HowNow – the AI-powered learning and skills platform – has extended it Series A funding round to £7.5m. Following an initial £4m investment from Mercia Ventures and FTSE 100 education firm Pearson in February 2023, it has secured a further £3.5m from Mercia and Pearson, along with Fuel Ventures.
Headquartered in London, HowNow serves customers in more than 30 countries and is gaining rapid market share for its innovative approach to skills-first learning. The company’s unique value proposition, which maps skills gaps to contextualised learning opportunities, is gaining traction with mid-market and enterprise organisations that recognise skills as the vital currency for growth. The latest investment will be used to drive product development and continued AI integration and brings the total raised by the company to date to almost £11m.
The company recently introduced HowNow AI, a suite of advanced AI agents that enable customers to map and measure skills, identify gaps and connect employees with the most relevant learning opportunities. HowNow’s revenue has increased by more than 350% over the past two years. Recent customer wins include notable brands such as TomTom, MoneyBox, Bausch & Lomb, UKTV, and Good Energy, as well as the UK Government.
Having more than doubled its workforce over the past 12 months, HowNow employs 75 employees across its London and Mumbai offices. As part of the deal Michael Whitfield, previously CEO & Founder at employee benefits provider, Thomsons Online Benefits, has been announced as Chairman of the Board.
Nelson Sivalingam, co-founder and CEO at HowNow, said: “With this funding, we’re not just doubling down on our commitment to upskill 10 million people by 2030 – we’re making it happen. Learning isn’t about endless courses and hours logged; it is about the progress you can see, the skills you can use, and the growth you can measure. We’re here to change the way the world learns – connecting the dots between learning, skills, and real impact for people and organisations alike.”
Building partnerships will remain a key priority as the company continues to scale. HowNow offers full integration with leading HR technology providers including HiBob, Lattice, Workday, and Personio, and recently went live with Credly, the world’s largest skill verification and digital credentialing network.The company was recognised for ‘Best Technology-Based Onboarding’ at the 2024 Learning Technologies Awards and was named a Fall 2024 ‘Leader’ by G2, with customers praising the platform’s ease of use, customer support, and content quality. HowNow’s L&D Disrupt events are also garnering keen interest from learning leaders that want to promote the value of skills-led learning on business performance.