Excellence Learning

What do they actually do

Excellence Learning offers an AI‑guided math and science learning app on the web and iPad. Students work through interactive exercises with step‑by‑step hints designed to get them unstuck without simply giving answers, and progress is tracked for oversight. The product has distinct student and teacher experiences, with teacher controls to assign work and supervise how the AI helps students (homepage, app entry, third‑party summary).

Today they target U.S. families who would otherwise pay for after‑school tutoring and programs, while also supporting classroom use by teachers. The app is available via web and mobile (iOS/Android) distribution, indicating active use across devices (YC profile, App Store, Google Play).

Who are their target customer(s)

• Parents who pay for private tutors or programs: Tutoring is expensive, hard to schedule, and quality varies. They want a lower‑cost option they can monitor that shows steady, measurable improvement (YC profile, homepage).
• High‑school students (ambitious and struggling): They get stuck on steps in math/science and lose confidence when tools just give answers. They need interactive, adaptive help that teaches problem‑solving, not just solutions (homepage, summary).
• Classroom teachers who need to differentiate: They lack time for 1:1 attention and worry about tools that reduce their control. They need assignable AI support with oversight and tweakable settings that fit class workflows (homepage).
• Schools/districts evaluating edtech: They need classroom‑ready tools that integrate into existing workflows, provide reliable progress data, and don’t add teacher burden; alignment and accountability are essential (YC profile, homepage).
• After‑school/tutoring center operators: Hiring enough qualified tutors is hard and quality varies at scale. They need a more scalable way to deliver tailored practice and track outcomes without proportional staffing costs (YC profile).

How would they acquire their first 10, 50, and 100 customers

• First 10: Run founder‑led pilots with families and 1–2 local tutoring centers, offering hands‑on onboarding and daily check‑ins to guarantee outcomes and collect teacher/student testimonials and a classroom demo (homepage, YC profile).
• First 50: Expand locally via targeted Facebook/Instagram/Nextdoor ads, weekend community demos, and referral incentives for early families; onboard a few centers to prescribe or white‑label the app to reach many students at once (App Store).
• First 100: Sell short paid pilots to nearby schools/districts using teacher dashboards and curriculum alignment, add a part‑time K–12 rep for outreach/RFPs, close reseller deals with regional tutoring chains, and improve in‑app trial-to-paid conversion with better onboarding and published case studies.

What is the rough total addressable market

Top-down context:

U.S. high‑school math/science tutoring spend is plausibly in the low billions annually; global K‑12 online tutoring is estimated around several billion with North America a major share (IMARC).

Bottom-up calculation:

~15.5M U.S. high‑school students × ~20% tutored ≈ 3.1M tutored students (NCES, EdChoice). At $375–$3,000 per student per year, TAM ≈ $1.2B–$9.3B; focusing on math/science (~50% share) yields a SAM around $0.6B–$4.6B, with a mid‑case near ~$1.5B (FutureEd, TutorCruncher rates).

Assumptions:

• ~20% of high‑schoolers receive paid tutoring in a typical period (EdChoice).
• Math/science represent ~50% of high‑school tutoring demand.
• Mid‑case average spend of ~$1,000 per tutored student per year, with $375–$3,000 reflecting light to intensive programs (FutureEd, TutorCruncher).

Who are some of their notable competitors

• Khanmigo / Khan Academy: AI tutor and teacher assistant built on Khan Academy’s content, offering parent/learner subscriptions and extensive free teacher tools and district workflows; strong content and partnerships, but often routed via district/nonprofit access rather than a parent‑driven tutoring replacement (overview, pricing & district info).
• Photomath: Mobile camera solver with step‑by‑step solutions and animated tutorials; popular for fast homework help, but primarily an individual study tool rather than a program with multi‑session progress tracking or classroom assignment controls (product).
• Carnegie Learning (MATHia / LiveHint AI): Enterprise K‑12 vendor with MATHia, a 1:1 math coach experience plus teacher dashboards and district deployments; strong for classroom adoption and studies, but heavier on enterprise sales vs. parent‑driven after‑school use (MATHia, LiveHint AI).
• ALEKS (McGraw Hill): Adaptive mastery and placement platform across math and chemistry for K‑12 and higher ed; competes on precise assessment and breadth, with institutional licensing and family options, but centers on mastery workflows over an AI tutor UX with teacher‑controlled hints (ALEKS, McGraw Hill overview).
• Mathspace: Adaptive math platform with step‑level feedback, hints, and video help in a digital workbook; targets schools and parents with teacher reports and district adoptions, positioned more as curriculum/practice than an after‑school tutor replacement (product).