MasterClass, a high-profile American streaming platform, has announced plans to launch a new engineering headquarters in Waterloo. This will be their first expansion outside of the US.
With a new $225M Series F raise in the books, MasterClass is advancing strategic initiatives including increased content production, international expansion and the launch of a new Enterprise business. This includes a new Waterloo engineering hub that will help build the company’s planned enterprise product offering and technical integrations with distribution partners, as well as scaling technical and video infrastructure. MasterClass intends to grow the Waterloo office to become a peer engineering headquarters to their existing headquarters in San Francisco.
“As MasterClass has been experiencing rapid growth, we are scaling our platform, technology and products to meet the needs of our global consumer and enterprise user base,” said Paul Bankhead, Chief Product Officer of MasterClass.
" We’re excited to partner with the Waterloo ecosystem to tap into and invest in Canada’s thriving and collaborative community of tech talent to support this expansion. "
Paul Bankhead
Chief Product Officer, MasterClass
Waterloo is a fantastic fit for MasterClass. Not only do we have a dynamic and fast-growing tech business cluster, but we’re home to Canada’s top technology university – the University of Waterloo – which was recently recognized as one of the world’s top-40 schools for engineering and technology. Our community is also the fastest-growing emerging tech talent market in North America and home to the highest-quality tech workforce in Canada. Last but not least, MasterClass is joining an ecosystem where 22% of the Deloitte Technology Fast 50– Canada’s 50 fastest-growing technology companies– are operating.
Starting this month, MasterClass will begin hiring engineers across the full development stack including web, mobile, native, back end (Ruby on Rails) and infrastructure as well as product managers, designers, technical program managers, data scientists and data engineers. Local team leaders include Matt Elgie, formerly of Barracuda FX, Broadway Technology and Sandvine, and James Spere, who held senior leadership roles at ProNavigator, Roadmunk and D2L.
“I am delighted to welcome MasterClass to our community’s growing cluster of leading technology companies with strong global brands,” said Tony LaMantia, President and CEO of Waterloo EDC. “The Waterloo EDC team looks forward to supporting the company’s first international expansion outside of the U.S., including its integration into our ecosystem.”
Launched in 2015, MasterClass is a streaming platform where anyone can learn from the world’s best, featuring top industry professionals like Natalie Portman (acting), Gordon Ramsay (cooking) and Neil Gaiman (storytelling). With an annual membership, members get access to 100+ instructors and classes across a wide range of subjects – including Arts & Entertainment, Business, Design & Style, Sports & Gaming, Writing and more.
“We’re pleased to welcome MasterClass, a leading innovator in the Education Technology space to Ontario,” said Vic Fedeli, Ontario’s Minister of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade. “The establishment of MasterClass’ new engineering hub will enrich Waterloo Region’s innovation ecosystem and provide exciting new opportunities for Ontario’s talented workforce.”