Keep Going Zaya!

Neil D’Souza, the founder and investor of Ed-tech startup Zaya, realized the inabilities of the school system in India after he moved to North Carolina, US, in 2003 to study engineering. He realized the problem wasn’t limited to the country and something should be done about it. In 2011, he moved to India from Mongolia to build a company that uses technology to access the content and teachers; thus, bridging the gap in education systems at home and abroad. The company chose to invest on research and development instead of a sales team.

At present, Zaya Learning Lab is accessed by approximately 50,000 students till fifth grade around the world and is close to its breakeven point. How exactly Zaya works? It is a device with embedded software that is equipped with high-quality learning materials like videos and interactive assignments for students in subjects varying from Mathematics to English. It can be operated via classroom labs or personal tablets.

Zaya can work with and without internet, which benefits most of India since it still has very poor or no internet access. The teacher can assign a to-do list through Zaya for both types of students to go home and refer to the learning materials provided, and get reports of where each of them needs to focus more.

Pearson Affordable Learning Fund has backed Zaya. It is not the only one. Other Ed-tech start-ups like Vidyanext (by Pengala Learning Pvt. Ltd), flipClass (by Gyankosh Solutions Pvt. Ltd), and Tiger Global backed Vedantu Innovations Pvt. Ltd are also eyeing for business opportunity in the education sector.

Takeaways:

• At present, Zaya Learning Lab is accessed by approximately 50,000 students till fifth grade around the world and is close to its breakeven point.
• Zaya uses a state-of-the-art technology to access the content and teachers; thus, bridging the gap in education systems at home and abroad.