Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | 2. BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES Basis of Presentation —The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). Principles of Consolidation —The consolidated financial statements include the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Segment Information —The Company defines its segments as those operations the chief operating decision maker (“CODM”), determined to be the Chief Executive Officer of the Company, regularly reviews to allocate resources and assess performance. For the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021 , the Company operated under three segments: Consumer, Enterprise, and Degrees. The Company continually monitors and reviews its segment reporting structure in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) Topic 280, Segment Reporting , to determine whether any changes have occurred that would impact its reportable segments. For further information on the Company’s segment reporting, see Note 14 “Segment and Geographic Information.” Use of Estimates —The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates, judgments, and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and related disclosures at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. On an ongoing basis, the Company evaluates its estimates, including those related to fair value of common stock and stock-based awards; period of benefit for capitalized commissions; internal-use software costs; useful lives of long-lived assets; the carrying value of operating lease right-of-use assets; valuation of intangible assets and income tax expense, including the valuation of deferred tax assets and liabilities, among others. The World Health Organization declared in March 2020 that the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (“COVID-19") constitutes a pandemic. Since early 2020, the world has been, and continues to be impacted by COVID-19 and its variants. The COVID-19 pandemic has caused general business disruption worldwide beginning in January 2020. The global impact of COVID-19 continues to rapidly evolve, and the Company will continue to actively monitor the situation, including progress made through vaccinations, and the effects on its business and operations. The Company does not yet know the full extent of potential impacts on its business or operations or on the global economy as a whole, particularly if the COVID-19 pandemic continues and persists for an extended period of time. Given the uncertainty, the Company cannot reasonably estimate the impact on its future results of operations, cash flows, or financial condition. As of the date of issuance of the consolidated financial statements, the Company is not aware of any specific event or circumstance that would require it to update its estimates, judgments, or the carrying value of its assets or liabilities. These estimates may change as new events occur and additional information is obtained and are recognized in the consolidated statements as soon as they become known. Actual results could differ from those estimates, and any such differences may be material to the Company’s consolidated financial statements. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Cash and Cash Equivalents —The Company considers all highly liquid investments with an original maturity at the date of purchase of three months or less to be cash equivalents. Marketable Securities —Marketable securities consist of corporate debt, commercial paper securities, and U.S. government Treasury bills, with an original maturity greater than three months at the date of purchase and are classified as available-for-sale securities. As the Company views these securities as available to support current operations, it has classified all available-for-sale securities as current assets. Available-for-sale securities are initially recorded at cost and periodically adjusted to fair value with unrealized gains and losses reported as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) in stockholders’ equity (deficit), while realized gains and losses are reported within other income (expense), net as a component of net loss. An impairment charge is recorded in the consolidated statements of operations for declines in fair value below the cost of an individual investment that are deemed to be other-than-temporary. The Company did not identify any marketable securities as other-than-temporarily impaired during the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021 . Restricted Cash —As of December 31, 2020 and 2021 , the Company had letters of credit of $ 2,548 and $ 2,061 , respectively, related to its corporate headquarters’ operating lease agreement. Accounts Receivable —Accounts receivable includes billed and unbilled receivable, net of allowances for doubtful accounts. An allowance for doubtful accounts is established based on the Company’s assessment of the collectibility of accounts. Management regularly reviews the adequacy of the allowance for doubtful accounts by considering the age of each outstanding invoice; each customer’s expected ability to pay; and the collection history with each customer, when applicable, to determine whether a specific allowance is appropriate. Accounts receivable deemed uncollectible are charged against the allowance for doubtful accounts when identified. The allowance for doubtful accounts and related activities were not material for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021 . Property, Equipment and Software —Property, equipment and software are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation is recorded using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets, generally two to five years . Leasehold improvements are amortized over the shorter of the estimated useful lives of the improvements or the remaining lease term. Deferred Offering Costs —Deferred offering costs consist primarily of direct and incremental legal, accounting, and other fees related to the Company’s IPO. Prior to the IPO, all deferred offering costs were capitalized in prepaids expenses and other current assets on the consolidated balance sheets. Upon completion of the IPO, $ 6,449 of the deferred offering costs were reclassified into stockholder's equity as a reduction of the IPO proceeds. Leases —The Company determines if an arrangement is a lease and the classification of that lease, if applicable, at inception based on: (1) whether the contract involves the use of a distinct identified asset, (2) whether the Company obtains the right to substantially all the economic benefits from the use of the asset throughout the period, and (3) whether the Company has a right to direct the use of the asset. For leases that commenced before the Company's adoption date of Accounting Standards Update No. 2016-02, Leases, (“ASC 842”), the Company elected the practical expedients to carryforward its historical lease classification, its assessment on whether a contract was or contains a lease, and its initial direct costs. The Company also elected to not separate lease and non-lease components and to not recognize operating lease right-of-use assets and operating lease liabilities that arise from short-term leases (i.e., leases with a term of 12 months or less). The Company applies ASC 842 to individual leases of assets. Right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and lease liabilities are recognized at the commencement date based on the present value of minimum remaining lease payments over the lease term. For this purpose, the Company considers only payments that are fixed and determinable at the time of commencement. As the Company’s leases do not provide an implicit rate, the Company uses its incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of lease payments. The Company’s lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise such options. When determining the probability of exercising such options, the Company considers contract-based, asset-based, entity-based, and market-based factors. The Company’s lease agreements may contain variable costs such as common area maintenance, insurance, real estate taxes or other costs. Variable lease costs are expensed as incurred in the consolidated statements of operations. ROU assets are initially measured at amounts that represents the present value of the lease payments over the lease, plus any initial direct costs incurred and less any lease incentives received. Annually, all ROU assets are reviewed for impairment. The Company’s lease agreements generally do not contain any residual value guarantees or restrictive covenants. Operating leases are included in operating lease ROU assets, and current and non-current operating lease liabilities on the Company’s consolidated balance sheets. Operating lease costs for operating lease payments are recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. The Company does not have any finance leases. Internal-Use Software Development Costs —The Company capitalizes certain costs associated with developing its internal-use software during the application development stage when management with the relevant authority authorizes and commits to the funding of the project, it is probable that the project will be completed, and the software will be used as intended. These costs include personnel and related employee benefits expenses for employees who are directly associated with and who devote time to software projects. Such costs are amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the related asset, which is approximately two years. Costs incurred prior to meeting these criteria, together with costs incurred for training and maintenance, are expensed as incurred and recorded in research and development expenses in the consolidated statements of operations. The Company capitalized internal-use software costs of $ 5,884 , $ 9,785 and $ 16,980 for the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021. Intangible Assets —Intangible assets with finite lives are stated at cost, net of accumulated amortization. The Company amortizes its intangible assets on a straight-line basis over an estimated useful life of three to six years . Impairment of Long-Lived Assets —The Company continually monitors events and changes in circumstances that could indicate that carrying amounts of its long-lived assets, including property, equipment, software, and finite-lived intangible assets, may not be recoverable. When such events or changes in circumstances occur, the Company assesses the recoverability of long-lived assets by determining whether the carrying value of such assets will be recovered through their undiscounted expected future cash flows. If the future undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying amount of these assets, the Company recognizes an impairment loss based on the excess of the carrying amount over the fair value of the assets. There were no impairments of long-lived assets during the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021 Revenue Recognition —The Company derives revenue from contracts with customers for access to the learning content hosted on its platform and related services. The Company derives its revenue from three sources: Consumer, Enterprise, and Degrees. Refer to Note 14 ”Segment and Geographic Information" for disaggregation of revenue. Consumer Revenue —The Company generates revenue from the sale of access to course content to consumers. Consumer products include certifications for single courses, Specializations, and catalog-wide subscriptions. Access to single courses are generally purchased at a fixed price for a set period of time, typically six months. Specializations are a series of courses offered by the same educator partner where learners are provided access to these courses on a month-to-month subscription basis. Coursera Plus is the Company’s catalog-wide consumer subscription product, and it is sold in the form of a monthly or annual subscription. All contracts with Consumer customers are billed in advance, generally after a 7-day free trial period. The Company recognizes revenue ratably over the contracted period, after access has been granted to the consumer, as learners have unlimited access to the course content during the contracted period. Consumer learners are entitled to a full refund up to two weeks after payment is received. The Company estimates and establishes a refund reserve based on historical refund rates. The refund reserve was immaterial as of December 31, 2020 and 2021. Enterprise Revenue —The Company sells subscription licenses to business, government, and university customers that provide users the ability to enroll in courses and Specializations and receive certifications upon completion. Enterprise contracts are typically between one and three years in length and can consist of either the purchase of a fixed quantity of seat licenses, each of which allows for unlimited course enrollments by one learner for each year or the purchase of a quantity of course enrollments. In either contract type, the Company recognizes revenue ratably over the contracted period, after access has been granted to the Enterprise customer, as learners have unlimited access to the course content during the contracted period. The Company is the principal with respect to revenue generated from sales to Consumer and Enterprise customers as the Company controls the performance obligation and is the primary obligor with respect to delivering access to course content. Additionally, the Company has inventory risk through recoupable advances sometimes paid to educator partners. Degrees Revenue —University partners contract with the Company for the delivery of bachelor’s and master’s degrees or postgraduate diplomas awarded by the university. The Company’s Degrees revenue contracts involve the performance of a number of promises, including but not limited to hosting the degree content on its learning platform, providing content authoring tools, course production support, and marketing and platform technical support services. As a result, the university partner is the Company’s customer with respect to Degrees revenue. The Company earns a Degrees service fee that is determined based as a percentage of total tuition collected from Degrees students, net of refunds, by the university partner. University partners generally collect the tuition from Degrees students, however in the case of some MasterTrack Certificate offerings this obligation can be the Company's responsibility. The Company has a stand ready obligation to perform degree services continually throughout the period that the degree content is hosted on our platform. Degrees revenue is earned and paid by the university partner for each university term. As a result, revenue generated from each term is recognized ratably from the start of a term through the start of the following term. The Degrees learning experience is delivered on the same proprietary learning platform used by Consumer and Enterprise customers. There is no direct contractual revenue arrangement between the Company and Degrees students, who contract directly with university partners. Further, the university partners typically have additional performance obligations to the Degrees students in the form of designing the curriculum, setting admission criteria, real-time teaching, making admission and financial aid decisions, independently awarding credits, certificates or degrees, and academic or career counseling. Although some MasterTrack Certificate learners are required to accept the terms and conditions prior to tuition payment, the Company's core performance obligations remain similar to the services provided to university partners for their online bachelor’s and master’s degrees or postgraduate diplomas. For these reasons, the university partners control the delivery of degrees hosted on its platform. As a result, the Company recognizes Degrees revenue as the service fee it receives from the university partner. For all customers, revenue from contracts is recognized when control of promised services is transferred. The amount of revenue recognized reflects the consideration that the Company expects to be entitled to receive in exchange for these services. To achieve this, the Company applies the following five steps: 1) Identify the contract with a customer The Company determines a contract with a customer to exist when the contract is approved, each party’s rights regarding the services to be transferred can be identified, the payment terms for the services can be identified, the customer has the ability and intent to pay, and the contract has commercial substance. At contract inception, the Company evaluates whether two or more contracts should be combined and accounted for as a single contract and whether the combined or single contract includes more than one performance obligation. The Company applies judgment in determining the customer’s ability and intent to pay, which is based on a variety of factors, including the customer’s historical payment experience or, in the case of a new Enterprise or Degrees customer, credit and financial information pertaining to the customer. Consumer revenue customers are required to pay in advance either prior to the Company providing access to course content or prior to the expiration of a 7-day free trial. 2) Identify the performance obligations in the contract Performance obligations committed in a contract are identified based on the services that will be transferred to the customer that are both capable of being distinct, whereby the customer can benefit from the service either on its own or together with other resources that are readily available from third parties or from the Company, and are distinct in the context of the contract, whereby the transfer of the services and the products is separately identifiable from other promises in the contract. Customers do not have the ability to take possession of the software supporting the platform and, as a result, contracts are accounted for as service arrangements. For sales to Consumer and Enterprise customers, the Company’s performance obligation generally consists of providing access to its platform and related support services, which is considered one performance obligation. Access to the Company’s platform represents a series of distinct services, as the Company continually provides access to, and fulfills its obligation to, the customer over the contract term. Degrees services involve the performance of a number of promises that include hosting the degree content on the Company’s platform, degree program management, marketing and platform technical support services, each of which are a series of distinct goods or services that are substantially the same, are satisfied over time using the same measure of progress and as a result are considered one performance obligation to stand ready to perform an online degree hosting service for the duration of the degree. 3) Determine the transaction price The transaction price is determined based on the consideration to which the Company expects to be entitled in exchange for transferring services to the customer. Variable consideration is included in the transaction price if, in the Company’s judgment, it is probable that a significant future reversal of cumulative revenue recognized under the contract will not occur. None of the Company’s contracts contain a significant financing component. Revenue is recognized net of any taxes collected from customers, which are subsequently remitted to governmental entities (e.g., sales and other indirect taxes). The Company’s Degrees services revenue is determined based on a fee percentage applied to the total tuition collected from Degrees students, net of refunds, by the university partner. As a result, the revenue earned by the Company is dependent upon the number of learners enrolled and the tuition charged by the university partner. This is a form of variable consideration. The Company estimates the amount of revenue, using an expected value method, that it expects to be entitled to in return for performance of the Degrees services, subject to assessment of the significant future reversal constraint discussed above. These estimates are continually evaluated until such time as the uncertainties are resolved, generally at the time the final term enrollment report is provided by the university partner. 4) Allocate the transaction price to performance obligations in the contract Contracts that contain multiple performance obligations require an allocation of the transaction price to each performance obligation based on each performance obligation’s relative standalone selling price. As noted above, for Consumer and Enterprise customers, access to the Company’s platform and related support services are considered one performance obligation in the context of the contract and, accordingly, the transaction price is allocated to this single performance obligation. Similarly, Degrees services are considered one performance obligation and the transaction price is allocated to this single performance obligation. 5) Recognize revenue when or as performance obligations are satisfied Revenue is recognized at the time the related performance obligation is satisfied by transferring the control of the promised service to a customer. Revenue is recognized in an amount that reflects the consideration that the Company expects to receive in exchange for those services. Fees for access to the Company’s platform and related support services by Consumer and Enterprise customers are considered one performance obligation, and the related revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the contract term as the Company satisfies its performance obligation. The Company has a stand ready obligation to perform Degrees services continually throughout the period that the degree content is hosted on its platform. Degrees revenue is earned and paid by the university partner for each university term. As a result, revenue generated from each term is recognized ratably from the start of a term through the start of the following term. Contract Assets and Liabilities —Accounts receivable are recorded at the invoiced amount, net of an allowance for doubtful accounts in the period that the Company’s right to consideration is unconditional. Payment terms on invoiced amounts are typically 30-60 days. The timing of revenue recognition may differ from the timing of invoicing to customers. If revenue is recognized prior to the Company’s unconditional right to consideration, a contract asset is recorded. Deferred revenue consists of cash payments received in advance of performance obligations being delivered and is recorded as current or noncurrent based on the related period in which services will be provided. Contract Acquisition and Fulfillment Costs —Contract acquisition costs consist of sales commissions and related payroll taxes associated with obtaining contracts with Enterprise customers. Deferred Commissions —Customer acquisition costs are primarily related to sales commissions and related payroll taxes earned by the Company’s Enterprise sales force, which are incremental costs to obtaining a contract. Sales commissions and related payroll taxes for new and upsell Enterprise contracts are deferred and then amortized on a straight-line basis over the expected period of benefit, which is estimated to be three years. The Company determined the expected period of benefit by taking into consideration the length of terms in its Enterprise customer contracts, the life of the technology, and other factors. The Company amortizes these costs over three years since the commissions paid upon a contract renewal are not commensurate with the commissions paid on the initial contract and as such, the sales contract period is not commensurate with the expected period of benefit. Commissions and related payroll taxes paid for Enterprise contract renewals are amortized over the renewal term, which is generally two years. Deferred commissions and related payroll taxes that will amortize within the succeeding 12-month period are classified as current and included in deferred costs in the consolidated balance sheets. The remaining balance is classified as noncurrent and included in other assets. Deferred Partner Fees —These fulfillment costs are paid to educator partners in advance of the Company’s performance obligations being completed; are recorded within current assets or other assets, depending on the timing of the related revenue recognition; and are amortized into cost of revenue ratably over the term of the access being provided. Cost of Revenue —Cost of revenue consists of content costs in the form of a fee paid to educator partners and expenses associated with the operation and maintenance of the Company’s platform. These expenses include the cost of servicing both paid learner and educator partner support requests, hosting and bandwidth costs, amortization of acquired technology and internal-use software, customer payment processing fees, and allocated depreciation and facilities costs. Fair Value Measurements —Fair value is defined as the price that would be received for an asset or the “exit price” that would be paid to transfer a liability in the principal or most advantageous market in an orderly transaction between independent market participants on the measurement date. The fair value hierarchy requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs, where available. This hierarchy prioritizes the inputs into three broad levels as follows: Level 1 inputs are quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities. Level 2 inputs are quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets or inputs that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly through market corroboration, for substantially the full term of the financial instrument. Level 3 inputs are unobservable inputs based on the Company’s own assumptions used to measure assets and liabilities at fair value. The classification of a financial asset or liability within the hierarchy is determined based on the lowest-level input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The Company’s assets and liabilities that were measured at fair value by level within the fair value hierarchy as of December 31, 2020 and 2021, are as follows: As of December 31, 2020 Fair Value Level 1 Level 2 Financial assets: Cash equivalents—money market funds $ 58,997 $ 58,997 $ — Marketable securities: Corporate debt securities 8,551 — 8,551 Commercial paper 26,469 — 26,469 U.S. government Treasury bills 170,382 170,382 — Total financial assets $ 264,399 $ 229,379 $ 35,020 As of December 31, 2021 Fair Value Level 1 Financial assets: Cash equivalents—money market funds $ 539,091 $ 539,091 Marketable securities: U.S. government Treasury bills 241,117 241,117 Total financial assets $ 780,208 $ 780,208 The Company remeasures certain assets, including intangible assets and its equity-method investment in a private company, at fair value on a nonrecurring basis when there are identifiable events or changes in circumstances that may have a significant adverse impact on the fair value of these assets. No such events or changes occurred during the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021 . Concentration of Credit Risk —Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentration of credit risk consist of cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities. The Company invests only in high-credit-quality instruments and maintains its cash equivalents and marketable securities in fixed-income securities. The Company places its cash primarily with domestic financial institutions that are federally insured within statutory limits. For purposes of assessing concentration of credit risk and significant customers, a group of customers under common control or customers that are affiliates of each other are regarded as a single customer. For the years ended December 31, 2019, 2020 and 2021 , the Company did not have any customers that accounted for more than 10 % of the Company’s revenue. As of December 31, 2020, the Company had one customer that accounted for 21 % of its net accounts receivable balance, and as of December 31, 2021, no customer accounted for more than 10 % of its net accounts receivable balance. Income Taxes —The Company is subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required in determining its income tax expense and deferred tax assets and liabilities, including evaluating uncertainties in the application of accounting principles and complex tax laws. The Company utilizes the asset and liability method under which deferred tax assets and liabilities arise from the temporary differences between the tax basis of an asset or liability and its reported amount in the consolidated financial statements, as well as from net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax amounts are determined by using the tax rates expected to be in effect when the taxes will actually be paid or refunds received, as provided for under currently enacted tax law. A valuation allowance is established if, based upon the available evidence, it is more likely than not that some or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The Company considers all available evidence, both positive and negative, including historical levels of income, expectations, and risks associated with estimates of future taxable income in assessing the need for a valuation allowance. Net deferred tax assets as of December 31, 2021 was included in other assets in the consolidated balance sheet. The Company regularly reviews its tax positions and benefits to be realized. The Company recognizes tax liabilities based upon its estimate of whether and the extent to which additional taxes will be due when such estimates are more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by the taxing authority. An uncertain income tax position will be recognized only if it is more likely than not to be sustained. The Company recognizes interest and penalties related to income tax matters as income tax expense. Stock-Based Compensation —The Company measures and recognizes compensation expense for stock options, restricted stock units and awards granted to employees, directors, and service providers based on the estimated fair value on the date of the grant. The fair value of each option award is estimated on the grant date using the Black-Scholes option pricing model. The fair value of each restricted stock unit is based on the fair value of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant. The Company estimates the fair value of the shares to be issued under the employee stock purchase plan, or ESPP, using the Black-Scholes option pricing model at the commencement of an offering period. Stock-based compensation is generally recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period. The Company also grants certain awards that have performance-based vesting conditions. Stock-based compensation expense for such awards is recognized using an accelerated attribution method from the time it is deemed probable that the vesting condition will be met through the time the service-based vesting condition has been achieved. The Company recognizes forfeitures as they occur. Net Loss Per Share Attributable to Common Stockholders —Basic and diluted net loss per share attributable to common stockholders is computed in conformity with the two-class method required for participating securities. The Company considers all series of its redeemable convertible preferred stock to be participating securities as the holders of such stock have the right to receive nonforfeitable dividends on a pari passu basis in the event that a dividend is paid on common stock. Under the two-class method, the net loss attributable to common stockholders is not allocated to the redeemable convertible preferred stock as the preferred stockholders do not have |