The Startup bringing AI-Powered SMS-Based Learning to Kenya Actifatemag

Tech solutions are improving learning outcomes across the developed world, but Africa is being left out from the opportunity due to a lack of solutions delivered via basic mobile technology – a gap Kenyan edtech startup M-Shule is determined to address. The developed world is seeing advanced technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning have a great impact on improving the effectiveness of education, as these new solutions lend themselves to a more personalised learning process. However, the majority of edtech innovation is premised on reliable internet connectivity, and assumes users have access to smart devices. "This leaves out the mass majority of students in Sub-Saharan Africa," says Claire Mongeau, chief executive officer (CEO) of M-Shule. The idea for M-Shule was born in late 2016, when co-founders Mongeau and chief technology officer (CTO) Julie Otieno decided to create a mobile platform capable of bringing the benefits of AI-powered personalised learning to any and every student through SMS. "I worked in education for about six years in India, the US, and Kenya, where I realised that everywhere parents and students were investing so much time and energy into education, but there just weren't always the best tools available to them," Mongeau says.