Coursera

Overview

In May 2026 Coursera completed its combination with rival Udemy — announced the previous December as an all-stock merger — with Udemy surviving as Coursera’s wholly owned subsidiary SEC 8-K SEC 8-K/A. That deal, the largest consolidation in online-learning history, capped a 14-year arc that began when two Stanford computer science professors launched the company with no business model at all.

Coursera is unusual among listed education companies: a Delaware public benefit corporation and certified B Corp BusinessWire. By late 2024 it reported 162 million registered learners and 350+ university and industry partners BusinessWire; its shares trade on the NYSE as COUR SEC 8-K, from headquarters in Mountain View, California SEC 8-K.

What it is known for

Coursera helped define the MOOC (massive open online course) era and then survived its collapse by inventing a way to charge for it: free university courses became paid certificates, subscriptions, employer training, and accredited online degrees Class Central.

Products/services and business model

Coursera’s monetization history is the company’s defining story. It formally launched in January 2012 with the mission “We are committed to making the best education in the world freely available to any person who seeks it” — and no business model; an early headhunting experiment was quietly shut down Class Central. What worked was certification: Signature Track, launched in January 2013, tied coursework to verified identity for $30–$100 per certificate and passed $1 million in revenue by September Class Central. From there the paywall advanced step by step — Specializations in January 2014, the end of free certificates in November 2014, graded assignments behind the paywall in October 2015, monthly Specialization subscriptions in October 2016 — while Coursera for Business, selling the catalog to employers, launched in August 2016 Class Central. The result was three revenue segments (Consumer, Enterprise, Degrees) growing from $95.6 million in 2017 to $293.5 million in 2020, with Enterprise nearly tenfolding ($7.4 million to $70.8 million) Class Central. The Degrees segment began in May 2015 with the iMBA (University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign), priced around $20,000 Class Central.

Founders/ownership/leadership

Coursera was founded by Stanford computer science professors Daphne Koller (a Stanford PhD ‘94) and Andrew Ng Stanford Daily; Ng remains co-founder and chairman of the board BusinessWire. Early scale was explosive: from 4 partners in April 2012 to 83 educational institutions and more than 4 million signups by July 2013 Stanford Daily.

In early 2025 Greg Hart became president and CEO (effective February 3), succeeding the retiring Jeff Maggioncalda BusinessWire. Hart is a 23-year Amazon veteran — former technical advisor to Jeff Bezos, builder of the Alexa/Echo organization, and leader of Prime Video globally BusinessWire. The company credits Maggioncalda’s seven-year tenure with growing registered learners by more than 100 million, increasing revenue tenfold, completing the IPO, and reaching profitability BusinessWire.

Funding/finances (verified only)

Before going public, Coursera raised approximately $443 million, with its valuation rising from $800 million in the 2017 Series D to above $1 billion in the 2019 Series E (led by Seek) to $2.5 billion in a July 2020 round of $130 million Global Corporate Venturing. On March 31, 2021, Coursera listed on the NYSE, issuing nearly 14.7 million shares priced at $33 — the top of its $30–$33 range — for a raise of roughly $519 million and a market capitalization near $4.3 billion Global Corporate Venturing. For fiscal 2020 the company reported $293.5 million in revenue, up 59% year over year, with a net loss of $66.6 million (wider than 2019’s $48.4 million loss) Global Corporate Venturing.

Regulation/compliance record

As an NYSE-listed company, Coursera files with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission — the Udemy merger was reported on Form 8-K and its completion on an amended 8-K/A SEC 8-K SEC 8-K/A. Its Delaware public-benefit-corporation and B Corp status is confirmed in its January 2025 announcement BusinessWire. No enforcement actions or material compliance disputes were identified in the sources read for this profile.

Timeline

• 2012 — Ng and Koller launch Coursera out of Stanford with a free-education mission and no business model; four universities join at launch Class Central Stanford Daily.
• 2013 — Signature Track verified certificates launch in January; Coursera raises $43 million and passes 4 million signups by mid-year Class Central Stanford Daily.
• 2014 — Specializations launch in January; free certificates end in November Class Central.
• 2015 — First degree partnership: the iMBA with the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Class Central.
• 2016 — Coursera for Business launches in August; Specialization subscriptions begin in October Class Central.
• 2021 — NYSE listing on March 31 at $33 per share (~$4.3 billion valuation) Global Corporate Venturing; the company operates as a Delaware public benefit corporation and B Corp BusinessWire.
• 2025 — Greg Hart becomes president and CEO, effective February 3 BusinessWire; on December 17 Coursera announces the Udemy merger agreement SEC 8-K.
• 2026 — The Coursera–Udemy combination completes on May 11 SEC 8-K/A.

Related entities

• Stanford University — launched by Stanford computer science professors Andrew Ng and Daphne Koller; described as spun out of Stanford Stanford Daily Global Corporate Venturing.
• University of Pennsylvania — participated in Coursera’s 2013 funding round and exited its stake at the IPO Global Corporate Venturing.
• Udemy — merger partner since December 2025; wholly owned subsidiary since May 11, 2026 SEC 8-K SEC 8-K/A.

What this profile does not claim

• The B Corp certification date. Coursera confirms it is currently a certified B Corp and a Delaware public benefit corporation BusinessWire, but no source read in full states the exact certification date.
• Post-2021 product detail. The Class Central history used here was read through its 2018-era coverage; later developments are not cited.
• Merger deal terms. Only SEC-filing facts are cited (dates, all-stock structure, surviving-entity status); third-party per-share exchange ratios and combined-valuation figures were not read in full.
• Current scale. Learner and partner counts (162 million, 350+) come from a January 2025 company announcement BusinessWire; post-merger combined scale was not read in a primary source and is not stated.
• Specific industry partners. Partnerships with companies such as Google and Microsoft are widely discussed but not confirmed in any source read in full here, so none are named or linked.