Go1: Unstoppable Rise in EdTech Through AI, Acquisitions, and Innovation
The learning platform Go1 has made significant waves in the education technology (EdTech) sector, earning global recognition for its groundbreaking achievements. Cementing its status as an industry leader, Go1 was recently named No. 71 on TIME and Statista’s 2024 World’s Top EdTech Companies list. This achievement highlights Go1’s immense contributions to reshaping how organisations and individuals access knowledge.
Recognised as one of the top players out of over 7,000 companies evaluated globally, Go1 has emerged as a trailblazer in innovation, accessibility, and cutting-edge learning solutions. The platform offers over 80,000 courses aggregated from hundreds of providers. It redefines how learning is delivered, making it accessible anytime and anywhere. But what’s driving Go1’s unstoppable rise? This case study dives into the remarkable success of Go1, exploring its groundbreaking blend of AI, acquisitions, and unparalleled content aggregation that has set a new standard in EdTech.
Unprecedented Growth and Global Presence
Founded in 2015, Go1 has grown into one of the largest online learning libraries in the world. With a vision to empower organisations to thrive in an evolving world, the platform serves an impressive user base:
- Over 11 million learners worldwide.
- 5 million+ individuals across clients like TikTok and the Singaporean government.
- Double-digit growth in customers, learners, and revenue over the past year.
Go1 facilitates nearly 50,000 hours of training daily, reaching learners in diverse industries and roles. This rapid growth is supported by significant investments, including a $100 million funding round led by AirTree Ventures and Five Sigma, which pushed Go1’s valuation past $2 billion.
Go1’s Groundbreaking Global Recognition
Go1’s position on TIME and Statista’s inaugural World’s Top EdTech Companies list is no small feat. This recognition reflects Go1’s relentless commitment to advancing education through innovative technology and fostering a positive impact on learners across the globe.
Statista’s rigorous evaluation process analysed over 7,000 companies worldwide, considering their financial robustness and industry influence. Go1’s ability to emerge as No. 71 among the 250 selected standout performers speaks volumes about its innovation, leadership, and capacity to revolutionise enterprise learning.
Co-CEO and Co-founder, Chris Eigeland, summed up the milestone with pride, stating, “This recognition is a testament to Go1’s unwavering commitment to providing top-notch learning solutions that empower individuals to reach their full potential.”
Whether it’s AI enhancements for seamless learning experiences or an expansive content library, Go1 continues to solidify its reputation as a leader in accessible, effective learning solutions.
What Makes Go1 the Ultimate Learning Platform?
Content Aggregation at its Best
At the heart of Go1 is its content aggregator platform. It compiles the world’s largest collection of training content into a single subscription. This platform provides organisations with unrivalled access to over 250 globally recognised learning providers. The content covers a wide range of topics, from compliance and soft skills to advanced technical expertise.
Key features of this content library include:
- Multi-Format Learning Experiences: From microlearning and quizzes to podcasts and in-depth courses, Go1 caters to diverse learning styles and preferences.
- Language Inclusivity: With courses available in more than 40 languages, Go1 ensures global teams can learn in their native tongue, maximising understanding and retention.
- Customised Learning Levels: Beginner, intermediate, or expert? Go1 curates content by skill level and professional role, allowing learners to access tailored experiences.
- Professional Development Support: Certifications in Project Management, cloud computing, or advanced IT skills come with verifiable certificates of completion, ensuring career growth and compliance.
Seamless Integration and Workflow Enhancements
Go1 efficiently integrates with over 75 workplace tools. Employees can access courses without disrupting their existing workflows, making upskilling both accessible and practical. From tracking course progress to managing playlists and creating certificates, Go1’s tools simplify learning management while promoting employee engagement.
Meeting Modern Workforce Needs
Modern businesses face growing challenges in staying competitive and compliant. Go1 enables organisations to address these challenges by:
- Meeting compliance standards with ease.
- Ensuring teams remain competitive through regular upskilling.
- Providing real-time data on employee learning progress.
Whether it’s professional development, wellness training, or compliance-specific courses, Go1’s library ensures businesses can cater to diverse workforce needs.
Empowering Professional Growth with Certifications
Go1’s Certifications provide a robust platform for employee development and professional growth. They offer access to accredited courses, certification preparation, and ongoing learning opportunities. Key features and benefits include:
- Certification Exam Preparation: Employees can prepare for leading industry certifications, such as AWS Certified Solutions Architect, PMP Certification, and Lean Six Sigma, with comprehensive content and practice exams.
- Continuing Education (CEUs) and Professional Development (CPD): Designed for regulated industries such as Finance, Healthcare, HR, Cybersecurity, and Law, Go1 supports lifelong learning with targeted courses.
- Certificates of Completion: Collaborations with prestigious institutions like Coursera and Harvard ManageMentor enable employees to earn high-value certificates upon course completion.
- Scalable, Flexible Learning: Affordable, anytime-anywhere learning solutions make skill development accessible for global teams, catering to employees in various roles and locations.
- Comprehensive Course Offering: With over 2,000 certification-focused courses, Go1 addresses diverse needs, from compliance to technical and soft skill training.
- Boost Workforce Confidence: Tailored, industry-accredited learning paths enhance expertise, promote career progression, and ensure employees stay ahead in a competitive landscape.
By integrating certifications into its platform, Go1 empowers organisations to foster a culture of continuous learning and professional excellence.
Innovation Through AI and Technology
Go1 has embraced artificial intelligence to redefine learning experiences. By leveraging AI, Go1 offers:
- Personalised Learning Experiences: AI-powered recommendations based on individual career goals and interests.
- Engagement Through Flexible Delivery: With courses in formats like videos, articles, and quizzes, learners can pick what suits them best.
- Enhanced Decision-Making: By analysing learning data, Go1 helps organisations make informed decisions to boost employee growth.
These technological advances make Go1 a stand-out solution for businesses navigating a rapidly changing learning landscape.
Real-World Success Examples: Go1 in Action
Go1’s transformative impact on organisations is best illustrated through real-world case studies. Here are three examples of how Go1 has revolutionised learning and development for its clients:
Case Study: San Diego County Regional Airport Authority (SAN)
Challenge: SAN’s existing LMS lacked integration capabilities, limiting access to diverse training content and hindering employee development.
Solution: SAN partnered with Go1 for its seamless LMS integration, competitive pricing, and exceptional customer support.
Results:
- 40% increase in engagement and course completion rates.
- Employees now self-enrol in courses, accessing content anytime, anywhere.
- DE&I curriculum and leadership training programmes were successfully launched using Go1’s extensive library.
Key Benefits:
- Diverse Learning Options: Employees can upskill with a variety of courses, including business skills, DE&I, and leadership.
- Improved Accessibility: Learning is now self-directed and available on-demand.
- Exceptional Support: Go1’s team provided outstanding service, ensuring smooth implementation and ongoing success.
Impact: SAN transformed its learning culture, making training more engaging, accessible, and aligned with organisational goals.
Case Study: GT’s Living Foods
Challenge: Before 2019, GT’s Living Foods lacked a formal Learning & Development (L&D) programme. Initial efforts with another content provider fell short due to limited course options and lack of engagement.
Solution: GT’s partnered with Go1, gaining access to 85,000+ courses and a user-friendly platform that enabled employees to self-enrol and explore diverse learning opportunities.
Results:
- 3x increase in active learners, growing from a handful to over 300.
- Employees now proactively engage in non-mandatory training, closing skill gaps and preparing for career growth.
- Leadership training and compliance programmes were successfully implemented, reducing skill gaps and improving retention.
Key Initiatives:
- GT’s University: A centralised hub for training, offering leadership development, compliance, and skill-building courses.
- Gamification: Monthly raffles and recognition for top learners to boost engagement.
- Individual Development Plans (IDPs): Focused on personalised growth for employees across all roles.
Impact: GT’s transformed its L&D culture, fostering a proactive learning environment and addressing career stagnation concerns. Go1’s extensive library and seamless integration were pivotal in this success.
Case Study: Wave Utilities
Challenge: Wave Utilities faced declining engagement and completion rates in their learning programmes. They needed a solution to simplify learning, empower employees to control their own development, and integrate seamlessly with their LMS.
Solution: Wave Utilities partnered with Go1, leveraging its extensive content library and micro-learning approach to create engaging, accessible, and effective training programmes.
Results:
- Completion rates increased from 78% to 98%, exceeding service level agreement requirements.
- Learning comprehension scores rose from 2/5 to 4.36/5.
- Employees now approach learning with enthusiasm, engaging with both professional and personal development content.
Key Initiatives:
- Micro-Learning: Short, engaging content eliminated learner fatigue and improved retention.
- “Head and Heart Skills”: Training combined job-related knowledge with interpersonal skills for holistic development.
- Feedback Programme: Go1 supported Wave’s F-word programme, focusing on giving and receiving feedback to address skill gaps.
Impact: Wave Utilities transformed its learning culture, with employees actively engaging in training and leadership recognising the value of L&D. Go1’s user-friendly platform and diverse content library were instrumental in this success.
Expanding Horizons Through Partnerships and Acquisitions
Go1’s acquisitions of complementary learning technologies have played a pivotal role in its global expansion. The platform plans to grow its footprint in regions like Europe and Asia-Pacific while enhancing its offerings with technological advances such as VR and live streaming.
By partnering with recognised names in the industry and continuously innovating its platform, Go1 is set to revolutionise learning for individuals and businesses alike.
Strategic Moves and Innovations
Go1 continues to solidify its position as a global leader in corporate learning through strategic acquisitions and partnerships, driving innovation and expanding its reach.
Go1 Acquires Blinkist: Blending Professional and Personal Development
In a significant move, Go1, an Australian B2B education leader, has acquired Berlin-based Blinkist, a platform renowned for its bite-sized learning content. This merger aims to create an innovative lifelong learning model that seamlessly blends professional and personal development.
Blinkist, used by over 26 million individuals and 1,500 organisations globally, specialises in distilling key ideas from books and podcasts into 15-minute explainers called Blinks. The collaboration will expand Blinkist for Business, leveraging its success with mobile-friendly content, and integrate it into Go1’s corporate learning resources, which already serve millions.
Blinkist’s CEO, Holger Seim, will take on the role of Go1’s COO for Learners, focusing on growing the Blinkist brand globally. This strategic move enhances accessibility for learners, combining Go1’s extensive learning library with Blinkist’s engaging content to support anytime, anywhere education.
Partnership with Decidr: Revolutionising Corporate Learning with AI
Go1 has also partnered with AI platform Decidr to revolutionise workforce enablement and corporate learning. This collaboration integrates Decidr’s AI-driven technology with Go1’s extensive library of 90,000+ learning and development resources, creating new tools for personalised career growth and skill development.
Key features of this partnership include:
- AI-Powered Tutor: Customises learning playlists to address skill gaps.
- AI Learning Advisor: Helps hiring managers quantify the ROI of up-skilling.
- Tailored Up-Skilling Recommendations: Provides job seekers with personalised career development paths.
These innovations aim to accelerate career progression, bridge skills gaps, and enhance workforce mobility on a global scale. Through this partnership, Decidr and Go1 will provide cutting-edge solutions to over 10,000 organisations, offering employees customised paths for professional growth while introducing new cross-selling opportunities for partners.
This initiative positions both companies at the forefront of AI-driven workforce development, furthering Decidr’s vision of an “agentic web” that empowers smarter decision-making in HR and corporate learning.
Funding Milestones and Global Expansion
Go1’s journey to becoming a global leader in corporate learning has been bolstered by significant funding rounds, enabling the company to scale its operations and enhance its offerings.
Series D: Achieving Unicorn Status
In July 2021, Go1, a Brisbane-based enterprise learning platform, raised $200 million in a Series D funding round, surpassing a $1 billion valuation and earning its status as a unicorn. This round, co-led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2, AirTree Ventures, and Salesforce Ventures, brought Go1’s total funding to $280 million.
With over 3.5 million users across 1,600 enterprises, including TikTok, Microsoft, and the University of Oxford, Go1 experienced a 300% growth in its user base over the previous year. The platform offers 150,000 curated learning materials from 1,000 providers worldwide, using AI and analytics to personalise learning experiences. This funding aimed to expand Go1’s global reach, particularly in Europe and Asia-Pacific, and enhance its learning tools to streamline workforce training and close skills gaps.
2022 Funding: Doubling Valuation
Up to 2022, Go1 had grown to serve 5 million learners across clients such as TikTok and the Singaporean government, reporting a 100% increase in customers, learners, and revenue over the past year. The funds were allocated to expanding operations in Europe and Asia-Pacific, enhancing the platform with technological innovations like VR and livestreaming, and exploring new consumer-focused learning products.
Driving Business Success with Go1
Go1’s remarkable ascent in the EdTech sector stands as a shining example of innovation, adaptability, and commitment to redefining education. From being recognised as one of the world’s leading EdTech companies to harnessing the power of AI and completing strategic acquisitions like Blinkist, Go1 has consistently demonstrated its ability to innovate and evolve. Its vast, comprehensive content library, supported by cutting-edge AI personalisation, positions Go1 as a key player not only in transforming corporate learning but also in shaping the future landscape of education on a global scale.
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