We’re delighted to announce a new funding round that will help drive the next stage of our mission: to create a diverse group of future leaders, by building an outstanding alternative to university and corporate training.
At Multiverse, we’re driven to solve some of the most important issues facing society. We’re bridging the opportunity gap and ensuring companies can access the most diverse, talented individuals with the digital skills needed to drive their growth. Our $130 million Series C not only proves that this is a mission worth getting behind, it ensures we are well set up with the resources and capacity to continue doing extraordinary things.
This new funding will enable us to continue to drive their growth and adoption across the US and UK: ensuring that we’re reaching talented individuals from a range of backgrounds, while working with the top companies - and delivering outstanding education.
This mission is global. Just this month we opened our US Headquarters in New York, allowing our growing US team to meet and work together for the first time since the pandemic began.
Turbo-charging the outstanding alternative to university and corporate training
We’re proud to be a company going through hypergrowth - growing nearly 4x in 1 year, to build a community of over 5,000 apprentices and alumni. We now take more new apprentices than Harvard takes freshmen, and we’re continuing to get much bigger.
Within six months of launch in the US, we've begun training professional apprentices with organisations including Google, ClassPass and Adyen.
Working with incredible, forward-thinking organisations like these enables us to give our apprenticeships the best possible starts in their careers, at the very best companies.
But it also means we’re helping businesses address some of their most pressing challenges. A shortage of data skills, for example, is costing businesses on average 10% of their revenues. Professional apprenticeships offer a solution to closing that skills gap: by equipping existing and new staff with the right skills for their job.
Incredible impact at scale
We know that talent is everywhere, but companies can only access the very best if they reach beyond traditional sources. As we grow geographically, across the US and UK, we have the opportunity to reach even more talented individuals from every part of society.
We're committed to widening access to apprenticeships for individuals currently underrepresented in the sectors we work with. Reaching these individuals is at the core of our mission, delivered through innovative outreach programmes, and our bespoke matching platform. As a result of our efforts, 53% of apprentices placed in their roles by Multiverse are people of colour and 36% are from economically disadvantaged communities.
What’s just as exciting is improvements in the quality and breadth of the applied learning experience our apprentices enjoy.
Our apprenticeships were recently given the seal of approval from England’s education inspector, Ofsted, who judged us to be an ‘Outstanding’ provider - the highest ranking available.
As the inspectors put it in their final report:
“From apprentices’ very first interaction with staff at Multiverse, they are welcomed into a kind and inclusive environment. Apprentices are inspired to have high aspirations by exceptional coaches who are experts in their field"
It’s this exceptional coaching that meant - this year - our apprenticeships had a 100% pass rate.
And we know that high quality education is about more than what happens in the classroom. We’re developing a community experience that replicates and rivals the best of university - including socials, mentoring, leadership opportunities, and inspiring speakers.
Not only will we maintain and improve the quality of our teaching, we’re also expanding the range of programmes we offer. This year, we launched an innovative program that enables apprentices to earn a Bachelor's Degree in Data Analytics and Data Science alongside their roles.
Tackling society’s biggest challenges
At Multiverse, we’re on this mission because we believe professional apprenticeships can tackle the biggest challenges facing society today.
Whether it’s race, gender, geography or socio-economic background, too many people face significant barriers to a great education, great opportunities and great careers.
At the same time digital transformation has put fresh pressure on the lack of skills, particular in digital, tech and leadership.
Relying on the one-size fits all approach of university, the 4 year college degree, topped up by sporadic corporate training, won’t solve the problem.
We have some of the world’s best investors backing us to change the system.
Our Series C was led by D1 Capital Partners and BOND. D1 Capital Partners has invested in world-changing companies like Amazon, Facebook, and Netflix. The team at BOND are renowned for their insights on future trends and shrewd investments in companies like PayPal, Google, and Apple.
Our ambitions are just as vast: professional apprenticeships offer a one-off chance to distribute opportunities based on talent, character and grit, while preparing people for the changing world of work.
They are simply the best way to equip people with the skills that employers need today - and we’re just getting started.
To learn more about professional apprenticeships as a solution to broadening access to opportunities and deepening digital skills, join us at 9am PT | 12pm ET | 5pm BST on 26th October to hear from one of our investors - Nakul Mandan, previously Partner at Lightspeed Venture Partners and now, founder of Audacious Ventures.
