History
LinkedIn Learning was founded as Lynda.com in 1995 in Ojai, California, initially serving as an online resource to support the books and classes of Lynda Weinman, a special effects animator and multimedia professor who founded a digital arts school with her husband, artist Bruce Heavin.[4]
The company expanded into online education in 2002, offering digital courses through its platform.[5] By 2004, its catalog had grown to approximately 100 courses, and in 2008 it broadened its content offerings to include documentary-style features on creative professionals, artists, and entrepreneurs.[6]
Lynda.com pursued both strategic acquisitions and external investment to support its growth. In February 2013, the company acquired video2brain, an Austrian-based provider of online classes in web design and programming, available in German, French, Spanish, and English.[7] The following year, it acquired Compilr, a Canadian startup offering an online coding editor and sandbox environment.[8]
During this period, Lynda.com also secured its first major outside funding. In 2013, it raised $103 million (~$136 million in 2024) in growth equity from Accel Partners, Spectrum Equity, and Meritech Capital Partners.[9] On January 14, 2015, the company raised an additional $186 million (~$240 million in 2024) in financing led by TPG Capital.[10]
LinkedIn announced its acquistion of Lynda.com in April 2015, completing the $1.5 billion transaction in May of that year.[11] Following the acquisition, the platform continued to expand distribution, including an Apple TV application in 2016.[12]
Microsoft announced that it would acquire Lynda.com's parent company LinkedIn for $26.2 billion (~$33.5 billion in 2024), which was completed in December 2016.[13][14][15] In October 2017, Lynda.com was merged and renamed LinkedIn Learning.[16] In 2019, the site announced that users accessing LinkedIn Learning through their public library would be required to create a LinkedIn profile in order to use the service; the decision faced criticism from librarians and the American Library Association.[17][18][19] As of March 2021, libraries started migrating to LinkedIn Learning without requiring patrons to create a LinkedIn profile.[20]
The original Lynda.com website was discontinued on June 2, 2021, and permanently redirects to LinkedIn Learning.[21]
