Technical evaluation company CodeSignalwhich counts Index Ventures and Menlo Ventures as backers, is launching a learning platform called CodeSignal Learn. The new platform, aimed at a tech-savvy audience, also features an AI-powered bot called Cosmo to help users learn.
The company said there are hundreds of courses available at launch, ranging from introduction to programming, language-specific courses, data analysis and machine learning. Ultimately, CodeSignal wants to expand into some non-technical areas — like management skills — that accelerate career paths.
How does the platform work?
CodeSignal Learn accepts users via a waiting list. Once you’re in, the Cosmo bot asks you questions like what you want to learn and what your skill level is. Based on this, it forms a course of action for you.
Image Credits: CodeSignal
The platform has two tiers and the company has chosen a gamified route to monetize its product. With the free tier, you can take lessons on your own. But once you ask the Cosmo bot a question or ask it to help you evaluate your code, you lose one energy bar. Free users get five energy bars with one bar recharging every four hours. This whole process has a mobile-like gaming feel.
If you don’t want to go through that hassle, you can pay as little as $24.99 a month and get unlimited power.
Users can learn about different topics through text or turn lessons into a slide show or video. The company said it has created courses with subject matter experts to emphasize hands-on learning, so courses typically have 90% of the content requiring users to work with an integrated development environment (IDE).
Why is CodeSignal developing a learning platform?
The company was originally called CodeFight when it was founded in 2014 as a competitive coding platform. But as it evolved, the startup focused more on technical evaluation and rebranded as CodeSignal in 2018.
CodeSignal CEO Tigran Sloyan told TechCrunch on a call that the co-founders started the company with a mission to discover skilled workers and develop the skills that will shape the future. Sloyan said the startup wanted to do it all and build an educational product as well.
“We quickly realized that focus is everything. So we thought we needed to fix the assessments first, as they are fundamental to both recruitment and development,” he said. With the new platform, the company is again targeting the idea of developing skills for people.
“We felt that until we came up with a great one-on-one tutoring product, we couldn’t have a revolutionary educational product. But with the rise of AI-based technology, we felt this is the right time,” Sloyan said.
While the company believes the learning platform can upskill a wide audience, CodeSignal thought about its customers and how it could work to close the skills gap for workers or people looking to hire.
Competition and the road ahead
Many companies compete in the market for both technical assessments and skills development. Microsoft-owned LinkedIn has learning and assessment sections. Last year, it released an AI-powered learning assistant. Multiview, which Sloyan believes is CodeSignal’s biggest competitor, also has an evaluation product. In the learning space, there are many competitors like Coursera and Udemy, along with more focused ones like Guild and Articulate.
Sloyan believes CodeSignal has an advantage because it takes a learning-by-doing approach. Plus, he thinks the Cosmo AI bot is like having a private tutor by your side.
The company is also launching CodeSignal for teams and beta testing of enterprise products, which will offer a more tailored version to large organizations. The CEO expects the educational product to generate 50% of the company’s revenue in two years.
CodeSignal raised its latest investment with a $50 million Series C raise in 2021. While the startup isn’t profitable yet, it’s not looking to raise another round anytime soon. The company has raised $87.5 million to date. The company employs 200 people, nearly three times the 70 people it had on its payroll in 2021.
