Coursera and Udemy have announced a definitive agreement to merge in an all-stock transaction valued at approximately $2.5 billion, creating one of the world’s largest digital learning and workforce upskilling platforms.
The proposed combination brings together two highly complementary edtech leaders at a time when AI is rapidly reshaping global skill requirements across industries. The merged company aims to serve millions of individual learners alongside thousands of enterprise, university, and government customers with a more agile, AI-native learning ecosystem.
Commenting on the announcement, Greg Hart, CEO of Coursera, said the merger positions the company to better address the accelerating pace of technological change. By uniting Coursera’s academic and credential-focused strengths with Udemy’s marketplace-driven, skills-first model, the combined platform is expected to unlock faster innovation and deliver more personalized learning outcomes at scale.
Hugo Sarrazin, CEO of Udemy, highlighted the opportunity to accelerate AI-powered product development and expand global reach. He noted that the merger is designed to create long-term value for learners, instructors, enterprise customers, and shareholders, while strengthening the company’s financial profile through operational and revenue synergies.
Strategic Rationale
The combined company will operate across consumer and enterprise segments, offering a broad spectrum of skills training, professional certifications, and career advancement tools. The platform will leverage a global network of university faculty, industry leaders, and subject-matter experts, supported by AI-enhanced tools to deliver more adaptive and outcome-driven learning experiences.
From a financial perspective, the merger is expected to generate annual run-rate cost synergies of approximately $115 million within 24 months of closing, while enabling continued investment in AI-driven innovation, data infrastructure, and global go-to-market expansion.
Transaction Details
Under the terms of the agreement, Udemy shareholders will receive 0.800 shares of Coursera common stock for each Udemy share, representing a 26% premium based on 30-day average closing prices prior to the announcement. Following the transaction, Coursera shareholders are expected to own approximately 59% of the combined entity, with Udemy shareholders holding around 41%, on a fully diluted basis.
The transaction has been unanimously approved by the boards of both companies and is expected to close in the second half of 2026, subject to regulatory and shareholder approvals. Major shareholders, including Insight Venture Partners, New Enterprise Associates, and Andrew Ng, Chairman of Coursera, have agreed to support the deal.
As global demand for continuous learning and workforce reskilling accelerates, the Coursera–Udemy merger signals a major consolidation move in the edtech sector—one that underscores how AI, education, and talent transformation are converging at scale.
