Universities and education institutions
110 companies assessed. 40 of them, 36.4%, sit in the two least protected bands, against 53.3% across all 10,525 companies assessed.
The picture
Universities and education institutions are splitting into two very different worlds. Their value isn't teaching facts, it's the credential, the license to practice, and the network, none of which an AI chatbot can replicate. Money and prestige keep flowing to them almost regardless of what happens to the classroom itself. The damage is concentrated at the bottom of the value chain: tutoring companies, test-prep chains, textbook publishers, and coding bootcamps that sold information transfer or entry-level job placement. Turing School closed, CareerFoundry went insolvent, Hack Reactor is being squeezed as AI coding tools erase the junior-developer jobs it trained people for, and Chinese tutoring firms like Genesis and Zhangmen were wiped out by regulation before AI even mattered. In between sit K-14 private school networks, vocational colleges, and Korean/Indian test-prep chains, all fighting each other for a shrinking or price-sensitive student pool while AI tutors nibble at the low end. The dynamic that decides everything is whether a school controls a credential or license that opens doors elsewhere. If it does, AI is background noise. If it only sells content, drilling, or a first job, AI and cheaper AI-powered rivals are already taking the customers.
All 110 companies, most protected first
| Company | Standing |
|---|---|
| Arizona State University Public research university and one of the largest online degree providers in the US | Hard to displace |
| Chulalongkorn University Thailand's oldest and top-ranked national university, with a teaching hospital and royal charter | Hard to displace |
| ECC Co Ltd 64-year-old Japanese English school chain with kids' classrooms, adult branches, and tutoring schools | Hard to displace |
| ETH Zurich Swiss federal university and research powerhouse, degree-granting authority plus supercomputing infrastructure | Hard to displace |
| EtonHouse International Education Group Singapore-based operator of 100+ early childhood and K-12 schools across Asia and the Gulf | Hard to displace |
| Fudan University Fudan University: elite Chinese state research university, C9 League member in Shanghai | Hard to displace |
| Georgia Institute of Technology Atlanta public research university known for engineering, computing, and defense research | Hard to displace |
| Imperial College London UK STEM university with degree-granting power and NHS-linked teaching hospitals | Hard to displace |
| Kyoto University Japan's top national research university, chartered, Nobel-heavy, and clinically embedded. | Hard to displace |
| Liberty University Large evangelical university running one of the biggest online degree operations in the US | Hard to displace |
| Mapúa University Century-old Philippine university for engineering, IT, and licensure-track degrees | Hard to displace |
| Massachusetts Institute of Technology Private research university and global leader in science and engineering education | Hard to displace |
| MDIS (Management Development Institute of Singapore) Singapore private institute offering UK-accredited degrees to local and international students | Hard to displace |
| Monash University Group of Eight Australian public research university with A$3.8bn 2024 income | Hard to displace |
| Nanyang Technological University Singapore's government-chartered research university, a top-15 global ranked institution | Hard to displace |
| National Taiwan University Taiwan's top public university, state-chartered and hospital-anchored research leader | Hard to displace |
| National University of Singapore Singapore's flagship public research university, state funded and government accredited | Hard to displace |
| Nord Anglia Education Runs 90 premium private K-12 schools in 37 countries for wealthy expat and local families | Hard to displace |
| Peking University State-run elite Chinese university, 128 years old, credentials and rank ministry-protected | Hard to displace |
| Princeton University Princeton is an Ivy League research university with a $36.4B endowment and a 4.4% admit rate | Hard to displace |
| PSB Academy Private Singapore institution offering diplomas and foreign-university degrees under EduTrust rules | Hard to displace |
| Seoul National University South Korea's top public university, holder of state degree authority and prestige. | Hard to displace |
| SIM Global Education Singapore's private not-for-profit school offering foreign university degrees under exclusive franchise deals | Hard to displace |
| Singapore Management University Singapore's autonomous public university for business, management, and law degrees | Hard to displace |
| Southern New Hampshire University Nonprofit university running one of the largest online degree operations in the US | Hard to displace |
| Stanford University Private research university, hospital system, and endowment engine in Palo Alto | Hard to displace |
| Sunway Education Group Malaysian private university group running Sunway University, colleges, and a new medical school | Hard to displace |
| TAFE NSW NSW Government's public vocational education and training provider across 130+ campuses | Hard to displace |
| Tsinghua University China's top research university in Beijing, state funded and gaokao selective | Hard to displace |
| University of California, Berkeley Public flagship research university anchoring the University of California system | Hard to displace |
| University of Cambridge 800-year-old UK chartered university with degree-awarding powers and a £2.6bn+ income base | Hard to displace |
| University of Chicago Elite private research university in Chicago with medical center, business and law schools | Hard to displace |
| University of Hong Kong Hong Kong's oldest public university, degree-granting, licensure-linked, research-heavy | Hard to displace |
| University of Melbourne 173-year-old Australian public research university and Group of Eight member | Hard to displace |
| University of Michigan Public research university and health system based in Ann Arbor, Michigan | Hard to displace |
| University of Oxford 900-year-old UK university with royal charter, teaching, and top research income | Hard to displace |
| University of Sydney Australia's oldest university, a statutory degree-granting research institution in Sydney | Hard to displace |
| University of Tokyo Japan's top national university, degree granting authority since 1877 | Hard to displace |
| University of Toronto Canada's largest research university, public, 200 years old, #1 in Canada and #20 globally | Hard to displace |
| Waseda Academy Tokyo cram school chain coaching kids into Japan's elite entrance exams | Hard to displace |
| Western Governors University Nonprofit online university offering flat-rate, competency-based accredited degrees | Hard to displace |
| Yale University Ivy League research university with a $44.2B endowment and 325 years of accreditation | Hard to displace |
| Zhejiang University State-run Chinese research university, C9 League member, degree-granting monopoly in Hangzhou | Hard to displace |
| Amity University Private Indian university network granting its own degrees under a state charter | Defensible for now |
| China East Education Holdings Runs 230+ vocational schools in China teaching culinary, auto, IT, and beauty skills | Defensible for now |
| Columbia University Ivy League research university in New York City, founded 1754 | Defensible for now |
| Cornell University Ivy League research university in Ithaca, NY with a large endowment and deep federal research ties | Defensible for now |
| Gakken Holdings Japanese publisher running cram schools, education franchises, and elder-care residences | Defensible for now |
| Harvard University Elite private research university with a $56.9B endowment and global reputation | Defensible for now |
| Johns Hopkins University Baltimore research university and hospital system, top U.S. recipient of NIH funding | Defensible for now |
| Kawaijuku Educational Institution Japanese cram school network running mock exams and prep courses for university entrance tests | Defensible for now |
| London School of Economics and Political Science LSE is a London-based specialist university for economics, law, and social sciences | Defensible for now |
| Manipal Global Education Indian group running accredited degrees, BFSI corporate training, and Aakash exam-prep centers | Defensible for now |
| Shanghai Jiao Tong University State-run C9 League research university in Shanghai, backed by China's Ministry of Education | Defensible for now |
| STI Education Systems Holdings, Inc. Philippine private school network offering CHED/DepEd/TESDA-accredited college and vocational programs | Defensible for now |
| Z-kai (Zoshinkai Holdings) Japanese correspondence and online exam-prep provider aimed at Todai and Kyodai admissions | Defensible for now |
| Carnegie Mellon University Private Pittsburgh research university, global leader in computer science, robotics, and AI research. | Protection under test |
| China Education Group Holdings Runs China's largest licensed private network of vocational and undergraduate campuses. | Protection under test |
| Chunjae Education South Korean publisher of certified K-12 textbooks, workbooks, and the Milk T and AIDT digital-learning platforms | Protection under test |
| DeVry University For-profit online university offering IT, business, and healthcare degrees | Protection under test |
| Hess Educational Organization Taiwan's largest private English-language school chain, in-person buxiban with childcare anchor | Protection under test |
| JEI Corporation (Jaeneung Education) Korean publisher running worksheet-based self-directed tutoring centers for kids, franchised worldwide since 1977 | Protection under test |
| Meiko Network Japan Franchisor running 1,600+ individual tutoring classrooms across Japan | Protection under test |
| Narayana Educational Institutions Indian K-12 school and coaching chain prepping students for engineering and medical entrance exams | Protection under test |
| National University Nonprofit university serving adult, military, and credential-seeking students | Protection under test |
| Offcn Education Technology Co., Ltd. Chinese civil-service and vocational exam prep company using pass-or-refund pricing | Protection under test |
| Sundai Educational Group One of Japan's big three cram school chains preparing students for university entrance exams | Protection under test |
| Visang Education Korean K-12 textbook publisher that built AI digital textbooks under a since-downgraded government mandate | Protection under test |
| YBM Net Runs Korea's official TOEIC testing and sells English test-prep content and tutoring | Protection under test |
| Yoyogi Seminar Non-profit Japanese cram school chain preparing students for university entrance exams | Protection under test |
| AMA Education System Family-owned Philippine college network built around AMA Computer University's IT and vocational degrees | Losing its protection |
| Aptech Limited Indian IT and vocational training franchise network with 800+ centers, listed on NSE | Losing its protection |
| Capella University Online for-profit university offering FlexPath, competency-based degrees under Strategic Education | Losing its protection |
| China Maple Leaf Educational Systems HK-listed operator of bilingual, IB-accredited K-12 schools across China and abroad | Losing its protection |
| China New Higher Education Group HK-listed operator running licensed private vocational universities across China | Losing its protection |
| Chuanzhi Education Technology Chinese IT bootcamp operator now building accredited vocational colleges | Losing its protection |
| CMS Edu Korean thinking-math and gifted-track school brand run by Creverse, with ~300 centers | Losing its protection |
| Crimson Education NZ-founded global university admissions consulting and mentoring company | Losing its protection |
| Daekyo Korean after-school education company running in-person learning centers with worksheet-based programs like Noonnoppi | Losing its protection |
| IDP Education Australian company placing students abroad and running IELTS English tests for visas | Losing its protection |
| Kyowon Co., Ltd. Korean kids' education and publishing group also renting appliances and selling funerals | Losing its protection |
| Navitas Limited Navitas runs pathway colleges that feed international students into 40+ partner universities. | Losing its protection |
| NIIT Limited Indian company teaching tech, banking, and coding skills to students and employers | Losing its protection |
| NOVA Holdings NOVA Holdings runs Japan's largest eikaiwa chain plus childcare, cram schools, and publishing | Losing its protection |
| Outlier.org Online college courses giving transferable university credit, now owned by Savvas Learning | Losing its protection |
| Purdue University Global Purdue's online arm for working adults, running on a Kaplan-built platform under a 2048 revenue-share deal | Losing its protection |
| Sri Chaitanya Educational Institutions Large Indian coaching chain prepping students for IIT-JEE and NEET exams | Losing its protection |
| University of Phoenix For-profit online university selling degrees funded mostly by federal student aid | Losing its protection |
| Walden University Online for-profit university under Covista, focused on nursing and healthcare degrees | Losing its protection |
| Xueda Education Group Chinese one-on-one K12 tutoring firm now pivoting into vocational education | Losing its protection |
| Zhuoyue Education Group Guangdong K12 tutoring operator licensed to run academic classes post 'Double Reduction' | Losing its protection |
| Career Point Limited Kota-based test-prep coaching chain, now Career Point Edutech after 2025 demerger | Little protection left |
| CareerFoundry Mentor-led online bootcamp for coding, UX/UI design, and data careers, now insolvent | Little protection left |
| Codesmith Remote coding bootcamp pivoting into government AI-skills training contracts | Little protection left |
| Elite Education Group International Micro-cap operator of pathway colleges for Chinese international students | Little protection left |
| FIITJEE FIITJEE is a decades-old Indian coaching chain for JEE and NEET entrance exam prep | Little protection left |
| Four Seasons Education (Cayman) Ltd Former China K-9 tutoring firm now selling study-camp travel and tourism services | Little protection left |
| Genesis Education Group Formerly 精锐教育, a Chinese K12 tutoring chain whose core business was banned in 2021 | Little protection left |
| Hack Reactor Coding bootcamp teaching people to become junior software engineers, owned by Stride Inc. | Little protection left |
| Modern Education & Training Group Limited HK exam-tutoring brand and franchise network, now a small unit inside HKEX-listed Bradaverse Education | Little protection left |
| Neungyule Education (NE Neungyule) Korean publisher of English textbooks and test-prep materials, listed on KOSDAQ | Little protection left |
| Open Colleges Australian online vocational training provider offering certificate and diploma courses | Little protection left |
| Oriental Fashion Driving School Chinese driving school operator, listed in Shanghai, now in court-led bankruptcy restructuring | Little protection left |
| Riiid Inc. Riiid makes AI adaptive test-prep apps (Santa, R.test) for TOEIC and SAT students in Korea and Japan | Little protection left |
| RYB Education, Inc. Mynd.ai (ex-RYB Education) sells Promethean interactive displays and ed-software through a shrinking global reseller network | Little protection left |
| Study Group Australia Global pathway and foundation program provider prepping international students for university entry | Little protection left |
| Turing School of Software & Design Closed Denver nonprofit coding school that trained career changers for junior developer jobs | Little protection left |
| Wisdom Education International Holdings HK-listed shell selling uniforms, supply, and IT services back to schools it used to own | Little protection left |
| Zee Learn Limited India preschool and K-12 franchise operator running Kidzee and Mount Litera Zee Schools | Little protection left |
| Zhangmen Education Inc. Former China K12 tutoring firm, now a delisted, founder-owned shell with no verified operations | Little protection left |
Questions people ask
- Which coding bootcamps are shutting down because of AI
- Turing School of Software & Design closed in 2025 after enrollment collapsed to 37 students, and CareerFoundry went insolvent. Hack Reactor is under pressure too, since tools like GitHub Copilot and Claude have shrunk the junior-developer jobs these bootcamps trained people for.
- Is IELTS losing ground to Duolingo English Test
- Yes. IDP Education, which runs IELTS, is losing test-takers to Duolingo's English Test now that it's accepted at over 5,000 schools including all eight Ivies. Tighter visa rules are compounding the problem for IDP's placement business.
- Why are Chinese tutoring companies collapsing
- Mostly regulation, not AI. China's 2021 Double Reduction policy banned for-profit K12 tutoring outright, which is why Genesis Education Group and Zhangmen Education lost their entire customer base by government order rather than competitor takeover.
- Are for-profit online universities like DeVry struggling
- Yes. DeVry is losing students to nonprofit online rivals like Southern New Hampshire University, Western Governors University, and Arizona State University Online, which offer lower tuition and show up far more often in AI search results.
- Which Asian test-prep chains are losing students to AI-era rivals
- FIITJEE in India has seen enrollment drop from 80,000 to roughly 55,000-60,000 as Physics Wallah and Aakash Educational Services pull away students and faculty. Career Point in Kota faces a similar squeeze from Allen Career Institute and Aakash.
- What kind of education companies are most at risk in the AI era
- Companies that sell content, rote drilling, or entry-level job placement are most exposed, including textbook publishers like Neungyule, tutoring chains like Daekyo, and coding bootcamps like Hack Reactor. Credential-granting universities are largely insulated.
What to watch
- A wave of coding bootcamp closures beyond Turing School and Hack Reactor
- Duolingo English Test acceptance climbing past its current 5,000+ school count toward broader Ivy-plus adoption
Head to head in this sector
Fudan University vs Zhejiang UniversityKyoto University vs University of TokyoUniversity of Melbourne vs University of Sydney
Sectors with a similar picture