Obrussa
Obrussa is launching a unique new network for learning. We believe that this service has the power to genuinely transform online education. It is based on an innovative and disruptive business model, which we believe will deliver fast revenue growth and global scale. At the core will lie unique and defensible IP, developed with university partners in the UK.
The Obrussa project has already won £320,000 in grant funding from InnovateUK, and taken in £150,000 in SEIS investment. After a successful prototype, the MVP is built and ready to launch. This funding round will allow us to prove the commercial potential.
For free users, Obrussa will understand learner needs, recommend content and make connections between people. For pro users, we will provide a compelling product set for smart assessment and collaborative learning. We are targeting private tutors first, then schools and other organisations.
Try the product at www.obrussa.com, and discover its disruptive potential.
There are thousands of free learning resources online, with more added every day, and hundred of millions of learners and educators. Yet nothing is dedicated to connecting them – learner, content and educator. We believe Obrussa will change this, and in the process have a major impact on online learning.
From the start, we will offer teachers and learners a wide range of useful tools. Some of these will be free; others available as premium features.
Educators will be able to:
– Easily assess learners online, and to go on assessing them for the duration of their courses.
– See patterns in the skills and knowledge of groups. Spot and address gaps and outliers.
– Benchmark against peers and broader norms.
– Eliminate manual marking chores.
– Find, connect and communicate with learners and peers online in a safe and dedicated environment.
Learners will be able to:
– Take practice tests, see weak points and get instant feedback.
– Get learning recommendations from Obrussa, peers and educators.
– Ask for and find help from educators and peers.
– Build up a profile over time and get to know their needs, taking control.
These features will change learning for the better, as they:
– Help learners plan their own education.
– Allow educators teach more effectively, by understanding learner needs.
– Connect learners to educators.
– Open the door to parents.
– Create a market for assessment content, and links to learning resources.
– Allow experts and educators to build reputations and attract followers and customers.
We believe that it will be possible to cultivate an ecosystem of professionals and of innovative assessment content on the Obrussa platform.
Obrussa’s concept will benefit all of the stakeholders in education. Those without the financial means to subscribe will be able to gain significant benefit from the platform. But there will be a powerful extra feature set for available for subscribers to the professional product.
– We’ve developed a unique concept with that we feel has the power to transform global education. Industry experts, teachers and learners see the value.
– Through one of InnovateUK’s competitions, “Data Exploration – Creating New Insight and Value”, we won a grant worth £320,000, in partnership with the University of Essex. Professor Maria Fasli, the Lead Investigator, is a prominent expert in the data science techniques that will underpin our smart recommendations and connections.
– We built a prototype solution which is now hosted in the Cloud and supports the complete assessment process for teachers and students. This has been used by approximately 6 teachers and 50 students for GCSE Maths.
– Positive feedback has contributed to main product design.
– Minimum version of main product is completed.
– Technical infrastructure, build automation and test automation is in place.
– Assessment content for GCSE Maths is 80% complete and will be finished for September 2015 (new curriculum).
– We will complete the initial product build, focusing in particular on upgrade and pro features.
– Build the infrastructure for the software-as-a-service business (e.g. customer onboarding, support and retention, customer analytics).
– We will develop our network through marketing, mainly online, and through providing a great customer experience.
– We will build an online customer support operation.
– We will develop content to seed markets where necessary.
– We will develop partnerships with content providers.