Brisbane startup GO1 raises $30 million Series B round led by Microsoft’s M12

Brisbane startup GO1 has raised over $30 million in a Series B funding round led by M12, the venture capital arm of Microsoft, with participation from existing backers SEEK and Y Combinator.

Also joining the round is Larsen Ventures, the investment arm of Navitas cofounder Peter Larsen.

Launched in 2014, GO1 is an education platform allowing users to browse its marketplace of courses, covering everything from compliance to onboarding and personal development, or create their own. The startup raised a $10 million Series A round led by SEEK last August.

The investment into GO1 is the first for M12 into an Australian startup. The firm will receive a seat on the startup’s board in hand with the funding.

Priya Saiprasad, M12 principal, said the goal for the firm is to leverage Microsoft’s reach, including its portfolio development team and co-sell programs, to help accelerate the next part of GO1’s journey.

“GO1 is redefining how enterprises procure training content and how employees in turn consume it via a modern user-experience and a single subscription,” she said.

“And while it was clear to us that customer love was responsible for GO1’s rapid growth, the incredible passion of the founding team to create an easier way to learn is what truly sealed the deal with the M12 team.”

Andrew Barnes, cofounder and CEO of GO1, said the startup is looking forward to what it can achieve with the new funding.

“We see many opportunities on the horizon given our mission to improve workforce productivity is a view shared by GO1.com, SEEK and Microsoft. Professional development is critical to any organisation and GO1.com helps some of the largest brands and government agencies fulfil workforce training needs,” he said.

“We continue to attract leading content partners from around the world aimed at boosting the depth and breadth of our courses.”

The startup reports it now hosts more than 500,000 courses and learning resources, with more than 22 million users across clients including ANZ, Delta, Suzuki, and Thrifty having access to its content. Among its new customers are the likes of ANZ, Thrifty, and Hasbro.

Image: Andrew Barnes. Source: Supplied.