Schoolnet acqui-hires NextSteps AI to enhance deep-tech capabilities to personalise education at scale
New Delhi: Schoolnet India Ltd, a unique and leading EdTech company that provides digital and digitally led education services to schools and students, today announced that it has acqi-hired NextSteps AI into its team. NextSteps AI is deep-tech (AI/ML) start-up, incubated at T-Hub, Hyderabad Start-up Hub, founded by Gowtham Kumar and Srinivas Adepu, mentored by Prof Shailesh Kumar, a globally acclaimed expert on AI and Data Science.
Playing an integral part in the digital and deep-tech capabilities of Schoolnet, Next Steps has been working with Schoolnet since its inception in 2016. The skills exchange platform jointly developed by the two organisations evolved into an investable proposition in the form of Temasek-backed JV with Schoolnet and others – named as Good Worker, in the year 2020. The Next Steps team has also been integral in the development of the Geneo platform – Schoolnet’s K12 learning app-based ecosystem, to enhance the learning outcomes of students in the Middle and the Bottom of the Pyramid segment.
“We’re very happy to join Schoolnet’s team. The opportunity to become part of Schoolnet India will enable us to be integrally part of the revolutionary phase that our nation is witnessing now in the education technology space. At NextSteps AI, we always believed in being a cohesive bunch of product innovators and we have been committed in building AI based solutions that are intuitively personalized for the Indian education community. I am really stoked to share a common vision with such a mission-driven organization like Schoolnet India.” Says, Gowtham Kumar R, Co-founder Nextsteps.
Commenting on the partnership, Mr. RCM Reddy, MD & CEO, Schoolnet said, “As we sharpen digital transformation of our K12 business,as two primary and synchronized offerings: Geneo School (digital classroom solution for in-school learning) and Geneo (for seamless after-school learning), we have decided to integrate the Next Steps team within Schoolnet to strengthen our deep-tech capability. With this transition we would be able to work as ‘one team’ and develop a cutting edge and differentiated product of Geneo which will help in realizing our dream of building a sustainable digital business, integrating profit with purpose. The team is tenacious, passionate, and committed to collectively realise this dream.”
About Geneo: Geneo, a flexible and affordable online learning platform is available both in-school and after-school formats. Geneo uses the digitised version of the school’s textbook, to which plethora of multi-sensory learning content is mapped to promote high engagement and application. It is supported by continuous assessments to help identify a child’s current learning state and provide a unique learning path (curated by an artificial intelligence algorithm) to achieve the desired state. It also comes along with the support teachers/mentor, available through live classes and chat. It is currently available for Classes VI-X in English and Hindi for CBSE, and in Bengali for West Bengal Board students.