Fiveable Secures $10m in Series A Funding to Support High School Students Beyond APs

High school students feel powerless. We are working to change that.

Students are stuck in an inequitable school system while the world is literally on fire. But students are not waiting for systemic change. Instead, they have built up massive online communities through an underworld of the "study web" where students from around the world help each other, despite the failing systems around them.

These student communities deserve dedicated and authentic spaces to support each other.

Fiveable is the social learning platform that connects students who are learning the same thing at the same time. Our mission is to create spaces that give students more access and confidence to explore their futures together. The more opportunities we give for students to connect, the more empowered they will be to change the systemic problems in our education system. Through student-generated content and accountability spaces on Hours, Fiveable is where students build their futures together.

First, we built a social learning community for AP students and over 7M students studied with us. Now, it's time to expand way beyond AP.

We're thrilled to announce that we've closed a $10M Series A to expand our social learning platform to all 18m high school students. The round was led by Union Square Ventures, who have deep experience in education and social platforms from their early investments in Quizlet, Duolingo, and Outschool. Rebecca Kaden will be joining our Board of Directors.

“USV's thesis focuses on opportunities to leverage platforms and networks to broaden access by increasing value and decreasing cost. In education, we believe this is going to happen from outside of the current systems--new networks that emerge to provide value in ways that are far more personalized, accessible, and relatable to students. This is exactly what Fiveable is — a network and community of loyal and passionate students that is bottom-up, devoted, and quickly becoming essential to how students learn. We are thrilled to be a part of it.” — Rebecca Kaden, Managing Partner at Union Square Ventures

This round was also in partnership with Owl Ventures, a long time leader in edtech, and Progression Fund, founded by TikTok alumni. They join our impressive list of early investors including BBG Ventures , Metrodora Ventures (Chelsea Clinton), Serena Ventures, Matchstick Ventures, Spero Ventures, Twenty Seven Ventures, Cream City Ventures, Deborah Quazzo, Darrell Silver, Del Johnson, and many more amazing folks.

This new funding will allow us to:

  • Empower students to connect with other students who want to learn together. Hours will become the collaborative hub with global pomodoro study rooms, meeting rooms for student organizations, and activism hubs without borders.
  • Expand our content library beyond test prep in order to reflect the increasingly changing needs of students. This includes study guides for every academic subject, support beyond the classroom (clubs, internships, etc), and resources for future planning.
  • Equip students to take on new challenges with skills in stress management, stress management, large-scale collaboration, and relationship building.
“Building community is one of the most powerful drivers of student engagement. Fiveable’s social learning platform is helping students who may be thousands of miles away from each other to build bonds around shared interests, leading to more active and vibrant learning.” — Ross Darwin, Principal at Owl Ventures

When we talk to students, we notice something incredible brewing beneath the surface in each of them — a level of resilience, intelligence, independence, and charisma that surpasses that of the generations that came before them. What excites us the most is thinking about the power these students will have when they work together.

That’s what drives us to show up for students each and everyday. 🙌

Our team is incredibly appreciative to this community and to our investors for believing in this mission.

We're hiring for roles in product, design, engineering, and marketing. Join us.