Oust Labs

Oust Labs is an enterprise technology firm specializing in mobile-first microlearning and training for distributed workforces. Founded in 2015 by Shrikant G. Latkar and Prabhakar Kulkarni, the company established its headquarters in Cupertino, California, to address the challenge of effectively training and engaging employees who are not centrally located. Shrikant Latkar, with an MBA from Santa Clara University and extensive experience in marketing and product roles at companies like Juniper Networks, InMobi, and Avaya, identified the need for a more dynamic training solution. This background in technology and enterprise solutions directly informed the development of Oust Labs' core product.

The company operates on a Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model, providing a gamified, mobile-centric platform for enterprises. Its clients, which include major companies in the gig economy, logistics, and banking sectors like Swiggy and JK Tyre, use the platform to rapidly create and deploy short, engaging training modules, assessments, and surveys. Revenue is generated through subscriptions to this platform. The service is designed to handle large-scale onboarding and continuous upskilling of employees, contractors, and gig workers. A key feature is its multilingual authoring tool, which allows enterprises to develop custom content in over 35 languages, making it highly adaptable for diverse workforces across India and Southeast Asia. The platform delivers learning in brief, two-minute modules, incorporating gamification to maintain user engagement and improve knowledge retention.

A significant milestone in the company's history was its acquisition by BetterPlace in an all-cash deal in October 2021. This move integrated Oust Labs' microlearning technology into BetterPlace's broader suite of services for managing blue and grey-collar workers. At the time of the acquisition, Oust Labs had already skilled over one million users and had set a goal to upskill 20 million more within the subsequent 24 months, demonstrating its scalable impact on workforce development.

Keywords: microlearning, workforce training, employee engagement, SaaS, distributed workforce, mobile learning, gamified training, corporate learning, upskilling, employee onboarding, edtech, enterprise software, skills development, digital training, multilingual platform, blue-collar workforce, employee assessment, corporate education, knowledge retention, remote training