Speak, an AI-based platform for English language learning, has announced that it has raised $16 million in a recent funding round. The funding was led by venture capitalist Lachy Groom, with participation from existing investor OpenAI Startup Fund and new investors including Dropbox founders Drew Houston and Arash Ferdowsi. This brings the total amount of money raised by Speak to $63 million.
The funding will support the company’s plans to expand into international markets. Founded in 2016 and based in San Francisco, Speak already has users in over 20 countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Germany, France, Brazil, and Mexico.
The exact valuation of Speak and its user numbers have not been disclosed publicly. However, the company’s previous funding round, in which Lachy Groom’s Fund also participated, raised $20 million.
The growing success of AI-powered language learning platforms, such as OpenAI’s ChatGPT, has attracted significant attention and investments. Other AI firms, like Runway backed by Google and Inflection AI backed by Microsoft, are competing to achieve breakthroughs in this rapidly evolving technology.
OpenAI Startup Fund, which consists of investors such as Microsoft, is actively investing $100 million in AI firms. They are particularly interested in early-stage startups operating in sectors such as healthcare, climate change, and education.
Speak’s latest funding round is expected to fuel its international growth and strengthen its position in the competitive AI language learning market.