Sparkli raises $5 million to build AI learning apps for children

Sparkli, an AI-powered learning app for children aged 5-12, has raised $5 million in early-stage investment (pre-seed funding) led by Swiss venture firm Founderful. The startup was founded last year by former Google employees Lax Poojary, Lucie Marchand, and Myn Kang. The founders, drawing on their background at Google, designed the platform to address the limitations of text-based AI assistants when answering children’s questions.

The platform moves beyond text-based AI by creating interactive “expeditions”—learning modules that use generative AI to create audio, video, and games on the fly. Sparkli can create a learning experience within two minutes of a user asking a question. The startup’s approach focuses on the method and practice of teaching (pedagogy) and educational science; its first two hires were a PhD holder in educational science and AI and a teacher. Poojary noted that while fifty years ago a child asking about Mars would be shown a picture, technology has evolved. “Ten years ago, we might have shown them a video. With Sparkli, we want kids to interact and experience what Mars is like,” said Lax Poojary, founder of Sparkli.

Safety remains a primary concern for AI applications targeting children. AI developers OpenAI and Character.ai are facing lawsuits from parents who allege that these tools encouraged their children to self-harm. To address these risks, Sparkli has implemented safety guardrails: when a child asks about topics like self-harm, the app tries to teach them about emotional intelligence and encourages them to talk to their parents.

Sparkli is currently piloting its application with an institute that has a network of schools with over 100,000 students, having tested the product in over 20 schools last year. Teachers in the school pilots have used Sparkli to create expeditions for students to explore at the start of class, leading into discussion-based formats, or as homework to measure understanding. While the company plans to work primarily with schools globally for the next few months, it wants to open up consumer access and let parents download the app by mid-2026. Lukas Weder, founding partner at Founderful, noted that the platform helps children learn topics like financial literacy or innovation in technology in an immersive way, steering them away from video games.

Why it matters

Sparkli represents a shift in edtech from static text-based AI to immersive, interactive experiences, aiming to solve the engagement gap in traditional K-12 learning while navigating the safety concerns inherent in AI for children.