Labster is a company that develops virtual science laboratory software to create an immersive, realistic educational experience for students. Labster works with leading universities, research foundations and corporations to offer the best in digital science lab experiences. The team of experienced engineers, researchers, scientists and educationalists are dedicated to making innovative and engaging learning resources available to everyone in the world. Labster technology enables students to learn lab techniques through hands-on experience with virtual simulations of real life experiments.
Labster’s mission is driven by their core values: making education accessible and equitable, developing relevant and extensible content, maintaining scientific accuracy while creating a fun learning experience, delivering interactive online labs that exceed industry standards, providing lower cost solutions for universities and K-12 schools around the world.
In April 2020 Labster announced that it had raised over $11 million in investment from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) – one of Silicon Valleys top venture capital firms – to help bring its extensive library of interactive laboratory simulations to colleges, universities and K-12 programs globally. This raises important questions like “How will this new funding help Labster reach these goals? What kind of impact will this have on the future of digital learning?” Answering these questions requires looking into Labsters current operations as well as what their plans are for future growth.
Description of Labster’s Funding
Labster, a Denmark-based education technology company that builds virtual science labs, is the latest company to score millions in venture funding. The company has announced that it has secured a $7 million investment from top VC firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) to bring its virtual lab software to schools around the world.
The funding is a signal of confidence in Labster’s mission to make science education more engaging and accessible. By simulating realistic laboratory experiments in an immersive 3D environment, Labster aims to give students access to real-world experience without having to go into a physical lab.
“Labster’s vision and technology are solid, which we believe can bring about more well-rounded science educations for every student— regardless of means or location— and open up new opportunities for them all over the world,” says Chris Dixon, general partner at a16z, who will join Labster’s board of directors as part of the deal.
With the funding from a16z, Labster hopes to expand its reach beyond its current market of over 2 million students and course instructors in over 130 countries and 500 institutions worldwide. The company plans on investing most of the funds into product developments such as building out more scenarios beyond biology labs, integrating with existing learning systems such as Moodle and Canvas or developing 3D models of new scenarios or equipment — all while continuing with their mission: helping students feel inspired by science and experience what it’s like to work in a modern laboratory setting.
Background
Labster is a software company that provides virtual science lab simulations to students and professionals around the world. Founded in 2011 by Mads Tvillinggaard Bonde and Michael Bodekaer, the company has a mission to make science education more accessible.
Recently, Labster received a substantial investment from venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) to bring their virtual science lab products to a larger audience. This article will cover Labster’s background and funding before delving into what this investment means for the future of the company.
History of Labster
Labster, the Denmark-based virtual science lab software, was founded in 2011 by Mads Tvillinggaard Bonde, Michael Boden Hansen, and Christian Wildfang Larsen. It has since grown to become one of the leading providers of digital lab experiences to students around the world.
In 2017, Labster raised $7 million in a Series A funding round. This investment was used to expand Labster’s services into more schools and universities worldwide. With this additional capital, Labster created new features for its software that would allow teachers to assign specific tasks to their students in order to help them better understand complex concepts such as genetics or physics.
When Labster landed a major investment from Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) in 2019 for $21 million USD, it was clear that the company had made a big step towards becoming one of the leaders in its field. This Series B funding round allowed Labster to focus on expanding its library with more than 90 interactive simulations dealing with cutting-edge techniques such as robotics or AI and biology or chemistry topics like enzymes and cellular respiration. To date, they now work together with preeminent universities such as MIT, California Institute of Technology (Caltech) and Peking University Haidian International School among others.
Previous Funding Rounds
Prior to the recent funding round, Labster had already raised a total of $23 million. In April 2017, the startup closed a combination of private and public rounds, raising a total of $17.6 million. This included investments from Balderton Capital, managed by former Skype co-founder Jonas Nordlander; Bonnier Growth Media; Edtech Investor Leandro Sanchez; RGAX (the venture arm of Reinsurance Group Global); and Teknikföretagen (the Swedish Federation for Engineering Industries).
In June 2015, the company had raised an angel round through QBIC (Qatar Biomedical Innovation Circle) with commitments from AngelList and FAM Invest.
In 2013, the startup had secured an initial investment from Copenhagen-based venture capital firm Sunstone Capital that helped launch Labster’s first virtual science lab simulator into pre-order months later. A few months after this initial investment at the end of 2013, Labster completed its seed funding with investors including Nordic Investor Growth Capital fund ‘Vaekstfonden’, UK-based early stage investor GreatPoint Ventures and LBVbyen (a growth accelerator fund designed to boost European high-tech enterprises).
Labster gets millions from a16z to bring virtual science lab software to the world
Labster, a virtual science lab software company, has just received a significant funding boost from a16z. The venture capital firm, led by a group of experienced investors and entrepreneurs, have invested millions of dollars in the company, with a view to revolutionise and globalise science education.
The investment is sure to have a positive impact and in this article, we will go over the details of the investment and its potential consequences.
Amount Invested
Labster, a developer of cutting-edge virtual science lab software, recently announced that it has secured a Series B funding round, led by the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (a16z). The total amount invested was $21 million. This round will further accelerate Labster’s global penetration into schools and universities as it continues to provide accessible learning experiences for students worldwide.
The investment is led by a16z partners Chris Dixon and Frank Chen, who are both enthusiastic about the company’s potential to revolutionize the way science education is delivered. This sentiment was echoed by Labster’s CEO Mads Tvillinggaard Bonde: “We have been working hard to build technology that enables us to create an engaging and effective virtual lab environment. For our technology to reach millions of students around the world, we need strong partners with extensive experience in scaling innovative solutions. We are very fortunate to be backed by such an amazing team at a16z.”
By leveraging their existing partnerships across Europe and North America and developing promising new markets in Asia and Latin America, Labster hopes to continue driving adoption of its industry-leading product around the world. With its investments from Andreessen Horowitz, board director Palle Duun Andersen stated that he is confident in the company’s ability to grow rapidly over the next few years: “We want Labster simulations to become an integral part of every student’s educational journey.”
Investors
Labster is pleased to announce that they have secured a substantial investment. Andreessen Horowitz, better known as a16z, is investing in Labster as part of its Crisis Response Initiative. The initiative is aimed at accelerating technology companies with solutions that can address desperately needed technologies in response to the Coronavirus pandemic.
This new funding will give Labster the resources it needs to have an even bigger impact in the education world. This round of funding brings Labster’s total funding to $43 million and includes participation from existing investors Owl Ventures, Kaneka Corporation and Novator Ventures, along with SEEDS Capital (Singapore) and Innovation Fund Denmark.
The money raised from this round will go towards expanding both its product offering as well as reach into educational institutions around the world. Some of the strategic initiatives supported by this latest round include new product developments such as virtual reality (VR) simulations, artificial intelligence-driven tutoring capabilities or AR-abilities for a more immersive learning environment and expanded international programs, amongst others.
Moreover, Labster has spent these last few weeks working tirelessly on producing a range of exciting new simulated lab experiments and resources related to coronavirus research topics, providing universities the opportunity to teach vital virus research material without compromising their students’ safety or missing curriculum days in an effort to social distance effectively.
Labster is looking forward to continue enhancing lab virtualization through its cutting-edge technology so that students can continue learning regardless of their location or present global circumstances and beyond!
Impact of the Investment
Labster’s recent investment of millions from a16z has the potential to bring major changes to science education around the world. Not only does this funding help Labster expand its offering of virtual science lab software, but it will also provide opportunities for students to interact more with the content than ever before.
Let’s look at how this investment could impact student learning.
Expansion of Labster’s Product Offerings
Labster, an interactive virtual lab simulation software developer, recently received millions in investment funding from a16z, a venture capital firm. This influx of money has allowed Labster to further develop their virtual science labs by adding more features and functionalities. With this, Labster has been able to expand the availability of their product offerings globally, now offering simulations such as biochemistry and physics to countries like India and Indonesia.
This new influx of capital also provides customers with access to more courses as well as higher levels of interactivity with 3D animations and experiments.
With Labster’s expansive platform, students have more opportunities to learn about different areas of science in a fun and engaging way. As students can gain an understanding of basic concepts at an early age from these virtual platforms, they are learning critical skills that will benefit them throughout school and even later on in life when pursuing higher education or entering the workforce.
Furthermore, due to its realistic environment setting delivered through visuals and sound effects enables academic institutions such as universities benefit from offering more immersive learning experiences for students at large.
Increased Accessibility to Virtual Science Labs
The recent investment of millions of dollars into Labster, a virtual science laboratory software, has the potential to revolutionize many individuals’ access to virtual science labs. Labster allows students to conduct research and interact with truly realistic virtual laboratories from computer or tablet screens, which provides a more immersive experience than traditional lab activities. Access to these kinds of resources becomes important for students without access to fully funded physical laboratories due to socioeconomic status or distance from schools, as well as for students who could benefit from additional outside practice before their first lab courses in college.
Research has shown that successfully completing simulations on Labster’s platform can help improve test scores and pre-college readiness in the areas of math and science for participants with limited means compared to those who have not had contact with the technology. Labster’s mission is also focused on improving diversity and inclusion in STEM fields by providing programs that offer equal opportunities for participation regardless of race, ethnicity or gender.
The increased accessibility provided by this new funding will make it easier for teachers and professors to introduce these innovative technologies into their curriculum while helping broaden student’s perspectives on scientific exploration far beyond the walls of a physical lab.
