• The company, founded by Vivek Sinha, announced the fundraise led by Matrix Partners India and Lightspeed 
• ‘Emversity’ will be launching 7 centres to offer undergraduate courses 

18th April 2024, Bangalore: Former OYO and Unacademy senior executive Vivek Sinha announced the launch of his new venture, ‘Beyond Odds Technologies’, with a seed investment of $11 million led by Matrix Partners India and Lightspeed, to build an employability-led training, certification, and recruitment platform for grey collared workforce. Other investors participating in the round include InnoVen Capital (a Temasek subsidiary) and Alteria Capital. The company is also backed by reputed angel investors including Ritesh Agarwal (Founder, OYO), Gaurav Munjal (Founder, Unacademy), Mayank Kumar (Founder, Upgrad), Ramakant Sharma (Founder, Livspace), Abhishek Goyal (Founder, Tracxn), Rohit MA (Founder, CloudNine Hospitals), Sumer Juneja (Managing Partner, SoftBank), Puneet Kumar (Managing Director, Steadview Capital), and Abhinav Sinha (COO, OYO).

The company aims to solve the shortage of skilled labour-force in key nation-building sectors such as healthcare, education, hospitality, and construction. The platform will train candidates at scale and with high standards through programs that include ‘hands-on’ training with industry partners. In addition to tech-enabled training, it will also open physical centres to help create a ‘job-ready’ talent pool. 

The company’s higher education brand, ‘Emversity’, is launching its first centre in Bangalore on 20th April, followed by six other centres this quarter in cities including Hyderabad, Delhi, Nagpur, Kochi, and Ranchi. In partnership with top-rated universities, these centres will facilitate Bachelor's degrees as well as certification courses. In the current academic cycle, Emversity will offer courses like UG Programs in Emergency & Trauma Care Technology, Anaesthesia & Operation Theatre Technology, Medical Laboratory Technology, Hospital Administration, and Certification Programs in Phlebotomy, Nursing Assistant, and Dialysis Technology. The state-of-the-art campuses are equipped with smart classrooms, laboratories, and virtual reality simulation. 

For their first cohort, Emversity has tied up with several leading healthcare institutions, such as Fortis Hospitals, Core Diagnostics, etc., to offer programs that are tailored to meet the skill requirements of these institutions, and the same institutions will also be the recruiting partners for full-time jobs as well as internships for Emversity’s students.

Outlining his broader vision, Founder & CEO Vivek Sinha said, “Our platform will address the shortages in skilled workforce in both domestic and global markets by creating high-quality supply from India. Our first initiative, ‘Emversity,’ is a higher education brand that helps universities integrate their degrees with industry-relevant skills. Our courses also come with ‘built-in income’, so candidates do not have to wait for completion of their formal higher education to earn their first pay cheque. Other features of these courses include ‘work abroad integrated’ modules, and extensive placement assistance.”

Talking about the sectoral focus, Sinha added: “In the current academic year, we will be focusing on offering undergraduate courses in allied health sciences. The sector is facing an acute shortage of 7 lakh skilled workers. Globally, the healthcare sector will see a shortage of 1 crore skilled workers by 2030”.

Commenting on the investment, Rajat Agarwal, Managing Director at Matrix Partners India said “To achieve India's goal of becoming a developed economy by 2047, harnessing our demographic dividend is essential. Emversity is dedicated to preparing India's youth for the workforce and fostering the growth of sunrise industries through scalable skilled manpower. With our longstanding acquaintance with Vivek, we commend his grasp of the issue and capacity to establish pioneering institutions. We extend our best wishes to the Emversity team for their journey ahead.”

Harsha Kumar, Partner at Lightspeed said “Today, India experiences a unique situation where we have an expanding workforce supply but a talent and skills gap across industries. Beyond Odds recognises and aims to tackle these limitations of the current education system. By enabling vocational skills-based education among students in partnership with public and private partnerships, they're solving both the demand and supply problems in college education today.”

Indian Hotels Company (IHCL), India’s largest hospitality company, announced its partnership with Emversity, an employability-led higher education platform, to expand its skilling ecosystem.

Mr. Gaurav Pokhariyal, Executive Vice President & Chief Human Resources Officer, IHCL, said, “At IHCL, our commitment to nation-building goes beyond hospitality, it extends to shaping lives and livelihoods of the communities we operate in. Skilling has always been integral to this mission, and we have invested in initiatives that unlock potential and open doors for young talent. Guided by our ESG+ framework of Paathya, we are creating pathways for inclusive development, with a strong emphasis on education, employability, and empowerment.”

“This partnership with Emversity builds on that vision by offering a structured, work-integrated learning model that combines academic rigour with hands-on experience. As we continue to scale, partners like Emversity are instrumental in nurturing the next generation of talent for the industry”, he added.

Through this association, IHCL will integrate students enrolled in Emversity’s UGC-recognised Bachelor’s degree programs into its hotels across Jaipur, Kochi, Hyderabad, and Chennai. The ‘work-integrated’ model offers students classroom instruction during the first semester, followed by 2.5 years of full-time internship in key hotel operations such as Front Office, Housekeeping, and Food & Beverage Service.

Mr. Vivek Sinha, Founder & CEO, Emversity, said, “Our collaboration with IHCL exemplifies the power of industry-academia integration. By embedding students within IHCL’s world-class hotel ecosystem, we are enhancing their employability and setting a benchmark for practical, career-focused education.”

This year, approximately 140 students will be onboarded through the partnership, with plans to scale across 7 additional IHCL hotels from the next financial year.

• Since its seed round last year, the company has scaled to 36 campuses across  18 states, creating a highly skilled grey-collar workforce in critical sectors. 

 Beyond Odds Technologies, parent of the skill-based training and  higher-education platform Emversity, today announced the successful close of a $5 million Pre-Series A round.  The round was led by Z47 and Lightspeed, with participation from Alteria Capital and Innoven Capital. 

The funding comes on the back of a breakout first year for Emversity in which it expanded its footprint to 36  campuses across 18 Indian states establishing a strong foundation in healthcare skilling while forging deep  Industry, University and Student partnerships. The company has also launched Travel & Hospitality keeping in  line with its mission of solving skill-gap across multiple critical industries. The company is on track to end the  current financial year with 75+ campuses. 

Under the ‘Emversity School of Allied Health Sciences’, students train for roles such as nurses, therapists,  caregivers, OT technicians, lab technicians, paramedics and other allied-health professionals. The newly  launched ‘Emversity School of Hospitality’ has partnered with two of the world’s largest hotel chains to offer  skill-based training in rooms, F&B service, and culinary at nine campuses starting this year. 

Founded by seasoned operator Vivek Sinha, former COO of Unacademy, Emversity bridges the  skilled-workforce gap in nation-building industries by embedding work-integrated, technology-driven training into  degree programs at Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). Its unique model tackles what Sinha calls the  “three-pronged problem” in the higher-education-to-workforce pipeline: capacity shortage, , inaccessibility due  to prohibitive fees and misaligned curriculum. “Millions of roles in healthcare, hospitality and construction lie  vacant, while one-third of graduates remain unemployed,” Sinha explains. “Our employer-sponsored stipend  model solves accessibility; industry co-designed curriculum ensure relevance; and our Centres of Excellence  expand capacity.” 

On growth ambitions, he added, “In a sector full of broken promises, quality and outcomes are our biggest  differentiators. We stay obsessed with best-in-class training and employment results; scale will follow.” 

Commenting on the investment, Harsha Kumar, Partner at Lightspeed said “Vivek and his team are bridging a  systemic gap between education and employment by aligning training infrastructure with real industry demand,  creating a more job ready workforce for critical sectors. What excites me the most is the non-linear impact  Emversity can unlock by connecting global demand with the talent pipeline that they are developing.” 

Rajat Agarwal, Managing Director at Z47, led the investment, alongside Chandrasekhar Venugopal, Principal at  Z47. Chandrasekhar commented, “Rajat and I are privileged to partner with Vivek & the team at Emversity as  they take on this hard, but critical problem facing the country. From the first meeting, Vivek’s insight on fixing the  education-employment gap through a job relevant pedagogy stood out. In under a year, he’s taken Emversity  from this insight to national scale, with real outcomes and smart unit economics. At Z47 we are thrilled to go  deeper on this journey with Vivek as Emversity scales in size and impact.”

~Students to undergo immersive classroom and on-the-job training across key hotel operations~

 Emversity, India's leading industry-skilling and talent-development network, has announced a strategic partnership with Lemon Tree Hotels, one of the country's largest mid-range hotel chains, to strengthen skill development and address workforce gaps in India's rapidly growing hospitality sector.

Through this collaboration, Emversity will integrate students enrolled in the NSDC-aligned  Hotel Management Diploma Program into Lemon Tree Hotels properties across multiple cities in India. The partnership leverages Emversity's work-integrated learning model, which combines structured classroom instruction with hands-on training in live hotel operations.

Under the program, students will undergo classroom learning during their first semester (6 months or 0.5 years), followed by full-time internships spanning 1.5 years across key operational areas, including Front Office, Housekeeping, and Food & Beverage Service. This immersive approach ensures graduates are job-ready and equipped with industry-relevant skills from day one.

Mr Rajesh Kumar, Senior Vice President – Human Resources, Lemon Tree Hotels, said, “At Lemon Tree Hotels, our motto is ‘we hire for attitude and train for skill.’ Our focus has always been to attract, groom and grow talent with the right attitude so they can become fine hoteliers. Currently, most colleges provide only basic theoretical knowledge, leaving a gap between learning and real-world job requirements. Emversity’s initiative bridges this gap by providing entry-level talent and skill-based education. Their courses and teaching strategy will empower these students with a well-rounded experiential learning, and coupled with the various moments of truth, we are confident this partnership will benefit the hospitality industry as a whole.”

Mr Vivek Sinha, Founder & CEO, Emversity, added, "This partnership with Lemon Tree Hotels represents the perfect integration of skilling and industry. By combining Emversity's work-integrated learning model with Lemon Tree's operational excellence, we are creating a direct bridge between classrooms and careers. The partnership will empower young Indians with practical skills and real-world experience, helping them build meaningful livelihoods in the hospitality sector."

The partnership will initially onboard students at select Lemon Tree properties, with plans to expand across additional locations in the coming years. Both organisations share a vision to strengthen India's hospitality workforce while creating meaningful livelihood opportunities for young talent.

~Students to undergo immersive classroom and on-the-job training across key hotel operations~

 Emversity, India's leading industry-skilling and talent-development network, has announced a strategic partnership with Lemon Tree Hotels, one of the country's largest mid-range hotel chains, to strengthen skill development and address workforce gaps in India's rapidly growing hospitality sector.

Through this collaboration, Emversity will integrate students enrolled in the NSDC-aligned  Hotel Management Diploma Program into Lemon Tree Hotels properties across multiple cities in India. The partnership leverages Emversity's work-integrated learning model, which combines structured classroom instruction with hands-on training in live hotel operations.

Under the program, students will undergo classroom learning during their first semester (6 months or 0.5 years), followed by full-time internships spanning 1.5 years across key operational areas, including Front Office, Housekeeping, and Food & Beverage Service. This immersive approach ensures graduates are job-ready and equipped with industry-relevant skills from day one.

Mr Rajesh Kumar, Senior Vice President – Human Resources, Lemon Tree Hotels, said, “At Lemon Tree Hotels, our motto is ‘we hire for attitude and train for skill.’ Our focus has always been to attract, groom and grow talent with the right attitude so they can become fine hoteliers. Currently, most colleges provide only basic theoretical knowledge, leaving a gap between learning and real-world job requirements. Emversity’s initiative bridges this gap by providing entry-level talent and skill-based education. Their courses and teaching strategy will empower these students with a well-rounded experiential learning, and coupled with the various moments of truth, we are confident this partnership will benefit the hospitality industry as a whole.”

Mr Vivek Sinha, Founder & CEO, Emversity, added, "This partnership with Lemon Tree Hotels represents the perfect integration of skilling and industry. By combining Emversity's work-integrated learning model with Lemon Tree's operational excellence, we are creating a direct bridge between classrooms and careers. The partnership will empower young Indians with practical skills and real-world experience, helping them build meaningful livelihoods in the hospitality sector."

The partnership will initially onboard students at select Lemon Tree properties, with plans to expand across additional locations in the coming years. Both organisations share a vision to strengthen India's hospitality workforce while creating meaningful livelihood opportunities for young talent.