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Adaptive AI study platform
StudyStash has been acquired by edtech company Kortext, a year after its
founders graduated from the University of Birmingham. Financial terms of the
acquisition were not disclosed.
StudyStash was founded by
Ben Ward and Jonathan Graham, who met while studying computer science at the
University of Birmingham and working together on PwC’s technology degree
apprenticeship. The platform began as a way for the pair to turn their own course
notes into study materials before developing into a business through the
university’s Elevate incubator programme.
StudyStash is an adaptive
learning platform that turns course content into personalised flashcards,
practice tests and podcasts. Its technology adapts as students learn, helping
them focus on weaker areas while giving lecturers and student success teams insight
into where support is needed. The platform integrates with learning management
systems including Canvas, Blackboard and Moodle.
The University of
Birmingham became StudyStash’s first customer. The platform is now used by tens
of thousands of students across more than 160 institutions in the UK, Europe,
the US and Africa, including California State University, Minnesota State, Colorado
State, the University of Oulu and RCSI University of Medicine and Health
Sciences.
StudyStash also partners
with California’s community college system and EAB, a US consultancy working
with more than 2,800 higher education institutions. Its advisory board includes
senior figures from UCL, Imperial College London and the University of Oxford.
Ben Ward, co-founder and CEO
of StudyStash, said the platform was initially created to address a problem he
and Graham had encountered themselves. After seeing strong early interest and
recognising its potential to support a wider group of learners, they decided to
turn the project into their first venture:
Since launch, we’ve
raised equity finance, scaled to 160+ institutions on three continents, broken
into the US market and now been acquired by one of the largest e-learning
providers in the field. We’ve proven we can build, sell and scale and now
Kortext gives us the reach to drive StudyStash to reach its full potential.
Founded in 2013, Kortext
works with thousands of universities worldwide, providing digital content,
analytics and AI-powered workflow solutions for teaching, learning and student
engagement. The acquisition adds StudyStash to its portfolio of learning technologies
and expands its ability to support institutions in the UK, North America and
other markets adopting AI-supported approaches to teaching and learning.
According to Kortext founder and CEO James Gray, the future of educational AI will depend on solutions that institutions can trust and that can improve learning outcomes:
StudyStash brings powerful capabilities that
complement our existing strengths and accelerate our AI strategy, while extending
our reach further into teaching and learning workflows.
Together, we will help
institutions embrace AI responsibly, support educators more effectively, and
create richer, more personalised learning experiences that help students
achieve their full potential.
Following the acquisition,
Ward and Graham will remain CEO and CTO of StudyStash, respectively and will
continue to lead the company as a distinct brand. With half of StudyStash’s
customers already based in the US, the founders are relocating to Silicon Valley
as the company continues its expansion in the region.