Teachers are increasingly turning to virtual reality (VR) as a way to make learning more engaging and immersive for their students. Praxis Labs, an end-to-end immersive learning platform that provides software-as-a-service VR solutions, recently received an investment from Accenture Ventures as part of its Project Spotlight initiative.
Accenture’s Black Founders Development Program funded the investment and reflects the company’s commitment to providing black entrepreneurs with funding, connections to Accenture clients and ecosystem partners, and community engagement to help support the growth of their companies and build generational wealth.
Founded in 2019, Praxis Labs combines learning science, workplace scenarios in VR/MR, and actionable insights to improve equity and inclusion for learners and clients. Its platform leverages immersive learning to target key areas across the talent lifecycle and highlight what individuals and organizations can do to create workplaces that work for people and deliver products and services that serve everyone. Praxis Labs has worked with Uber, ServiceNow, and Ericsson, among others.
Elise Smith, Co-Founder & CEO of Praxis Labs, said: “Three years after the murder of George Floyd, the consensus is that not enough has been done to address diversity and inclusion issues in corporate America effectively. Developing ‘human skills’ like providing fact-based feedback or navigating difficult conversations are required to create psychologically safe workplaces and enable all perspectives to be heard. Immersive equity and inclusion training can play a powerful role in helping companies achieve their goal of having all their employees show up each day confident and equipped to work across differences and build products and services that serve the diversity of their clients and customers.”
The investment from Accenture Ventures provides Praxis Labs with access to Accenture’s domain expertise and its enterprise clients, and the opportunity to co-innovate with Accenture at its Innovation Hubs, Labs and Liquid Studios. This will enable Praxis Labs to adapt its solutions to the enterprise market and scale faster and more effectively.
Kathryn Ross, Global Liquid Studios lead & the Black Founders Development Program lead for Accenture Ventures, commented: “Black founder innovations, ingenuity, and insights are not being brought to fruition largely because they aren’t receiving adequate funding and support to get their ideas off the ground. Accenture’s Black Founders Development Program was launched to help these entrepreneurs pursue their dreams and achieve their goals. Praxis Labs already provides its immersive diversity and inclusion training offerings to many Fortune 500 companies, and we look forward to introducing them to our clients and partners worldwide and supporting their mission of delivering meaningful impact and change.”
As educators continue to seek ways to make learning more engaging and immersive for their students, Praxis Labs’ platform updates offer greater flexibility and agency for learners and program administrators. The platform has launched features that allow learners to enjoy Praxis’ immersive content on-demand and as needed, while administrators can design learning journeys that meet the moments that matter most for their people across the talent lifecycle.
In 2021, Praxis Labs closed its oversubscribed Series A financing co-led by Norwest Venture Partners and Emerson Collective. With the support of Accenture Ventures, Praxis Labs is continuing its mission to provide workplace leaders with solutions that drive inclusion, innovation, and value at scale and create a more equitable society.
