Chicago ed-tech startup Packback has raised another round of funding as it brings its artificial intelligence software to more college classrooms.
Packback announced Tuesday that it has raised $2.5 million in a round led by repeat investor University Ventures. Hyde Park Angels, also a previous investor, participated in the round. The new cash brings Packback's total funding to date to more than $10 million.
Packback's funding comes as the startup saw fast growth in 2018, more than doubling its headcount to 80 employees and increasing revenue more than 2X last year, co-founder Kasey Gandham said. The startup, which recently moved into a larger office in the Loop, says it plans to be at around 100 employees by the end of the year.
Packback provides its software to professors, who use it to measure a student’s response to written questions and essays. The technology allows professors in large lecture classes to quantify difficult-to-measure behaviors like a student’s critical thinkings skills. The company says it expects more than half a million students at over 200 universities will use its software by the end of the 2019 academic year.
Packback made headlines in 2014 when it appeared on Shark Tank and scored a $250,000 investment from Mark Cuban. At the time, the startup was offering a 24-hour e-textbook rental service. Since then the company has made a substantial pivot into classroom software. It raised a $4.2 million Series A in 2018, which Cuban invested in.
Gandham said Packback has intentionally raised smaller rounds of funding as it aims to grow at a fast, yet responsible, rate.
"We have a philosophy of deliberately trying to raise as little money as possible ... while meeting some still pretty aggressive growth metrics," he said.
Grandham credits the Chicago tech community at large for helping the startup navigate a complex pivot, and the company puts a focus on giving back by hosting different meet-ups and events at its space to connect Chicago's tech and artistic communities.
"We’re a product of the Chicago ecosystem," he said. "We wouldn’t be here today if Chicago didn't effectively take a bet on us. For us, top of mind is to reinvest in the community."
