Two Ukrainian EdTech startups, Preply and Headway, have been included in the annual top 100 next unicorns list according to VivaTech. 

Preply, an international EdTech marketplace for learning foreign languages, was founded in 2012 by Serhiy Lukyanov, Dmytro Voloshyn, and Kyrylo Bihay. With an initial team of 15 employees based in Kyiv, the platform quickly expanded to include 3,000 tutors across 58 countries. Over the years, strategic partnerships, significant funding rounds, and expansions into new markets, such as Barcelona, have fueled Preply’s growth trajectory, culminating in its rebranding effort in 2023. Last year, Preply opened its first office in the USA. In 2024, after several years of fundraising, Preply’s valuation may reach $500 million. 

IT Arena had the honor of hosting Dmytro Voloshyn, Co-Founder & CTO at Preply, as our speaker in 2018. Dmytro shared his insights on failing and starting again with the event’s Startup Track.

Another startup with Ukrainian roots on the VivaTech list is Headway, a startup that creates microlearning products founded in 2019. Headway is a partner of Genesis, a member company of the Lviv IT Cluster, IT Arena’s founding organizer. The startup’s flagship product is the Headway app, also known as the “#1 most downloaded book summary app.” In 2023, the app became the App of the Day in the US App Store five times in a row and received the Editors’ Choice award from the App Store. 

The VivaTech list was compiled based on the following criteria: actual and potential growth, total funds raised, headcount growth, geographical distribution, and positive impact on society.