About Photomath
San Mateo-based Photomath is a math education app serving over 300 million learners worldwide. Founded in 2014, its AI scans problems instantly, delivers precise solutions, and offers step-by-step explanations to build conceptual understanding. Backing includes Cherubic Ventures, Goodwater Capital, GSV Ventures, Menlo Ventures, and Learn Capital.
Founded
2014
HQ
Website
Status
Acquired
Customer focus
B2C
Revenue model
Subscription
Valuation
$36M (Nov 2018)
Photomath Acquisition
Photomath was acquired by Alphabet for $550M on 22 February 2023.
Before the acquisition Photomath had raised $29M across 2 funding rounds.
Photomath, a Croatian startup developing a mobile app that scans and solves math problems using AI, was acquired by Google in a deal agreed in May 2022 and completed after regulatory approvals in June 2023. The acquisition, estimated at up to 550 million USD, marks the largest startup exit in Croatian history and establishes Google's first R&D center in Croatia focused on AI. Nearly all Photomath employees, who were also co-owners, benefited from the sale. The European Commission approved the transaction unconditionally on March 28-29, 2023, finding no competition concerns in online homework tools, search services, or related markets due to limited overlaps and sufficient alternatives. Google aims to integrate Photomath's technology to enhance its math learning and homework help offerings, such as Socratic.
| Acquirer | Date | Type | Price |
|---|---|---|---|
| 22 Feb 2023 | Strategic M&A | $550M |
Photomath Valuation
Photomath is currently valued at $36M, based on its Series A in November 2018.
The $6M round was led by Goodwater Capital, with participation from Learn Capital.
Photomath valuation by funding round
| Date | Stage | Valuation |
|---|---|---|
| Nov 2018 | Series A | $36M |
Photomath Funding History
Photomath has raised a total of $29M across 2 funding rounds.
Photomath's first fundraising round was a $6M Series A in November 2018. The most recent completed round was a $23M Series B in February 2021.
Photomath funding rounds
| Date | Stage | Investors | Raised | Valuation | Deal Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 2021 | Series B | Menlo Ventures (lead); Learn Capital; Goodwater Capital; Cherubic Ventures; GSV Ventures | $23M | - | Photomath is the world's most popular math learning app, available globally with over 220 million downloads at the time of the February 2021 Series B round. The app uses computer vision, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to recognize and solve math problems ranging from basic arithmetic to advanced calculus, providing step-by-step explanations and animated tutorials to help students and parents with homework. On February 18, 2021, Photomath announced a $23 million Series B funding round led by Menlo Ventures, with participation from GSV Ventures, Learn Capital, Cherubic Ventures, and Goodwater Capital. According to founder Damir Sabol, approximately $40 million in total funding had been invested in the company over the seven years since development began. The company planned to deploy the Series B capital toward growing headcount, advancing AI and machine learning capabilities, and scaling product and marketing efforts. Photomath's user base was geographically diverse, with approximately 25% of users in the USA, 12% in Russia, and significant adoption in Indonesia, Brazil, and Italy. About 50% of users were secondary school students, 20% were in elementary school, with university students, teachers, and parents comprising the remainder. |
| Nov 2018 | Series A | Goodwater Capital (lead); Learn Capital | $6M | $36M | Photomath develops a mobile app that uses computer vision and machine learning to scan and solve math problems, providing step-by-step explanations, graphs, and support for advanced topics like limits, integrals, and complex numbers. The app launched in 2014 as a demo for text recognition technology and achieved 100 million downloads by November 2018, solving 1.2 billion problems monthly. It became one of the top downloaded apps in the App Store and Google Play. On November 6, 2018, Photomath raised $6 million in a Series A round led by Goodwater Capital, with participation from Learn Capital. The post-money valuation for this round reached $36 million. The funding supported expansion amid rapid user growth. Photomath later secured a $23 million Series B in February 2021 led by Menlo Ventures and GSV Ventures, bringing total funding to $29 million before its acquisition by Google, announced in May 2022 and approved in March 2023. |
Who has invested in Photomath?
5 investors have backed Photomath across its funding rounds, including Goodwater Capital, Learn Capital, Menlo Ventures, Cherubic Ventures and GSV Ventures.
Lead investors include Menlo Ventures and Goodwater Capital.
Photomath Investors
| Investor | HQ | Rounds | Role | First check |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2 | Participant | Nov 2018 | ||
| 2 | Lead | Nov 2018 | ||
| 1 | Lead | Feb 2021 | ||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all 5 Photomath investors. Start Free Trial | ||||
Benchmark 350K+ Funding Rounds and Disclosed VC Valuation Multiples
Sign up to see data on 350K+ funding rounds and disclosed revenue and EBITDA valuation multiples, from seed, through growth stage, to pre-IPO.
Start Free TrialPhotomath Competitors
Photomath competitors include listed companies like Jiangsu Chuanzhiboke and Gaotu Techedu, and private ones like Classplus, Codemao, MagicSchool AI and Cuemath.
| Company | HQ | Status | Revenue | EBITDA | Valuation | Revenue Multiple |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Publicly listed | $57M | ($7M) | $540M | 6.3x | ||
| Private | $28M | - | $600M | 21.4x | ||
| Publicly listed | $917M | ($38M) | $503M | 0.2x | ||
| Private | $17M | - | $495M | - | ||
| Private | $10M | - | $431M | 43.1x | ||
| Private | $10M | - | $407M | 40.7x |
Photomath Public Comps
Photomath is no longer listed, but its public comps include ExaWizards, Jiangsu Chuanzhiboke, Docebo, Gaotu Techedu, Beijing Hanyi Innovation, PKSHA Technology, Reconova Technologies, Ropeok Technology Group, Datasection and Qibu.
| Last FY | EV/Revenue | EV/EBITDA | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | EBITDA | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | Last FY | LTM | 2027E | |
| $77M | $13M | 6.6x | 5.7x | 39.3x | - | |||
| $57M | ($7M) | 8.9x | 6.3x | (67.8x) | - | |||
| $243M | $26M | 2.6x | 2.4x | 24.8x | 12.3x | |||
| $917M | ($38M) | 0.2x | 0.2x | (4.3x) | (33.7x) | |||
| $28M | $5M | 15.6x | 13.9x | 89.9x | 50.9x | |||
| $140M | $47M | 4.1x | 2.4x | 12.2x | 10.7x | |||
| $66M | ($8M) | 10.0x | - | (82.0x) | - | |||
| $23M | ($28M) | 18.6x | - | (15.2x) | - | |||
This data is available for Pro users. Sign up to see all Photomath competitors and their valuation data. Start Free Trial | ||||||||
Common questions about Photomath
| When was Photomath founded? | Photomath was founded in 2014. |
| Where is Photomath headquartered? | Photomath is headquartered in San Francisco, CA, United States. |
| Is Photomath publicly listed? | No, Photomath was acquired by Alphabet in February 2023. |
| Who acquired Photomath? | Photomath was acquired by Alphabet in February 2023. |
| How much was Photomath acquired for? | Photomath was acquired for $550M in February 2023. |
| What is Photomath's valuation? | Photomath was last valued at $36M in its Series A in November 2018. |
| How much funding has Photomath raised? | Photomath has raised $29M across 2 funding rounds. |
| What was Photomath's last funding round? | Photomath's last funding round was a $23M Series B in February 2021, led by Menlo Ventures. |
| Who are Photomath's investors? | Photomath's investors include Learn Capital, Goodwater Capital, Menlo Ventures, Cherubic Ventures and GSV Ventures. |
| Which companies are comparable to Photomath? | Companies comparable to Photomath include Jiangsu Chuanzhiboke, Classplus, Gaotu Techedu, Codemao, MagicSchool AI and Cuemath. |
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