OctiLearn’s Abubakar Sial is on a Quest to Build the World’s Smartest Learning Ecosystem

Hi, Abubakar. Thank you for being here. Let’s get started. How did your interest in physics and STEM begin? And then we can talk about how you transitioned into education and later into EdTech.

My interest in physics has been there for as long as I can remember. I can’t pinpoint exactly when it began, but by the time I approached high school, particularly around grade nine, it had become a strong focus for me. Looking back, I think it’s because physics lends itself well to logical reasoning and critical thinking—both of which resonate deeply with me. I was also fascinated by the engineering aspect of physics—building things, bringing ideas together, and creating solutions to solve problems. Physics stood out because it’s highly relatable; among the sciences, it’s the one you see most frequently in the world around you. This relatability made it a natural choice for me to pursue something related to physics and math.

That’s fascinating. Did your interest in logical reasoning lead you towards education and teaching, perhaps as a way of sharing knowledge? I see that your career includes mentoring and tutoring early on, and later, more formal academic involvement.

Yes, absolutely. I started tutoring when I was a sophomore in college. I’ve always had a natural inclination to help others, especially with academic challenges. Growing up, I enjoyed studying and often took extra subjects not taught in school. I’d buy additional books and teach myself, which proved invaluable when it came to helping others. Tutoring allowed me to share my love for learning and support others in overcoming their academic struggles.

That’s great. How did you transition from an interest in STEM and academics to EdTech, where you’re creating solutions? What problem did you identify, and how did that lead to the development of your EdTech platform?

During my time in schools, I noticed significant inefficiencies in the traditional teaching and learning model. The system struggles to address individual learning gaps, leaving many students with suboptimal outcomes. For instance, when a teacher has 25 students, it’s impossible to ensure all their questions are answered. Over time, these gaps accumulate, and by the time exams approach, students face a daunting task of catching up.

My goal was to build a learning ecosystem that optimizes this cycle, making it more efficient. Academic underachievement isn’t caused by a single issue; it’s a multifaceted problem. Student-teacher ratios, minimal use of performance analytics, and the lack of on-demand academic support are just some of the factors. An AI tutor, for instance, addresses the immediacy gap. If a student has 20 questions but has to wait days for answers, many of those questions are forgotten or ignored. With an AI tutor, students can get instant support, enhancing their learning experience significantly.

Were you focused on specific types of students or academic programs when you started? And geographically, where did you launch, and what challenges did you face in that region?

We initially targeted students in Pakistan, particularly those following the Cambridge curriculum, such as IGCSE and A-Level programs for 14 to 18-year-olds. I chose the Cambridge curriculum because it’s standardized across 140 countries, offering scalability. Our framework, though, is curriculum-agnostic, designed to optimize learning irrespective of the educational system.

These fundamental problems—inefficient frameworks and lack of personalized support—exist globally, including in U.S. schools. Starting with IGCSE allowed us to address these issues while also creating a scalable model that can be adapted to other curricula over time.

What’s your approach for reaching these students? Are you targeting institutions or individual learners?

Right now, we’re focusing on individual students through referral and ambassador programs, as well as outreach on platforms like Reddit. Schools typically require highly refined products, and as a startup, it’s challenging to meet those expectations in the early stages. Additionally, institutional decision-making cycles are slow, often restricted to certain times of the year.

The B2C model allows us to iterate rapidly based on direct feedback from students. By building a student-centric platform, we can better understand their needs and refine our solutions. Once we’ve honed the product, collaboration with schools will become a viable option.

That makes sense. How do you characterize your student acquisition efforts? You mentioned Reddit—are there other approaches you’re exploring?

Currently, we support three subjects—physics, chemistry, and biology—for the Cambridge curriculum. Referral programs have been a powerful tool for us. Students share our solution within their networks, helping us grow organically. Platforms like Reddit have also played a key role due to their diverse and international user base. This approach has allowed us to attract students more than 60 countries, providing invaluable feedback to refine our offerings.

What are these students typically aiming for? Are they primarily looking to meet high school requirements or preparing for university admissions?

Most students taking the IGCSE and A-Level exams aim to secure admissions to universities. Many aspire to attend U.S. institutions due to the availability of financial aid and scholarships, which make them more accessible compared to universities in the UK or elsewhere. While some pursue local universities in Pakistan, U.S. colleges remain a top choice for their affordability and opportunities.

Do you provide guidance on financial aid or admissions, or is your focus solely on tutoring?

While our primary focus is on academics, I’m very interested in expanding OctiLearn’s ecosystem to include college counseling in the future. For example, I’ll soon be hosting a session to help students craft impactful Common App essays for U.S. colleges. Writing these essays is often the most challenging part of the application process, as many high schoolers struggle with effective writing. Providing mentorship in this area can significantly enhance their applications.

Absolutely. Taking a step back, what’s the main vision you have for OctiLearn? Are you thinking about expanding to other standardized tests, or do you envision offering services beyond that? How do you imagine OctiLearn operating in the future?

The vision is to build what could practically be the world’s smartest adaptive learning platform—one that factors in students’ strengths, weaknesses, behavior on the app, and usage patterns. For instance, what is the frequency with which they use it? What are they doing during their sessions? As students interact with the platform, we want to analyze their areas of strength and identify where they are struggling. Using this data, we can create individual student profiles and map specific learning resources to their weaknesses, allowing us to target and address those gaps effectively.

The system will essentially do the heavy lifting: determining what students need to focus on, the frequency of practice, and the sequence of topics. Students will only need to allocate time to interact with the platform, which will function as their personal learning assistant.

Let’s consider a manual scenario: a student studying physics might need to cover 20 topics. They’re unlikely to analyze in detail which concepts they excel in and which they struggle with. Most students won’t systematically allocate more time to weaker areas—it’s a tedious process. However, with our platform, this analysis is automated. By helping students focus on their weaknesses and step out of their comfort zones, we can accelerate their learning curve and produce noticeable improvements. This approach leverages the same principle we often hear: to achieve the greatest growth, you need to work on your weaknesses. In academics, this means zoning in on those gaps, tackling them head-on, and reaping the rewards of targeted effort.

That’s fascinating. This logical approach obviously underpins OctiLearn. How do you integrate principles of logical reasoning and critical thinking into product development and the internal processes of your startup?

That’s a great question. Logical reasoning is intrinsic to our approach, and we apply it rigorously during product development and decision-making. For example, when we conduct demos or run focus groups with students, I always encourage them to be completely honest about what they like and don’t like. Students often hesitate to provide negative feedback, especially when interacting with someone they perceive as a teacher or authority figure. To remove this barrier, I sometimes step out of the process and have other students lead the focus groups.

When we receive input—positive or negative—we take it seriously and try to understand its rationale. If their feedback contradicts my initial assumptions, I prioritize their perspective unless I have a compelling reason to dismiss it. The key is to approach feedback from a neutral standpoint, seeing the app as a product separate from myself. This mindset allows us to address challenges objectively and refine the platform in ways that genuinely resonate with students.

Absolutely. Internally, how is OctiLearn structured? How many people are on the team, and what roles do they play?

Our team currently consists of six to eight people, depending on ongoing projects. We have a couple of developers and a tech lead handling the software side, a few people working on academic content creation, one person focused on UI/UX design, and another dedicated to marketing. My role involves overseeing these domains and ensuring everything aligns with our vision.

What aspects of your work do you find most rewarding, and which are the most challenging? Are there tasks you enjoy more, or others that you find particularly difficult?

Creating academic content, particularly physics, is straightforward for me, though it can be time-consuming. The most rewarding aspect, however, is product development. Seeing the app take shape—starting from an initial framework I designed—gives me immense satisfaction, especially when students share positive feedback about its usability and impact. It’s incredibly validating to know that our assessment of the solution aligns with what students need. For example, around 85–90% of the new features students suggest are already part of our roadmap, which reassures me that we’re heading in the right direction.

The most challenging aspect is fundraising. As a first-time founder, navigating the fundraising process without an established network has been particularly difficult. While I understand what investors look for—product, team, traction, differentiation, and growth potential—the feedback from investors can be inconsistent. For instance, one might cite customer acquisition costs as a concern, while another might focus on a completely different issue. Evaluating this feedback objectively is tricky, as investors don’t always have the same depth of understanding about the problem or solution as the founder does. This dynamic makes it hard to discern which concerns to prioritize.

That makes sense. Shifting gears to marketing, how are you managing outreach and brand growth? I noticed your website has a waitlist. Are you focused on scaling now or preparing for a larger marketing push later?

Currently, we’re focused on growing with minimal expenses, given our self-funded status. While we initially had a waitlist, we’ve since moved to a freemium offering to allow for broader signups. Our primary marketing efforts revolve around leveraging student networks through referral and ambassador programs. Social media plays a role, but it’s not our main driver for signups. Platforms like Reddit, where the user base is diverse and engaged, have been particularly effective for reaching our target audience.

One challenge with traditional social media is the sheer volume of competing ads and posts. Education companies often follow a similar model—offering live tutoring sessions, which are essentially digital versions of traditional classrooms. In contrast, we’re building a comprehensive adaptive learning ecosystem, which sets us apart. However, this distinction can get lost in the noise. By focusing on organic growth through student networks, we’re able to scale cost-effectively. Activating these networks, even with incentives, is far more impactful than conventional social media campaigns. Reddit, for example, consistently outperforms other platforms in terms of signups, at least in our experience.

Okay, great. From the fundraising perspective, have you had any experience attending events or meetings specifically aimed at raising capital?

Yes, I have. I’ve attended Gitex, a major tech event held annually in Dubai around October. It’s a massive gathering, featuring thousands of startups—probably between 1,000 and 2,000—and an equal number of established companies like Google, Microsoft, AWS, Zoom, and many others. I also attended the Web Summit in Qatar this March. It’s a similar event but on a smaller scale since they’re just starting to build it out and plan to expand it over time.

Honestly, these events are great for marketing and exposure, but when it comes to raising capital, they’re not as effective as people might think. In my experience, investments don’t typically happen at these events. Investors generally operate within their own networks to find deals. Of course, you’ll see investors attending these events to get a sense of what’s happening in the industry, and some events offer pitch competitions with prizes like $100,000 or $200,000. These competitions are fantastic for creating buzz around the event itself and selling booth spaces, but they’re not the best place for a startup to focus on raising money.

That said, if the goal is marketing and building exposure, these events can be incredibly valuable. They’re also a great learning experience. You get to see what others are working on—not just in EdTech, but across various industries. The energy is high, the optimism is contagious, and it feels like innovation is happening all around you. That’s the part I enjoy most. However, for startups specifically seeking investment, these events are not the ideal avenue.

Yeah, definitely. Shifting gears, you mentioned earlier that you enjoy creating content. Can you tell me more about the kind of content you create? Is it for the platform, blogs, or something else?

The content I primarily work on is academic content, particularly in the sciences. I genuinely enjoy writing, but there’s always so much else to do. We’ve also been considering adding blogs to the website to educate or inform our audience about relevant topics. However, with limited resources, we have to prioritize carefully.

In addition to academic content, I’ve also written numerous recommendation letters for students applying to colleges, particularly for those in the top 1%. I’ve also worked with students on their application essays. Writing has always been something I’ve enjoyed, even though it can be mentally exhausting. I find it therapeutic and a great way to relax while contributing value.

Let’s talk about branding. How do you approach the OctiLearn brand, and how has it evolved? Have you faced any challenges in building the brand?

We’re still in the process of solidifying the OctiLearn brand, but our vision is clear. We want OctiLearn to stand as a symbol of personal excellence, inspiring students to achieve their full potential. Our system is designed to help students unlock that potential by providing a structured and supportive learning experience.

This ethos extends beyond the app itself. For example, we recently had 50 interns join us for a short-term program. Many of them had never experienced the inner workings of a startup before, so I made it a point to personally engage with them, explaining how startups operate. By the end of the program, many interns expressed how much they learned and how their initial expectations had been exceeded.

Our goal is to instill this spirit of excellence not just in our users, but also in anyone who works with us—whether they’re ambassadors, team members, or students. We emphasize developing diverse skill sets and fostering critical qualities like resilience. I strongly believe resilience is the single most important trait for success in a startup. It’s not something you can teach directly, but you can nurture it by exposing people to challenges and guiding them through problem-solving scenarios. This is particularly valuable for young people aged 17 or 18, as it equips them to navigate the inevitable curveballs life will throw at them.

Great, absolutely. Switching topics, how many students are you currently serving?

We’re currently serving about 2,000 students, with an additional couple of hundred on the waitlist for our A-Level program. There’s significant demand for A-Level support, which has always been part of our roadmap since IGCSE and A-Level are interconnected. Expanding into A-Level is a priority, but it requires additional resources. Fundraising will be crucial to scaling this offering and meeting student demand. Students are also requesting additional subjects, like math, which is very popular. While we’d love to accommodate everything, as a startup, we have to pace ourselves. Each week, we’re seeing around 8–10% growth in active users, which is encouraging.

How long have you been building OctiLearn? Can you take me through its journey from inception to now?

The idea for OctiLearn was conceived in late 2020. At that time, I was working full-time, six days a week, so progress was slow. I’d use my one day off to work on the startup, taking small steps forward. Things began to gain momentum in late 2021. In 2023, I left my job to focus on OctiLearn full-time, which allowed us to accelerate development significantly.

In that time, what lessons have you learned about the EdTech space? Any key takeaways about entering, scaling, or succeeding in this market?

One major lesson I’ve learned is the importance of having a clear monetization strategy from the outset. Building a comprehensive ecosystem like ours requires significant funding. While I initially envisioned creating a powerful solution and raising funds later, the current investment landscape places greater emphasis on monetization and paths to profitability. Investors want to see clear evidence that users are willing to pay for your product.

Another key takeaway is to start with a highly specific solution. The initial version of OctiLearn was too complex, incorporating features that went far beyond an MVP. While these additions have enriched the platform, they also consumed time and resources. Narrowing the focus and prioritizing revenue generation from the earliest stages would have made the journey more efficient. For anyone entering EdTech today, my advice would be to validate your solution quickly, generate revenue early, and use that momentum to scale.

Right. Absolutely. Thinking about that, it occurs to me that, because you’re challenging traditional education models, many EdTech companies might aim at institutions as potential customers. However, since the reasoning behind your platform stems from the idea that traditional education is flawed, perhaps targeting institutions isn't the best path. Have you seen any specific types of institutions leaning toward less traditional models that might be interested in a platform like yours? Or do you think it’s more realistic for startups looking to disrupt the norm to carve out their own path?

Yes, actually, I’ve spoken with a school here in Pakistan—a very large one with about 200 to 300 campuses. They really liked our solution. However, at the time, it wasn’t developed enough for them to adopt. I plan to re-engage with them to explore a potential collaboration. They believed it could significantly benefit their students, and if we can establish an arrangement to make it available across their schools, we’d absolutely pursue that.

The advantage of working with a large school system is the scale. For instance, if you collaborate with a smaller school with 200 students, it’s meaningful, but it doesn’t significantly move the needle. On the other hand, a system with 100,000 or even 20,000–30,000 students is a game-changer. It provides predictable revenue, creating a strong baseline for sustainability while enabling aggressive growth.

Yeah, absolutely. I was also thinking about corporations. Many tech companies today don’t regard academic certifications as critical anymore. Do you see a potential path for a startup like yours to help people secure jobs through certifications or STEM-focused mentoring programs tailored for employment?

That could be an area to explore in the future, but it’s not something we’re prioritizing right now. Once we scale on the academic side and expand into additional curricula—such as SAT, GRE, and AP courses in the U.S.—we’ll have a substantial business with significant revenue potential, ranging from tens of millions to even $100 million annually.

For now, our focus is on solving the academic problem and integrating gamification into our platform. From a psychological perspective, gamification helps us identify optimal times to nudge students and encourage consistent engagement. Building an ecosystem that optimizes learning outcomes in such a comprehensive way is a long and complex endeavor. Even with solid funding, the goal remains to accelerate growth to the point where revenues sustain all operations before venturing into other areas.

Absolutely. For now, then, are you focusing solely on post-secondary-level tests and providing support and mentoring for those exams?

Yes, that’s correct. There are several reasons for this. Take the SAT, for example. The learning outcomes for that exam are well-established, and the market for it already exists. The same applies to Cambridge IGCSE and A-Level exams. Introducing a new curriculum as a substitute for IGCSE, for instance, would be an uphill battle. Established curricula like these have been around for decades, and creating a new one would require an entirely different approach. Our aim is not to create new curricula but to optimize the learning process for existing ones, which is a more scalable and impactful approach.

How are you approaching monetization?

We’re starting with a subscription-based model—monthly, quarterly, and annual plans. While I’m curious to experiment with other pricing models, such as usage-based pricing, we’re not exploring those options just yet. For instance, a usage-based model might appeal to students who use the app only for quick revisions, as they might question why they pay the same as someone who uses it extensively. There’s definitely potential for innovative pricing strategies, but for now, we’re keeping it simple and sticking with subscriptions to avoid overcomplicating things early on.

Understood. Regarding student behavior on the platform, have you noticed anything surprising, or has their usage aligned with your expectations?

To be honest, their behavior has mostly aligned with expectations. However, one interesting observation is their limited use of our personalization feature. The notes we provide are interactive, allowing students to edit and customize their versions. For example, if a topic spans 20 pages and a student is comfortable with 8–10 of those, they can remove those sections to focus on weaker areas. While this feature is available, many students haven’t fully utilized it, perhaps because they’re unaware of it. As the sample size grows, we’ll continue to analyze this.

Got it. Regarding the AI assistant, what role does it currently play in your solution? Is the entire platform AI-based, or is this something you’re building toward?

The AI tutor is a core part of our platform. It’s trained on the curriculum and helps students by generating questions, explaining concepts, and addressing learning gaps. While it already provides significant value, its role will grow over time. For example, we plan to link it to performance data so it can create tailored experiences for individual students. The ultimate goal is to make it function like a hyper-focused personal tutor, adapting to each student’s unique strengths and weaknesses.

Absolutely. AI has been advancing rapidly. How easy do you find it to integrate these solutions, and how quickly can you implement AI features?

It depends on the use case. Developing a basic chatbot is relatively straightforward, but building more sophisticated applications—like creating user profiles and integrating them with an AI tutor—requires significant time, effort, and resources. These advanced features are not only complex but also demand extensive testing to ensure they work as intended.

That makes sense. STEM-focused education is an area we’ve been exploring. It’s fascinating to hear about your work, Abubakar. Thank you for taking the time to share your insights.

Thank you as well, Sebastián. It’s been a pleasure discussing these topics.