When Career Karma launched in 2018, it set out to solve a simple but daunting problem: How do people who want to retrain for a new career even begin the process? In the years since, the platform has become a trusted guide for millions of prospective students, helping them sort through job training programs and connect with opportunities that could change their lives. More than 100 million people have turned to Career Karma for direction, and thousands have landed roles in tech through the process.
That impact is why Climb Credit, a New York–based student payment platform, has just acquired Career Karma. The deal enables Climb to help close the loop of the learner’s journey, from discovery to enrollment to financing.
“For over a decade, Climb has worked to remove financial, informational, and motivational barriers to career education,” Casey Powers, CEO of Climb Credit, shared in a statement. “This acquisition isn’t just about scaling – it’s about impact.”
“We’re building a platform that serves students across many different industries, from healthcare to the skilled trades, reflecting the diverse opportunities learners are pursuing today,” Powers continued. “Together, we’re helping learners not only finance their education but confidently choose the right path for their future.”
That vision resonated with Career Karma’s founders, who were deliberate about choosing the next steward for the platform.
“When determining the best future for the Career Karma platform, we were excited by the alignment that Climb has with our core mission,” said Ruben Harris, who founded the company with Timur and Artur Meyster. “We’re looking forward to seeing how they expand what we built into the many career paths that they support with their other products.”
Climb has appointed Jeff Herbst to lead the platform’s next chapter. Herbst, who previously held leadership roles at Noodle and 2U, has built a career around student recruitment and enrollment growth. Most recently, he founded Protostar Studio, where he helped schools profitably scale student numbers.
“We have an opportunity to expand the impact of the Career Karma platform, with the student at the center,” Herbst said. “We’re focused on helping people find the right program and the support they need to get started. And we’re doing it in a way that also makes it easier for schools to achieve their enrollment objectives.”
The move also carries weight for training providers, who often face the challenge of attracting students who are a genuine fit. Climb asserts that the new Career Karma platform will help schools connect with prospective learners who are better matched and financially prepared. The process won’t stop at the initial match: one-on-one advising will help students move through enrollment and beyond.
For Climb, the acquisition builds on a broader effort to remove friction from the education process. While its core business remains focused on financing, the company is betting that guiding students earlier – when they’re still figuring out where to go – will create a stronger, more supportive pipeline into career training.
“This move allows our team to go all in on OutRival AI,” Harris added in a post on X, referring to the platform that enables organizations to build and deploy conversational agents for tasks like admissions and customer support without requiring engineering resources. OutRival, launched in Miami last year by the same founding team led by Harris, is now handling over a million calls every month for universities nationwide.
READ MORE IN REFRESH MIAMI:
- OutRival’s digital staff is already making a million calls per month, giving colleges an AI workforce
- Career Karma team launches OutRival, aiming to leverage AI to transform customer experience at scale
- Career Karma is upskilling workers – and uplifting communities along the way
- Chilean-born EdTech expands to the US with Mati Barbero at the helm
- Yung Sidekick is building an AI-powered bridge between therapists and their patients
- Training AI like an employee? This Miami founder says that’s the key
- Global Settlement Network raises $11M to rethink how money moves - May 15, 2026
- Albert Santalo is building what comes after vibe coding - May 14, 2026
- Propy and Milo team up so diamond-handed buyers can skip the cash-out - May 13, 2026