Why online extracurricular startup Kyt acquired Vimeo creator Zach Klien's DIY.org and rebranded itself
Kyt, the extracurricular startup backed by Sequoia India Capital's Surge, has acquired Vimeo creator Zach Klien's DIY.org. Children can use the platform to explore and learn through a variety of engaging courses, challenges, live workshops, and contests.
Extracurricular edtech startup Technologies has acquired San Francisco-based , and has merged operations of the two companies.
Kyt has rebranded itself as DIY.org, which was built and operated by Zach Klein, also the Founder of Vimeo, and designed as a project-based learning platform for kids.
"We wanted to create a platform to get children to learn and pick up new skills, and we came across DIY in our research. We connected with Zach in late 2020, and there was an instant spark. He was talking about exploration and learning by doing, and we said we were looking to grow. We realised we aligned. If Netflix made kids smarter, YouTube was safer, and Instagram was built for kids…DIY would be it. Zach had kept it US-based; we are now in 148 countries," said Bhavik Rathod, Co-founder, DIY.Org (formerly Kyt), in a conversation with YourStory.
A company statement said DIY.org is the largest learning community for children to learn together and share their creations in an engaging, safe, and moderated environment.
Children can watch video-based courses or join live workshops, learn skills, try activities (all courses are designed to encourage learning by doing or are project based), and then share their creations and projects.
DIY offers access to 35+ courses, 3,500+ projects, and challenges across 160+ skills
"We have built on the thesis that children need to be given an opportunity and an environment that is safe for them explore new skills and learn something beyond academics, after school. Learning has to be by doing, so we focused on content to use as reference to learn. The content encourages children do the activity and share it back with the team," Bhavik said.
Bhavik Rathod and Tripti Ahuja, Founders of Kyt
Kids inspire each other
The focus on content creation made DIY a great fit for Kyt.
The founding duo, Bhavik and Tripti Ahuja, also realised that children love interacting with others and like being social. Children can use DIY to explore and learn through a variety of engaging courses, challenges, live workshops, and contests.
“The thing that makes DIY different from all other screen time options is that your children will get inspired by other kids who love learning and sharing their passion and curiosity. In fact, for every 10 minutes spent on DIY, kids spend more than 30 minutes offline doing projects to share on DIY. When they share, all posts get feedback, likes, or comments from other kids, DIY Moderators and Mentors. It really inspires children to do more when their post gets featured on DIY,” Tripti said.
The paid subscription product offers a free 30-day trial and full access to content and community.
The topics range from science, animation, gaming (Minecraft and Roblox), coding, engineering, arts and crafts, and much more. Unique topics include LEGO, magic, and How to be a Youtuber.
“Allowing kids to explore new and upcoming topics through shows, series, and courses is what DIY aims to do over the next few months. By providing a safe and holistic learning experience, DIY helps parents feel comfortable about kids’ screen time and content consumption or creation habit,” Tripti said.
Edited by Teja Lele
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