Bengaluru-based Educational Initiatives (Ei) is on a mission to infuse technology into education to break free from mechanical learning patterns. This ed-tech powerhouse is dedicated to crafting assessments that prioritise critical thinking and comprehension. Its innovative approach empowers educational institutions to usher students through a progressive learning journey across diverse subjects.
Pranav Kothari, the CEO of Ei, elaborates on the company’s B2B business model: “Our strategy can be dissected into two primary components.” Ei operates within the realm of private schools, encompassing the top 10% that levy fees of at least `40,000 per annum. “For this segment, we offer our services on a per-child, per-product, per-year basis. The school then issues a consolidated payment, which they gather from parents.”
However, Ei extends its services to the lower 50% of schools in India, catering to a student demographic that often struggles to secure three meals a day. “Considering the challenges faced by these students’ families, we recognise that imposing charges on their parents is unfeasible.” In response, Ei undertakes a philanthropic stance, securing financial support from corporate CSR initiatives and charitable organisations aligned with their vision.
According to Kothari, Ei is the only edtech company in India to have gone through five different independent evaluations on their product, with some of its offerings featured in Harvard Business School case studies and reviewed by researchers at MIT and Stanford.
Currently, Ei generates data on student learning for teachers and schools with no separate monetisation of the data. “All of our data complies with top European standards. We have a child protection policy and a data protection policy in place, so we do not sell any one single child’s data,” he says.
Amidst the continuous turbulence in the Indian ed-tech ecosystem, he holds the view that a truly viable ed-tech enterprise is one that can levy fees on parents, government entities, schools, or any entity ready to compensate, proportionate to the value delivered to them.