Divya Gokulnath is an Indian entrepreneur and educator who is the co-founder and director of
Byju's, an
educational technology
Educational technology (commonly abbreviated as edutech, or edtech) is the combined use of computer hardware, software, and educational theory and practice to facilitate learning. When referred to with its abbreviation, edtech, it often refer ...
company founded in 2012 in Bangalore, India.
Early life and education
Divya was born in
Bengaluru
Bangalore (), officially Bengaluru (), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Karnataka. It has a population of more than and a metropolitan population of around , making it the third most populous city and fifth most ...
.
Her father is a
nephrologist
Nephrology (from Greek'' nephros'' "kidney", combined with the suffix ''-logy'', "the study of") is a specialty of adult internal medicine and pediatric medicine that concerns the study of the kidneys, specifically normal kidney function (ren ...
with
Apollo Hospitals
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited is an Indian multinational healthcare group headquartered in Chennai. Along with the eponymous hospital chain, the company also operates pharmacies, primary care and diagnostic centres, telehealth clinics, ...
and her mother was a programming executive with the broadcasting company
Doordarshan
Doordarshan (abbreviated as DD; Hindi: , ) is an Indian public service broadcaster founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and one of Prasar Bharati's two divisions. One of India's largest bro ...
.
She is an only child of her parents. As a child, her father taught her science.
Divya completed her schooling at
Frank Anthony Public School and pursued a
Bachelor of Technology
A Bachelor of Technology (Latin ''Baccalaureus Technologiae'', commonly abbreviated as B.Tech. or BTech; with honours as B.Tech. (Hons.)) is an undergraduate academic degree conferred after the completion of a three to five-year program of studi ...
in
Biotechnology
Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used b ...
from
RV College of Engineering in Bengaluru.
After her graduation in 2007, she met
Byju Raveendran
Byju Raveendran (Malayalam: ബൈജു രവീന്ദ്രൻ; born 1980) is an Indian entrepreneur, investor and educator who, with his wife Divya Gokulnath, co-founded Byju's.
Early life and education
Byju was born in 1980 in the ...
, who was teaching her GRE exam prep course.
Byju encouraged her to become a teacher due to her questions during breaks between the classes.
Her career as a teacher began in 2008
at age 21.
In 2020, she told ''
Fortune India
''Fortune'' is an American multinational business magazine headquartered in New York City. It is published by Fortune Media Group Holdings, owned by Thai businessman Chatchaval Jiaravanon. The publication was founded by Henry Luce in 1929. The ...
'', "It was an auditorium style class with 100 students. They were just a couple of years younger than me so to look mature I wore a saree to the class."
During her teaching career, she taught mathematics, English, and logical reasoning.
Career
In 2011, Divya co-founded the online education platform
Byju's with her husband.
At first, the company offered in-person education to support school education, and in 2015, launched an online app with video lessons.
Divya has appeared in videos as a teacher. During the COVID-19 lockdown in India, Divya managed user experience, content, and brand marketing.
She led BYJU's free access to its educational content so students could continue learning from home during the pandemic. Byju's reportedly added 13.5 million users in March and April 2020, for a total of 50 million,
and reached 70 million students by September 2020, and 4.5 million subscribers.
According to ''
Forbes
''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...
'', as of 2020, Divya, her husband
Byju Raveendran
Byju Raveendran (Malayalam: ബൈജു രവീന്ദ്രൻ; born 1980) is an Indian entrepreneur, investor and educator who, with his wife Divya Gokulnath, co-founded Byju's.
Early life and education
Byju was born in 1980 in the ...
and his brother Riju Raveendran, have a combined net worth of $3.05B.
Divya also writes online, including about the future of education, parenting, and women's participation in
STEM
Stem or STEM may refer to:
Plant structures
* Plant stem, a plant's aboveground axis, made of vascular tissue, off which leaves and flowers hang
* Stipe (botany), a stalk to support some other structure
* Stipe (mycology), the stem of a mushro ...
fields
and has been an advocate for mitigating
gender pay gap in India
Gender pay gap in India refers to the difference in earnings between women and men in the paid employment and the labor market. For the year 2013, the gender pay gap in India was estimated to be 24.81%. Further, while analyzing the level of female ...
. She has also spoken with ''Mint Startup Diaries'' about challenges for women entrepreneurs, and co-written an opinion article with
Byju Raveendran
Byju Raveendran (Malayalam: ബൈജു രവീന്ദ്രൻ; born 1980) is an Indian entrepreneur, investor and educator who, with his wife Divya Gokulnath, co-founded Byju's.
Early life and education
Byju was born in 1980 in the ...
in ''
Vogue India
''Vogue India'' is the Indian edition of the monthly fashion and lifestyle magazine ''Vogue''. It is the 17th international edition of ''Vogue'' and the first edition in South Asia. ''Vogue India'' is published by Condé Nast India Pvt. Ltd., a ...
'' about educational technology in India.
In March 2022, Gokulnath was appointed as the
Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry
The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI) is a non-governmental trade association and advocacy group based in India.
History
Established in 1927, on the advice of Mahatma Gandhi by Indian businessman G.D. Birla and ...
's EdTech Taskforce Chair.
Honours and awards
Personal life
Divya is married to
Byju Raveendran
Byju Raveendran (Malayalam: ബൈജു രവീന്ദ്രൻ; born 1980) is an Indian entrepreneur, investor and educator who, with his wife Divya Gokulnath, co-founded Byju's.
Early life and education
Byju was born in 1980 in the ...
. As of April 2020, Divya lived with eleven other family members, including their young son
and then their second child was born near the beginning of 2021.
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, she worked long days at the office, but during the lockdown, began working from home.
In 2021, she told ''The Indian Express'' her typical day includes "juggling son's online classes, meetings, recording video lessons and spending time with newborn."
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gokulnath, Divya
Living people
Indian company founders
Indian billionaires
Businesspeople from Kerala
21st-century Indian businesswomen
21st-century Indian businesspeople
Businesspeople from Bangalore
Businesspeople in education
1987 births
Byju's