Gaurav Munjal might hold a larger stake in Unacademy’s AI-powered language-learning app Airlearn than he currently holds in the parent company, Mint reported.
The update comes as the ed-tech co-founder prepares to spin it off into a separate entity, people familiar with the matter told Mint.
Apart from Munjal’s stake, Airlearn is largely expected to replicate the shareholding structure of its parent company.
Munjal and his fellow co-founder Roman Saini will leave Unacademy to manage Airlearn full-time, marking a significant pivot.
According to sources, Munjal is in discussions with existing investors Peak XV and Nexus Venture Partners regarding additional funding as part of the ongoing spin-off. “As of now, the discussions are ongoing and there are many moving parts, but investors like General Atlantic and SoftBank are expected to retain mirror shareholding in the hived-off entity,” a source said.
As per Tracxn data, the top shareholder in Unacademy is Nexus Venture Partners, holding 13.8%, followed by Sequoia Capital with 13.7% and SoftBank Vision Fund with 11.6%. The Unacademy founders collectively own 9.2%. The company’s ESOP pool accounts for 11.2%, with the remaining shares held by other investors.
The deal is expected to be finalised this quarter. As part of the restructuring, Airlearn will receive approximately 10% of Unacademy’s cash reserves, which were valued at ₹1,200 crore in May.
CEOs Step Down
Unacademy will reportedly undergo a leadership change as Munjal steps down from his role as CEO. He will hand over the reins to board member Sumit Jain. This comes amid the company’s broader reset, a failed acquisition deal and an increasing focus on its language-learning app Airlearn.
Munjal’s fellow co-founder, Roman Saini, is also stepping away from day-to-day operations. The duo, along with Hemesh Singh, who left the startup in 2024, co-founded Unacademy as a YouTube channel about a decade ago.
Besides Munjal and Saini, Unacademy’s board includes representatives from SoftBank and General Atlantic, as well as Zeta founder Bhavin Turakhia and Udaan co-founder Sujeet Kumar.
The Unacademy board has already been in discussions with Munjal about his potential exit because he was not interested in running an offline coaching centre, the report said. After the exit, the executives are likely to continue holding their shares in the company.
