Content-type: text/html Downes.ca ~ Stephen's Web ~ Harvard and MIT's $800 Million Mistake: The Triple Failure of 2U, edX, and Axim Collaborative

Stephen Downes

Knowledge, Learning, Community

This is a story of unmitigated failure. In 2021, "the unprofitable 2U bought edX, an unprofitable non-profit, for a staggering $800 million." The resulting entity is now bankrupt, an outcome that even in foresight seemed to be inevitable. As Dhawal Shah writes, "2U's business model required (online) degrees to be as expensive as on-campus degrees." Meanwhile, " Axim Collaborative is the non-profit organization that retained the ~$800 million from the 2U acquisition. It's the only cash-rich entity in this story, yet three years later, it has little to show for its wealth."

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Stephen Downes Stephen Downes, Casselman, Canada
stephen@downes.ca

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Last Updated: Oct 11, 2024 11:40 p.m.

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