Discussions have been increasing in Lithuania about how artificial intelligence will change learning – but BBright is already doing it. The team founded just a few years ago is now helping thousands of school pupils in Lithuania to learn maths more efficiently, and the Elicėjus platform they are developing has already been recognised internationally. It has been recently selected for the Google.org-funded Grow AI Accelerator and received USD 140 000.

The idea to create a personalised learning platform came from personal experience rather than from market analysis, since both Mantas Vičius, the co-founder of the platform, and his classmates struggled with maths at school. “We didn’t know where to start – the gaps kept piling up, until eventually we didn’t know where exactly we were stuck,” he says. Having subsequently examined the national statistics, they realised that it was a systemic problem: 35% of graduates fail the maths exam and 40% fail the evaluation of basic education achievements.

Their response to this situation was Elicėjus, a platform that helps pupils to find out what they don’t know and get exactly what they are missing. Artificial intelligence identifies gaps in knowledge, and expert teachers provide content – lessons, videos, tasks and gamified activities – to help pupils learn in a targeted way. The system is designed for school pupils in grades 5–12 and is in line with the updated curriculum.

It all started at school

Although the idea came from personal experience, the founders of BBright did not start from scratch. While still studying at school, they participated in the Lithuanian Junior Achievement (LJA) programme. Subsequently, Mantas Vičius became involved in the organisation as a mentor, and BBright raised its first investment of EUR 200 000 from the LJA Endowment Fund Jaunaragiai, the MJJ Foundation and business angels. According to Mr Vičius, LJA’s mentors encouraged the team to take the next step by joining the TechHub pre-accelerator run by Startup Lithuania of the Innovation Agency Lithuania.

“TechHub was the place where everything took shape. The programme attracted the first teachers who believed in the idea and started creating content. We developed a business model, understood how deploying solutions in education really works, what the barriers and opportunities are. What’s also very important is that we received mentoring from people who had already built successful startups,” he says.

From product to breakthrough

After the TechHub programme by Startup Lithuania, BBright already had a platform on the market. But the successful launch was only the beginning. A breakthrough was needed – both in terms of technology and growth. The next accelerator, Edu Challenger, curated by the Startup Lithuania at Innovation Agency Lithuania, helped to make that step.

“At that time, we already had a product that was in its second school year, but it was clear that we wanted more. We wanted to double the number of active users – from 15 000 to 30 000 – and fundamentally improve teachers’ access to data, so that they could see even more accurately their pupils’ learning gaps,” adds Mr Vičius.

Edu Challenger has not only helped to achieve these goals, but also to improve the algorithms of the platform. With the help of mentors, BBright has strengthened the gap diagnosis model, added more educational content, and made the analytical part of the platform much more advanced. This has added value not only for pupils, but also for their teachers. In addition, the international nature of the programme has opened up another important horizon: collaboration with experts from other countries.

“From the very first steps in the TechHub pre-accelerator, the BBright team stood out for its clear vision, rapid growth and perseverance. Their biggest advantage is their stubborn and focused team, who know exactly what they want to achieve. We are happy that they came back and successfully took advantage of the Edu Challenger opportunities, which shows their consistent and purposeful growth,” shares Karolina Urbonaitė, Head of Startup Lithuania at Innovation Agency Lithuania.

These steps have not only allowed the team to grow, but also to prepare for a new, international challenge. Selection for the Grow AI Accelerator, funded by Google.org, was their most recent step towards an even bigger breakthrough for the platform.

International recognition

The team found out about the opportunity to participate in the Grow AI Accelerator through the EdTech Lithuania community. “Phrases such as Google-funded and AI theme have caught my eye, and I thought that we have to give it a try,” recalls Mr Vičius. And it was definitely worth a try – out of hundreds of startups, only 15 were selected, and BBright was the only Lithuanian startup among them.

BBright also received funding in the amount of USD 140 000. According to Mr Vičius, the funding will be used to improve the algorithms of gap identification of Elicėjus and an even deeper AI integration. The aim is to more accurately meet the needs of each pupil and provide the teacher with more detailed progress data.

According to Mr Vičius, this is just another step on their growth path, which would not have been so consistent without the help of various programmes. TechHub and Edu Challenger have not only given them the knowledge and skills, but also the confidence: “I feel like I’ve been in this ecosystem for a while now and I see how many young people are trying to make it. Everyone is looking for knowledge, mentoring, encouragement. And when there are programmes around which provide that, it means a lot,” he adds.