Unacademy Success Story: Roman Saini, a gifted student who aced the UPSC exam at age 22 and the AIIMS exam at age 16, took a different route. He left to focus his energies on creating a billion-dollar Edtech business after landing a highly sought-after IAS position. Saini was instrumental in turning Unacademy into a business that is reputedly worth ₹28,680 crore.
In 2015, Gaurav Munjal, Hemesh Singh, Sachin Gupta, and Roman Saini co-founded Unacademy, which began as a YouTube channel. The founders’ goal was to provide top-notch study materials for competitive tests such as UPSC, NEET, JEE, and GATE.
Early Achievements:
At just 16, Roman Saini passed the AIIMS entrance exam and went on to complete his MBBS by the age of 21, embarking on a career as a doctor. (Image Credit: @romansaini1991/Insta)
From Medicine to Civil Services:
At 22, Roman cleared the IAS exam and became a district collector in Madhya Pradesh. However, his desire for something greater led him to leave the high-profile civil services role.
The Birth Of Unacademy:
In 2015, Roman co-founded Unacademy with Gaurav Munjal and Hemesh Singh, making a bold transition from civil services to the education sector.
Unacademy’s Humble Beginnings:
He started as a YouTube channel, Unacademy has grown into a major edtech platform, with reserves of Rs 1,800 crore reportedly and a mission to provide affordable education.
Reaching Unicorn Status:
Unacademy was officially registered in Bengaluru as an education company in 2015. In September 2020, it joined the Unicorn club after raising $150 million from Softbank and other investors.
Unacademy’s Growth And Valuation:
Currently, Unacademy is valued at Rs 28,680 crore and has raised $880 million from investors such as Temasek, General Atlantic, and Tiger Global.
Acquisition Talks And Market Shift:
With over 1.8 million YouTube subscribers, 4,000 educators, and 50,000 video lessons, Unacademy is reportedly in talks for an acquisition, potentially valued at $800 million, reflecting a sharp drop from its peak valuation of $3.4 billion.