BITS Pilani alumni Sid Mookerji and Anuradha and Prashanth Palakurthi have pledged $1 million each to the BITS Endowment Fund, totaling recent commitments to $3 million. Prashanth Palakurthi, a technology entrepreneur, and Anuradha, his wife, previously donated $1 million to establish the Anuradha and Prashanth Palakurthi Centre for Artificial Intelligence Research in 2018. The Mookerji Foundation, founded by Sid Mookerji and his wife Sophie Mookerji, pledged $1 million to support entrepreneurship development initiatives.
Over the past two years, edtech startups in India have been treading rough waters, chasing profitability and cutting costs . Companies are now foraying into segments that inherently command higher profit margins.
This pledge not only propels the initiative forward but also sets a precedent for alumni engagement and contribution, the institute said in a statement on Monday.
GSV Ventures has backed Indian edtech unicorns including Eruditus, Lead, PhysicsWallah as well as startups like Classplus. Deborah Quazzo also spoke about the lack of equilibrium between edtech founders and investors on valuations, which is delaying fundraises in the sector.
SoftBank-backed Indian educational technology firm Eruditus is planning to shift its domicile from Singapore to India for a stock market listing, its CEO told Reuters.
Eruditus' ..