FutureLab, an online mentorship platform, and EdTech social enterprise today announced a successful Pre-Series A funding round, securing RM 2 million. The round was led by Sarawak Digital Economy Corporation (SDEC) and participated by US-based investment group, Indelible Ventures, and EduSpaze, Singapore’s first EdTech accelerator.
To combat the ever-growing risk of structural unemployment in Malaysia, FutureLab connects students, graduates, job seekers, and aspiring entrepreneurs to over 3,000 industry mentors across Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia through their online platform. This creates a cohesive mentoring ecosystem that allows meaningful mentor-mentee relationships to develop, helping individuals achieve their career goals while bridging the knowledge gap between education and the future workforce. Moreover, with the launch of its software-as-a-service (SaaS) business model, FutureLab helps learning institutions and corporations design manage, and track internal mentoring programs. Ultimately, this ensures that teams at the organizational level are able to experience unique learning opportunities geared towards professional, personal, and even entrepreneurial improvement.
The recent injection will be directed towards scaling up FutureLab’s operations in Malaysia as the company onboards more learning institutions and corporations into its mentoring ecosystem. The funds will also be used to welcome and train an additional 8,000 IR4.0 mentors who will be integrated into schools, universities, and startup accelerators utilizing the FutureLab platform. Moreover, the company will be looking to expand its product development efforts, providing users with a more seamless experience, including the launch of a new mobile application that includes multiple languages such as English, Bahasa Malaysia, and Bahasa Indonesia.
“We would like to express our gratitude towards our partners for their confidence and trust as we strive to provide mentors, mentees, and organizations with the best possible mentoring experience to help develop industry-ready talent and future innovators. FutureLab was founded to help fresh graduates address the disconnect they often experience when transitioning from their studies to joining the workforce. Since then we have grown to offer mentorship opportunities for young working professionals and aspiring entrepreneurs. With the support of our new investors, partners, and team, we aim to make mentorship accessible to everyone,” says the Founder of FutureLab, Brian Tan.
Speaking about the collaboration with the Sarawak Government, Hazwan Razak the Head of Innovation and Entrepreneurship said, “One of SDEC’s responsibilities is to act as a catalyst for the Sarawak Digital and Innovation Ecosystem. The shared goal is to ensure that innovation and digital entrepreneurship opportunities are inclusive and available in every corner of the state. Hence, this strategic cooperation is ideal. Together with FutureLab, we will be embarking on a journey to inspire and support our youths, innovators, startups, and entrepreneurs to fully realise their growth potential, leveraging on FutureLab’s global wealth of expertise.”
Additionally, Indelible Ventures specializes in elevating tech start-ups with B2B products that have high-growth potential within the international market while EduSpaze is aiming to develop an ecosystem that can support the education sector in and around Southeast Asia.
Already named Top 50 Innovative Edtech companies in S.E Asia by HolonIQ in 2020, FutureLab will be looking to begin its Series A round in the coming year to expand its mentor marketplace and mentoring ecosystem into Southeast Asia. Brands currently working with FutureLab include Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC), Malaysian Global Innovation and Creativity Centre (MaGIC), ACCENTURE, Selangor Information Technology & Digital Economy Corporation (SIDEC), Tabung Emas Gagasan Anak Sarawak (TEGAS), British Council, Sunway University & Taylor’s University
For more information about FutureLab, please visit https://www.futurelab.my/