IXL Learning announced it has acquired Emmersion—the Lehi, Utah-based developer of AI-based language assessments. Emmersion’s platform has conducted millions of automated assessments for enterprise and educational institutions, including The World Bank, Randstad, Columbia University, Brown University and the University of Pennsylvania, providing valuable data insights into language proficiency scores.
Educational institutions use WebCAPE, Emmersion’s adaptive placement exam, to measure learners’ reading, grammar and listening skills. The multiple-choice test assesses learners’ abilities levels in seven languages: English, French, German, Italian, Spanish, Mandarin and Russian.
Its AI-powered Speaking and Writing Assessments conduct reliable, pre-employment language screenings in 15 minutes so that companies can hire the perfect candidates for the right roles.
The acquisition of Emmersion deepens IXL Learning’s line of language and literacy products, which include the world-renowned Rosetta Stone, IXL English Language Arts, Vocabulary.com, SpanishDict, inglés.com and Fluencia. Emmersion’s co-founders, Brigham Tomco and Dr. Jacob Burdis, will remain with the company as part of the acquisition.
This latest transaction marks IXL Learning’s seventh strategic acquisition in five years:
- Curiosity Media, June 2022
- Rosetta Stone, March, 2021
- Wyzant, February, 2021
- Vocabulary.com, March 2020
- Education.com, November 2019
- ABCya, October 2018
From Paul Mishkin, CEO of IXL Learning: “Emmersion’s adaptive technology and automated exams are unrivaled. The Emmersion team will be a valuable addition to our family and we expect to make more investments in the company as we expand to additional languages and capabilities.”
From Brigham Tomco, CEO of Emmersion: “Emmersion has striven to close the global communication gap through exceptional services that assess employees, check academic knowledge and certify language abilities. Joining IXL Learning is an incredible opportunity to continue advancing our mission and perfecting our products. Our companies share the same ambitious vision for helping people build and evaluate their language skills, and we can’t wait to contribute our expertise to this new venture.”
