AI leadership development platform Praxis Labs sells to Torch

Praxis Labs, a learning development platform, announced its acquisition on Thursday for an undisclosed amount by the leadership and coaching enterprise Torch. 

“As a small company with fewer than 20 people serving companies as large as Amazon, we knew we needed to build powerful partnerships, across product and go-to-market, to reach more companies,” co-founder and CEO of Praxis Labs, Elise Smith, told TechCrunch about the reason for the sale.

She and her co-founder, Heather Shen, met Torch CEO Heather Conklin as they were both already working in the leadership development space. 

“We were immediately struck, not just by our shared values and mission, but also by how we aligned on what was needed to really future-proof the next general workforce,” Smith continued. “There was a clear connection and opportunity to connect Torch’s contextual coaching and organizational insights with Praxis’ AI coaching, practice, and skill assessments.” 

Praxis Labs launched in 2019 and worked with companies such as eBay, Zoom, Amazon, Google, and Target to build out more equitable and inclusive workplaces through leadership training and skill assessments. It notably secured a $15 million Series A back in 2021, making Smith one of the few Black women at the time to raise more than $1 million in venture capital funding. Investors in that round included Emerson Collective, Steph Curry’s fund Penny Jar Capital, Precursor Ventures, and Ulu Ventures. 

Smith and Shen will join Torch as head of AI growth and head of AI product, respectively. The Praxis team will also be joining Torch.  

“Right now, every company and executive team is facing this pivotal question: How will they prepare and manage this next generation of work with humans and AI, while maintaining the human connection that’s essential for real workforce and company transformation?” she said.  

“We’re confident that joining Torch gives us the best possible opportunity to help companies solve this question in this crucial moment.”