Hybrid is the most successful business currently for Byju’s: co-founder Divya Gokulnath

Byju's co-founder and director Divya Gokulnath

Hybrid is currently growing as the most successful business for Byju’s as students are flocking back to physical tuition centers with the government relaxing Covid-19-led stay-at-home restrictions, according to Divya Gokulnath, co-founder, Byju’s.

“The one challenge edtech companies were battling before the pandemic was awareness and that got resolved during the pandemic, but it also gave rise to a huge boom of usage that led to the whole new future of learning, where every stakeholder is almost accepting the fact that online learning is only a part of mainstream learning,” Gokulnath said during a fireside chat with Vani Kola of Kalaari Ventures at the GSV Emeritus Summit.

“You can never say that the best way of learning is online, which is why I always say anything in moderation and everything blended is good. So life post the pandemic is different. The pandemic has changed the way we work. Learning has also changed along the way and it has become hybrid and it is the most successful business running for us,” Gokulnath added.

Gokulnath's optimism about the hybrid learning model comes at a time when Byju's is looking to expand its offline footprint by opening more hybrid centres, owing to dwindling demand for pureplay online learning, which was the company's mainstay until last year. In January, Gokulnath and Byju Raveendran, co-founder and CEO of Byju's, told Moneycontrol that the company would open at least 300 more tuition centres by the end of the year, bringing the total to over 600.

Also Read | Indian Edtech Consortium has improved advertising standards for companies: Divya Gokulnath, co-founder, Byju's

“For me, it's all about technology, solving for the right need, solving for scale, solving for personalisation, solving for interactivity, and then so it should always be ‘ed’ first and tech should revolve around it, it should not be ‘tech’ first,” Gokulnath added.

Demand for online learning has slowed in the last ten months, prompting companies such as Byju's and Unacaemy to open offline tuition centres. Moreover, India's startup ecosystem is currently experiencing a worsening funding winter, with edtech companies bearing the brunt of the damage. Over the last year, edtech companies, including the most well-funded, have laid off over 7,000 employees in order to cut costs and extend runway.

Byju’s particularly is battling with a range of issues including alleged mis-selling to accounting irregularities. However, the company is confident of turning things around in a matter of few months, according to the two co-founders.