Unacademy Acquired by upGrad in $206M Deal at 94% Below Peak Valuation
India’s edtech startup Unacademy has been acquired by its rival upGrad for approximately ₹19.55 billion ($206 million), marking a significant drop from its peak valuation of $3.44 billion in 2021. The all-stock deal was announced six months ago and finalized on September 1, 2026. Unacademy’s co-founder Gaurav Munjal acknowledged the steep decline but emphasized that most parts of the business are now profitable or near profitability despite having over ₹9 billion in cash reserves. Founded in 2015, Unacademy had aggressively expanded during the pandemic before facing a downturn as demand for online education waned post-lockdown. The acquisition is seen as a strategic move to leverage upGrad’s offline presence and scale more effectively without going public immediately. Airlearn, its language-learning app with over 10 million global users, will remain under upGrad temporarily.
Topics: edtech startup acquisition Unacademy upGrad