Blinkist, a Berlin, Germany-based platform for lifelong learning, raises $18.8M in Series C funding.
The round was led by Insight Venture Partners with participation from existing investors Greycroft, IBB Bet and e.ventures.
The company intends to use the funds to grow its Berlin-based team, establish Country Managers for individual markets, scale its international customer base, and continue to improve the product. In conjunction with the funding, Insight Venture Partners’ Harley Miller and Nicolas Wittenborn are joining the board, while Markus Witte, CEO and co-founder of language learning app Babbel, is joining as an independent board member.
Led by CEO and co-founder Holger Seim, Blinkist provides a micro-learning app and platform for personal and professional development, which condenses non-fiction titles into 15-minute audio and text digests. These 15-minute digests, or “books-in-blinks”, feature the key ideas extracted from over 2,500 non-fiction books, in multiple genres including entrepreneurship, politics, science, psychology, investment, and parenting. Each title is selected by a dedicated editorial team, providing authors with discoverability and access to a targeted audience.
Used by over 6 million people globally, the platform is currently available in English and German. The company but is planning to use the investment to strengthen its footprint across the globe and increase localized efforts in core markets, with plans to offer the service in additional languages.
FinSMEs
20/06/2018