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Key people at 101edu.
101edu, which officially rebranded to Aktiv Learning in February 2022, develops online active learning platforms for college-level STEM courses and is based in New York, New York. The company provides specialized digital courseware, including Aktiv Chemistry and Aktiv Mathematics, designed to facilitate in-class engagement, homework assignments, quizzes, and exams. Operating through a combination of institutional enterprise licenses and direct per-semester student subscriptions, the software supports both introductory and developmental academic programs. Prior to its acquisition, the platform achieved significant scale within the higher education sector, reaching over 120,000 students annually across more than 700 educational institutions. Historically competing against legacy educational technology publishers such as Pearson and McGraw-Hill, the business was ultimately acquired by higher education software provider Top Hat in December 2022. 101edu was founded in 2016 by Justin Weinberg and Igor Belyayev.
Key people at 101edu.
101edu (now Aktiv Learning) is an edtech portfolio company that builds a next-generation active learning platform for college-level STEM education, starting with chemistry and expanding to mathematics.[1][2][3][4] It serves educators and students at over 700 institutions, addressing the challenge of low engagement and poor outcomes in introductory STEM courses by enabling interactive, student-centered learning in in-person, online, and hybrid environments.[3][5] The platform's inaugural product, originally Chem101 and now Aktiv Chemistry, supports over 120,000 students annually, with recent expansions into math demonstrating strong growth momentum prior to its 2022 acquisition by Top Hat.[3][4][6]
Founded in 2016 by CEO Justin Weinberg, a Ph.D. chemical engineer from Carnegie Mellon University with extensive STEM teaching experience, and co-founder/CTO Igor Belyayev, whose innovative tech approach complemented Weinberg's pedagogy.[3][7] The idea emerged from Weinberg's classroom frustrations with traditional STEM teaching, aiming to make subjects like chemistry "more accessible and less intimidating" through active learning tools.[3][5] Early traction came quickly: by launch, the platform gained adoption at hundreds of institutions, leading to a $4.6M oversubscribed Series A in 2021 led by Recurring Capital Partners and a rebrand to Aktiv Learning in 2022, followed by acquisition by Top Hat to scale STEM impact.[3][4][7]
101edu rides the surging demand for STEM talent amid global workforce shortages, where high-quality education is pivotal for student success and university ROI.[3] Its timing aligns with the post-pandemic shift to hybrid learning and edtech consolidation, as seen in its 2022 Top Hat acquisition, which expands reach in a market projected to grow with AI-enhanced personalization.[3][6] Favorable forces include rising STEM enrollments and investor interest in outcome-driven edtech (e.g., $4.6M Series A), positioning it to influence higher ed by standardizing active learning and reducing inequities in STEM access.[2][3][7]
Post-acquisition, 101edu's platform integrates into Top Hat's ecosystem, accelerating innovations like AI tutoring and broader STEM expansions amid edtech's push for personalized, data-driven tools.[3][6] Trends such as AI in education and hybrid models will shape its path, potentially scaling to millions of users while influencing policy on STEM equity. Its evolution from niche chemistry tool to acquired leader underscores edtech's maturation—transforming passive lectures into engaging platforms that build tomorrow's innovators, tying back to its core mission of fostering sustainable STEM outcomes.[1][2]
