£50m EdTech hub will help students and educators in developing countries to get the most out of new technology.  Source: Gov.uk [5 min read]

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Meet the eight African edtech startups in Injini's third cohort
EdTech incubator offering up to £50,000 for most promising African startups.  Source: Ventureburn [2 min read]

Higher Education

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Despite fragmented market, colleges continue to experiment with blockchain
The blockchain market is expected to reach $3.1 trillion by 2030 but questions around its viability still exists  Source: Education Dive. [3 min read]

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Largest-ever investment round raised by an EdTech startup in MENA
Saudi’s Noon Academy is a success story of MENA’s EdTech industry.
Source: menabytes [3 min read]

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Turnitin Partners with CORE, the World’s Leading Aggregator of Open Access Research Articles
Open access scholarly articles are now indexed by Turnitin due to rising popularity. Source: Business Wire [3 min read]

Corporate Training, Lifelong Learning
& The Future of Work

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Google Follows A Growing Workplace Trend: Hiring More Contractors Than Employees
Tech firms estimated to use contract workers for 40-50% of staff requirements.Source: Forbes[6 min read]

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Survey Reveals Stark Need for Ongoing Preparation, Assessment in Corporate Onboarding Programs to Ready Nation’s Workforce Now and for the Future
Majority of HR companies focus their efforts on new employees, failing to develop and upskill existing employees. Source: Business Wire. [7 min read]

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Meet Sky’s new Women in Tech scholars
Second cohort to receive £25,000 in funding for new tech, as well as support and mentorship. Source: Evening Standard [5 min read]

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M&A HIGHLIGHTS  

Summary on mergers, acquisitions and fundraising

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Deals sourced from Capital IQ and Mergermarket
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Significant Fundraising Activity
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Spotlight on IPOs

China East Edu

In the first week of June 2019, China East Education, an operator of vocational training schools, raised $625m in the largest education IPO in history. The company sold 435.8 million shares at HK$11.25 per share on the Hong Kong stock exchange, and started trading on 12 June. This values the company at 23x estimated 2019 earnings.

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