CodiPlay, a Kazakh educational technology startup, has recently raised $2 million in a seed round. The seed round attracted considerable interest from investors, with the Tumar Venture Fund, a Kazakh private venture fund managed by White Hill Capital, contributing $1.5 million. Additionally, the fund invested $500,000 into the firm’s overall development. Following the two-month funding round, CodiPlay’s valuation reached $10 million.
Founded in 2021, CodiPlay focuses on teaching children programming and creating gadgets (IoT projects) based on arcade games. In addition to its mobile app, the platform has also developed CodiKit kits, which include components and prototypes for creating 30 IoT projects ranging from traffic lights to smart home systems.
Commenting on the latest development, Chief Executive Officer of CodiPlay, Zhanadil Taldybayev, said:
Investors have recognized our significant social impact and contribution to IT education in our country and our commitment to increasing technical literacy among children in Kazakhstan.
Taldybayev added:
Our gamified learning process turns coding into a game, and our mission is to give every student in Kazakhstan access to programming languages that will prepare them for a drastically different future.
CodiPlay has reached its expected investment target and plans to expand the product’s reach with unique technological solutions. By September, the startup will be used in over 120 schools in Kazakhstan, with continued global expansion underway. Several schools in South Korea use the platform, while the schools of the United Arab Emirates and Türkiye are soon to introduce it in test mode. The other potential market for the startup is the Commonwealth of Independent States due to the similarities in educational systems with Kazakhstan.
The Tumar Venture Fund, managed by White Hill Capital, is the largest in Kazakhstan, aiming to invest up to $50 million. It was established as part of the Fostering Productive Innovation Project, which is implemented by the Kazakh Ministry of Digital Development, Innovation, and Aerospace Industry and funded by the World Bank. White Hill Capital specializes in supporting and developing IT companies during their early stages, making it the management company for the fund.
