Instructure provides the cloud-based Canvas learning management system for higher education and K-12. Canvas now connects more than 18 million teachers and learners at over 1,200 higher education and K-12 institutions worldwide. The company is launching Bridge, a cloud-based corporate learning and engagement platform that enables organizations to engage with employees by measuring and improving sentiment, alignment, and knowledge in real time. The new financing will be used to finance growth in the higher education and K-12 markets for Canvas and to support the launch of Bridge. Led by CEO Josh Coates and based in Salt Lake City, the company reported that the Series E brings its total venture backing to approximately $90M. Instructure offers Canvas, a cloud-native, open-source learning management system designed for colleges, universities, K-12 districts and online programs. The product emphasizes enterprise features such as APIs, mobile support, speed grading, analytics, hands-free updates and a guaranteed uptime service agreement to simplify integration and operation. Instructure has added a MOOC layer, the Canvas Network, and has partnered with Cisco to attract large online programs and public open courses. Canvas reports six million teacher and student users across 425 institutions and has booked more than $90 million in contracts, with double-digit revenue growth over the past three years. The company says it will use new capital to accelerate adoption, expand its footprint among online learning institutions and programs, and continue investing in its MOOC offering. Management frames the funding as a step toward the public markets, with the company preparing for a potential IPO over the next two years. Instructure develops Canvas, a hosted SaaS learning management system offered as open-source software. Canvas includes an integrated gradebook, assessment tools, discussions, multiple assignment submission types, rubrics and web chat. The platform also supports drag-and-drop file uploads, HTML5 video, automatic speech-to-text conversion and integrations with Google Docs and Facebook. Instructure says it is servicing more than 30 educational institutions, with the majority having switched from Blackboard to Canvas. The company announced Canvas as open source in February. Leadership includes Josh Coates, the founder who previously sold Mozy to EMC in 2007. The company has raised outside capital, most recently a Series B round. Instructure builds Canvas, a learning management system aimed at universities. The company offers Canvas as a hosted SaaS, an unsupported open-source download, or a paid supported install. Instructure intends to disrupt Blackboard and capture part of Blackboard's roughly $377 million in revenue. Last year the company raised around $1.5 million (nearly half from founder Josh Coates), has grown to 20 employees, and is working with 26 educational institutions, some of which have left Blackboard entirely. The product originated from an idea by two of Coates's students while he taught a venture startup course at Brigham Young University. The team has also produced a commercial modeled on Apple's "1984" ad as part of its marketing.

Total raised

$78M

Funding rounds

4

Latest round

Series E

Latest activity

Feb 2015