Hong Kong-based EdTech Company Preface Sees 500% YoY Surge in Revenue, Overcoming Impact of Pandemic

HONG KONG SAR – Media OutReach – 14
September 2021 – Preface, the Hong
Kong-based EdTech company, has announced the completion of its Series A funding
from prominent investor Sunlink Holdings (H.K.) Limited.  Preface aims to tackle the issues raised by
Hong Kong’s traditional education model, cultivate future global talents and promote
coding as the world’s universal language, facilitating Hong Kong to
strengthen its connection with the world.

   Tommie Lo (front row, second left), Founder and CEO of Preface, and
the Management Team 

The global EdTech industry is worth
more than US$100 billion. It is expected that the number of people learning
coding in Hong Kong will reach one million in the coming five years^[1]. Despite
the impact of the ongoing pandemic, Preface has seen a continued improvement in
its performance, with year-on-year revenue growth of 500% over the past 12
months under its unique “Decentralised Classroom” delivery model,
highlighting the growing momentum.

Tommie Lo, Founder and CEO of
Preface, said: “Coding is the foundation for all kinds of modern
technology and will become the universal language of the future. Trusted by
Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and UNESCO in the provision of
programming education, Preface offers award-winning programming curricula to
global academia and leading multinational corporations. Through the
high-mobility classroom model we are initiating, coding education has been
rapidly popularising in Hong Kong. Our goal is to equip future talents in Hong
Kong and around the world with this key language.”

“We are very excited to support
Preface in its Series A round of funding. In the digital transformation era, education
has become one of the fastest-changing landscapes and we see enormous potential
for the business. We trust that a forward-looking company like Preface can
revolutionise the education industry through their innovative approach,” said Angus
Chan, COO and CFO of Sunlink Holdings (H.K.) Limited.

With the digitisation of society, cultivating global coding talents
has become the responsibility of education

A study^[2] indicates
that over 64% of international companies and 51% of small and medium-sized
enterprises in Hong Kong have encountered difficulties in hiring innovative and
technological talents. Nearly 80% of Hong Kong companies need to strengthen the
development of artificial intelligence (AI) and related professional knowledge
for their employees, showing that there is significant demand for training
courses.

“Hong Kong is in danger of falling
behind the rapid growth in technology globally. Nearly 30 countries around the
world have included coding education as compulsory courses to enhance their international
competitiveness. However, Hong Kong’s education is limited by its traditional
framework, with coding education still being regarded as extracurricular study
rather than a core education subject. Hong Kong’s students will lag behind in the
digital world which will reduce their competitiveness in the market,” Tommie
explained.

As the first Asian teaching
platform to win an award at “EdTech Summit in Europe”, the world’s largest
education process programme, Preface Coding by Preface is committed to
nurturing talents and cooperating with universities around the world, such as
MIT and the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Preface has also
designed official coding courses for top-ranked universities in Hong Kong and co-organised
seminars and workshops with multinational technology companies and non-profit
organisations. Preface has now trained more than 10,000 students around the
world.

Decentralised Classroom – solving issues raised by the traditional
education model and fuelling innovation technology

Preface’s innovative teaching concept provides
a solution to tackle issues raised by the traditional education model. Its
“Decentralised Classroom” delivery model emphasises that students can
learn from daily life, and that education should not be restricted by time and
place. Students from Preface are able to choose how and where to attend coding
courses as they prefer, receiving teaching materials according to real-time
analysis and being matched with teachers through AI technology.

The traditional education model is
limited in its approach. Hong Kong, for example, is still using the
“one-to-many” classroom design that is an outmoded education
concept from the 19th century. Preface believes that
future education should no longer be restricted to one-way delivery; rather,
the learning and teaching process require innovation to ensure that the
ultimate goal of education – teaching students in accordance with their
aptitude – can be achieved.

Preface will use the latest round
of funding to further develop its business in major cities including Hong Kong,
Tokyo and London, with a determination to popularise coding knowledge and make
it a universal language. The company aims to equip the new
generation with this key language for a better future.