Global AI Impact Commons
AI-Powered Personalized Learning on WhatsApp for Underserved Communities
India
Education
Implementing Organisation
Ekatra Learning Inc / Vruksh Ecosystem Foundation
India, India
Headquarted in San Franciso, California, United States
Implementing Point of Contact
Abhijeet Khandagale
Founder
Contributor of the Impact Story
Carnegie India
Year of implementation
2022
Problem statement
Ekatra addresses the global learning crisis affecting 258 million out-of-school children and millions more with inadequate quality education. Traditional digital learning fails underserved populations due to expensive devices, unreliable internet, and cultural-linguistic barriers. Even for enrolled students, 53% in low-middle income countries cannot read simple text by age 10, representing a $17 trillion economic loss. When COVID-19 forced our nonprofit's education programs online, video conferencing reached only 5% of students. Switching to WhatsApp increased attendance to 80%, revealing the power of accessible platforms.
Impact story details
Ekatra delivers hyper-personalized education through WhatsApp using AI tutors powered by Meta's Llama models. Our platform, featuring "Alfred" (our AI tutor) and "Socrates" (our education-focused LLM built on Llama), makes world-class learning accessible to anyone with a basic phone, regardless of internet connectivity or location. We've achieved remarkable 65% completion rates compared to industry standard 5-15%, impacting 35,000+ learners across refugee camps, rural communities, and corporate environments. The solution combines spaced learning, micro-courses, and Socratic tutoring frameworks delivered through familiar messaging interfaces in 10+ languages, with offline capabilities for zero-connectivity areas.
AI Technology Used
Key Outcomes
Access
Reach, Inclusion
Equity, Efficiency
Productivity, User Experience
Satisfaction, Economic Value Creation
Narrative Outcome
Underserved populations often fall back on learning due to lack of access to devices, unreliable connectivity, and cultural barriers. Ekatra delivers AI-powered, personalised learning via WhatsApp to address these issues. It has demonstrated significant improvements in user engagement and course completion. The platform has scaled globally, reaching 35,000 users across India, Jordan, and the United States – creating new pathway to skills and economic opportunity.
Impact Metrics
Improvement in the Rate of Course Completion
Baseline Value
Before the use of Ekatra, there was 5-15% improvement in the rate of course completion Percentage
Post-Implementation
After the use of Ekatra, there was 65% improvement in the rate of course completion Percentage
User Engagement Rate on WhatsApp versus Traditional Video Platforms
Baseline Value
5 % of user attendance was recorded on video platforms
Post-Implementation
an 80% user engagement rate was recorded on WhatsApp Percentage
Total Beneficiaries Impacted
Baseline Value
No beneficiaries impacted before implementation Number of users benefitted
Post-Implementation
35 ,000 users were benefited through the platform
Micro-businesses launched by users after taking Ekatra's micro-courses
Baseline Value
No micro-businesses launched by users before implementation Number of businesses launched by users
Post-Implementation
More than 75 micro-businesses were launched Number of businesses launched by users
Expansion of Geographic coverage after launch of AI tutors on platform
Baseline Value
The geographical coverage of the platform was across 1 country Number of countries
Post-Implementation
The platform was expanded in 3 countries, namely, India, Jordan, and the Number of countries
Implementation Context
India, Jordan (Al Zaatari refugee camp)
35,000+ learners have been reached including out-of-school children, refugees (women and girls in Al Zaatari camp), rural communities, corporate field staff, aspiring entrepreneurs, and marginalized communities with limited internet access and basic mobile devices
Key Partnerships
National Digital Education Architecture and DIKSHA, National Institute for Entrepreneurship and Small Business Development, Ministry of Skill Development, Deloitte, UNHCR, World Economic Forum, KJ Somaiya riidl, and Let's Read Coalition
Replicability & Adaptation
1. Platform is open-source (MIT license) enabling local customization. 2. Socrates Education LLM is fine-tuned on region-specific educational datasets (currently India edition available). Key adaptations: local language content development, culturally contextualized examples, partnership with regional educational institutions. 3. Offline functionality through Lentera-style microservers for communities and on-device models for individuals in zero-connectivity areas. 4. Works on basic phones. 5. Privacy-preserving personalization. 6. Integrates with existing learning management systems. 7. Successful replication requires local educational partnerships and culturally relevant content creation.
Supporting Materials
* The data presented is self-reported by the respective organisations. Readers should consult the original sources for further details.