Praxis Labs Acquired by Torch - AI Leadership Development

Praxis Labs Acquired by Torch

Praxis Labs, a learning development platform, was acquired by Torch, a leadership and coaching enterprise, on Thursday. The financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.

Rationale Behind the Acquisition

Elise Smith, co-founder and CEO of Praxis Labs, explained the reasoning for the sale to TechCrunch. She stated that, as a smaller organization serving large corporations like Amazon, strategic partnerships were essential for expanding their reach.

Smith and her co-founder, Heather Shen, initially connected with Torch CEO Heather Conklin through their shared involvement in the leadership development sector.

Smith further elaborated that a strong alignment in values, mission, and vision for the future workforce was immediately apparent. A synergy was identified between Torch’s contextual coaching and organizational expertise and Praxis’ AI-driven coaching, practice tools, and skill evaluations.

Praxis Labs' History and Impact

Founded in 2019, Praxis Labs collaborated with prominent companies including eBay, Zoom, Amazon, Google, and Target. Their focus was on fostering more equitable and inclusive work environments through leadership training and skill assessments.

The company successfully raised $15 million in Series A funding in 2021. This achievement positioned Smith as one of a limited number of Black women to secure over $1 million in venture capital at that time.

Key investors in the Series A round included Emerson Collective, Penny Jar Capital (Steph Curry’s fund), Precursor Ventures, and Ulu Ventures.

Leadership Transition and Future Outlook

Following the acquisition, Elise Smith and Heather Shen will assume leadership roles at Torch. Smith will serve as head of AI growth, while Shen will become head of AI product.

The entire Praxis Labs team will also be integrated into Torch.

Smith highlighted the critical challenge facing organizations today: preparing and managing a workforce that effectively integrates humans and AI, while preserving essential human connections for meaningful transformation.

She expressed confidence that joining forces with Torch provides the optimal platform to assist companies in addressing this challenge during this pivotal moment.