Brighteye Ventures, a venture capital firm specializing in European edtech, has announced the initial closing of its second fund with $54 million in commitments. This brings the firm’s total assets under management to over $112 million.

The investment capital originates from a combination of current and new investors, consisting largely of international family offices who prefer to remain unnamed. The firm anticipates a second closing for the fund in the coming year, which will incorporate further investment from institutional sources.

Established in 2017, Brighteye positions itself as a fund focused on a specific investment strategy, targeting startups that are dedicated to improving the learning experience. The VC firm notes a significant opportunity within the global education market, valued at $7 trillion, as both educators and learners increasingly embrace remote learning methods and a large number of workers seek opportunities for professional development.

From this new fund, Brighteye plans to invest in 15 to 20 companies over the next three years, focusing on seed and Series A funding rounds, with individual investments reaching up to $5 million.

“Our investment strategy centers on companies that leverage technology to directly facilitate learning, skill development, or academic research, as well as those that address fundamental challenges within the education system,” explains Alex Latsis, managing partner at Brighteye Ventures.

“For instance, Zen Educate tackles the issue of teacher shortages in the U.K. through an on-demand platform that provides cost savings for schools while increasing earning potential for teachers. Litigate utilizes artificial intelligence to provide coaching and workflow tools, leading to improved outcomes for legal professionals, and Ironhack, a leading tech bootcamp operating in Europe and Latin America, equips young professionals with in-demand skills and boasts a 90% job placement rate for its graduates.”

Brighteye’s investment portfolio also includes Ornikar, an online driving school serving over 1.6 million students in France and Spain; Tandem, a peer-to-peer language learning platform based in Berlin with a community of over 10 million users; and Epic!, a reading platform utilized in more than 90% of schools across the United States.

“Our focused sector expertise allows our entire team to concentrate on identifying, assessing, and cultivating relationships within the learning industry,” Latsis states, addressing how Brighteye differentiates itself when competing for edtech investments alongside more generalist VC firms. “We possess a deep understanding of what constitutes a unique and effective approach, enabling us to quickly form strong convictions and make competitive offers. Furthermore, our portfolio companies benefit from a robust network encompassing potential customers, investors, and top-performing edtech companies throughout Europe.”

Brighteye also reports that it will be expanding its advisory team to support the new fund, with plans to increase its size from three members to ten over the next year. Additionally, David Guerin has been promoted to the role of principal, responsible for managing investments and providing support to portfolio companies in Paris, and the firm intends to establish a presence in the DACH region by the summer of 2022.