Strived Co-Founder Shweta Gandhi: Leveraging Data and AI to Revolutionize Education
Shweta Gandhi shared insights on her journey through education, nonprofit work, and how her latest venture, Strived, is poised to reshape how schools and educators utilize data. Her story is a powerful example of how AI and data can drive positive change in education, especially in a post-COVID world.
The Journey from Corporate Finance to Education Tech
Shweta’s journey began in corporate finance, but a realization that the field wasn’t fulfilling pushed her toward nonprofit work, focusing on educational initiatives. Her experiences in India, working with underprivileged children, shaped her passion for education and ignited her entrepreneurial spirit. This led her to start her first SaaS company, which focused on recruitment and best practices for nonprofits.
Fast forward a few years and a return to the U.S. brought her back into the education space, where she worked at a school and began her journey into edtech. She quickly realized that the data schools were collecting wasn’t being fully utilized, and that’s where the seeds for Strived were planted.
The Role of Data in Education
A significant point made during the discussion was the sheer amount of data available in schools, yet how little of it is used effectively. The speaker explained that most schools review data reactively, often only three times a year. This limited approach means that teachers are not always equipped to make real-time decisions that could benefit students who are struggling or excelling.
At Strived, the goal is to leverage data in a way that helps educators see patterns and make informed decisions. By analyzing data such as student demographics, assessment results, and even attendance records, AI can provide a more comprehensive view of each student’s learning journey. This holistic approach allows teachers to tailor their instruction to meet the individual needs of their students.
AI’s Impact on Education: Beyond Hype
Shweta highlighted how AI, particularly through large language models (LLMs), is transforming the way data is processed and applied in educational settings. Strived aims to harness the power of AI to make actionable recommendations based on student performance data. This moves beyond simple dashboards to provide teachers with concrete steps to support their students.
For example, AI can identify patterns in a student’s performance and suggest interventions that could help them master specific concepts. The platform is designed to be user-friendly, with an interface that resembles an email inbox, where teachers can receive daily updates and recommendations on how to adjust their lesson plans or offer additional support to students.
Addressing Post-COVID Learning Loss
The COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the challenges schools face, with many students falling behind academically. The speaker shared alarming data on learning loss, particularly in underrepresented communities, where students lost more than a year of learning on average. Strived’s approach aims to help teachers catch students up by identifying areas of struggle early on and offering targeted interventions.
The Importance of Industry-Specific AI
Another critical point discussed was the rise of vertical AI models, which are industry-specific AI solutions. In the case of education, Strived is focusing on fine-tuning AI models to deeply understand the intricacies of student data. The platform takes into account the unique needs of each school district and tailors its recommendations accordingly. This ensures that the AI’s suggestions are relevant and applicable to the specific challenges faced by educators.
Challenges and Future Vision
While the potential for AI in education is immense, the speaker acknowledged that there are challenges, particularly when it comes to student privacy and data security. Strived is committed to ensuring that all data is handled securely and in compliance with regulations. The platform is designed to be safe, scalable, and effective while maintaining high standards for privacy protection.
Looking ahead, Strived aims to expand its reach, working with more school districts to help educators utilize data in meaningful ways. The ultimate vision is to provide every student with a personalized learning experience that maximizes their potential and ensures they are on track to succeed.
About Shweta Gandhi
Shweta Gandhi is currently the CEO and co-founder of Strived; an academic data platform aiming to augment teacher decision making through the use of AI and is a serial entrepreneur. Previously, she co-founded and led Jetpacked, an edtech data aggregation platform designed to boost edtech product usage fidelity and efficacy for students, teachers, and parents.
The platform focused on empowering users with a goal-oriented approach to enhance educational outcomes. Before her tenure at Jetpacked, she oversaw Personalized Learning and Innovation at Rocketship Public Schools, a national charter school network. She also spent five years in India, where she founded Karmany, a platform for human capital and collaboration in the social enterprise sector, with a particular focus on education. Additionally, Shweta managed teams of over 100 people at AT&T, a Fortune 10 company, and founded a nonprofit in India that provided assessment-based scholarships to high-school students.
