A growing number of technology companies are experimenting with generative AI to create tools for children, but many of these products still rely heavily on text or voice-based interactions. For younger audiences, that approach often falls flat. A new startup called Sparkli, created by three former Google employees, is trying to change that by turning learning into an interactive, story-driven experience powered by AI.
Sparkli was launched last year by Lax Poojary, Lucie Marchand, and Myn Kang. Two of the founders are parents, and their own experiences at home shaped the idea behind the app. When their children asked big questions — about weather, space, or machines — AI chatbots could technically explain the answers, but the format wasn’t engaging for kids. Reading long explanations or listening to abstract responses didn’t match how children naturally learn.
Before starting Sparkli, Poojary and Kang had already built products inside Google’s internal incubator, Area 120, including a travel discovery platform and a video-based shopping app. Marchand, now Sparkli’s CTO, also worked on those projects and later held engineering roles at Google. With Sparkli, the trio wanted to apply their technical background to a very different challenge: keeping kids curious and involved.
Instead of static lessons, Sparkli creates what the company calls learning “expeditions.” Children can explore predefined topics or ask their own questions, which instantly generate a personalized learning journey. Each topic is broken into chapters that blend audio, visuals, short videos, quizzes, and simple games. There’s also a daily featured topic to encourage regular exploration, and kids can choose to read along or listen.
Behind the scenes, generative AI assembles all of this content in real time, often within minutes of a question being asked. The company says it is continuously working to make this process even faster. Unlike many general-purpose AI assistants, Sparkli was designed specifically for education. Early hires included experts in educational science and teaching to ensure the content aligns with sound learning principles.
Safety is another major focus. Certain topics are entirely restricted, while sensitive questions are handled carefully, encouraging emotional awareness and communication with trusted adults rather than offering harmful guidance.
Sparkli is currently being tested in schools and has already been used by tens of thousands of students. Teachers can monitor progress, assign activities, and use the app to kick off classroom discussions. For now, the startup is prioritizing school partnerships, with plans to release a parent-accessible version of the app by mid-2026.
Backed by $5 million in pre-seed funding, Sparkli aims to offer kids something rare in digital learning: an experience that feels more like exploration than homework.
