Stimuler Raises $3.75M Pre-Series A to Scale Voice-First AI English Tutor

Stimuler, a voice-first AI tutor for English-as-a-second-language (ESL) users, has raised $3.75 million in pre-series A funding from Lightspeed, SWC Global and other investors, including MVP, Rebright, Force Ventures, GradCapital and Operators Studio.

The funds will be used to scale Stimuler’s in-house AI infrastructure, expand its technical team and boost user acquisition, with the goal of increasing monetisation by over fivefold in the next 12–18 months and becoming the leading education app in Latin America (LATAM) and Southeast Asia (SEA).

Harsha Kumar, partner at Lightspeed, stated, “Stimuler is solving a universal need – making spoken English proficiency more accessible with sharp execution and deep product insight. Akshay and his team are building a truly global company from India, with early traction across LATAM and SEA geographies validating both the opportunity as well as the approach. As voice AI transforms learning, I believe Stimuler has built a platform to lead the category for the next billion users. We are excited to back their journey.”

Stimuler Functions

Stimuler is a voice-first AI tutor designed to enhance the speaking skills of English-as-a-second-language users. Developed in India for a global audience, the platform has paying users in over 150 countries, with significant traction in Latin America, Southeast Asia and India. Utilising advanced speech analysis and AI-driven learning, Stimuler is revolutionising how people learn and practise spoken English.

Its voice-first AI technology delivers real-time, comprehensive feedback on fluency, pronunciation, vocabulary and grammar, paired with customised exercises to drive measurable improvement. Operating with a lean team, the company has attracted early paying users from over 175 countries. Its innovative approach earned the Google Play Best App with AI award in 2023.

The start-up has achieved over 4 mn app installs, marking a fivefold increase in the past year, and boasts more than 45,000 paying users across Android and iOS. The platform is rapidly gaining traction in global emerging markets, with the majority of its paying user base located outside India, showing strong adoption in LATAM and SEA, particularly in Indonesia.

Akshay Akash, CEO of Stimuler, stated, “At Stimuler our goal is simple – to make fluent English speaking accessible to people worldwide. This funding allows us to deepen our investment in AI infrastructure, expand our reach across LATAM and SEA and move closer to becoming the #1 education app in these key markets. We believe our India-to-the-world and voice-first approach positions us uniquely to address the unmet needs of a billion English learners.”