Investing in Maven - Andreessen Horowitz

I’m excited to announce that a16z is leading the Series A round for Maven, a platform for cohort-based courses. Maven works with the world’s leading creators to help them create online courses, organized into multi-week programs that bring a group of students together to increase participation and accountability. Since launch January 2021, instructors have already sold over $1 million worth of courses on Maven. The startup is already working with a diverse set of creators who have built courses on a widely ranging set of topics: How to become an influencer, how to find a new job, trading Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, and much more. With this new investment, I’ll be joining the company’s board and working with its team of startup veterans, led by Gagan Biyani, a repeat entrepreneur who previously co-founded Udemy.

Maven is working on an important problem that resonates in a deeply personal way: I think of some of the most critical decisions and projects I’ve worked on over the years — from buying a house, picking a career, trying to make it in a new industry — and think about all the generous advisors and mentors who taught me their hard-won knowledge. I wish that this knowledge was even more universally available, with teachers and fellow students to join me on the journey. Many of these topics are important but either niche, too fast-changing, or not academic enough, and so they are never taught in university. Instead we all have to piece them together by searching online, reading hundreds of articles, and watching an endless number of videos. I’m sure you’ve had the same experience!

Leave a Comment