Analyzing the competitors and studying possibilities and improving their value proposition.

The main competitors

Revision Village

Website: https://www.revisionvillage.com/

Things that they do very well

• Quality materials
• Huge collection of questions, all of them aligned with the IB Math syllabus
• Organized content
• Past papers and predictive exams, which are very well done, also exams by topic
• Known by basically every IB Math student and teacher (it sells itself)

Things that I can improve

Other things that can be improved

• Better online marketing and partnership with influencers as affiliates
• Alert students on a daily or weekly basis about studying, trying different exercises or techniques and so on
• "30 days to your IB Exam” course or "All you need to know about Complex Numbers” type of thing, something that draws the attention of the students. Or even, X days to your Y exam (students tell us how many days they have to prepare, and we deliver content in a way that it fits that time.

🏛️ Overview & Origins

• Founded by the Murphy family in Brighton, UK (operates as a private limited company) (CliffsNotes).
• Evolved into the #1-ranked IB Mathematics resource, praised by students and teachers alike—serving over 1.3 million IB students across 135+ countries, used by 80% of IB educators and students worldwide (revisionvillage.com).

👩‍🏫 Leadership & Team

• Tim Vaughan (former CEO of Education Perfect) became CEO of Revision Village, backed by Crimson Education, bringing extensive ed‑tech scale expertise (resources.icehouseventures.co.nz).
• Collaboration with experienced IB examiners and top educators to design, iterate, and refine coursework and assessments (Reddit).

💰 Funding & Backing

• Acquired/invested by Navitas on January 1, 2021 (PitchBook).
• Through its link to Crimson Education, acquired part of the $68 million Series D round that elevated Crimson to unicorn status (~$1B valuation); this round earmarked investment in Revision Village expansion & AI tutoring tools (LinkedIn).

📦 Product Offering & Model

• Freemium model: ~30–50% of content is free; premium “Gold” membership (once-off payment covering full IB course, ~2 years) includes:
• Full question banks (SL/HL AA & AI Math)
• Video solutions, mark schemes, AI feedback
• Mock & prediction exams (authored by examiners)
• “Key concept” refreshers (revisionvillage.com).
• Claims impressive student outcomes: average score increase of ~34%; 80% scoring 5+ vs 40% for non‑users (revisionvillage.com).

⚙️ Technology & Development

• Scalable architecture: question banks, video hosting, advanced filtering, etc.
• High-touch content creation by IB examiners—continual updates, including AI‑based feedback and analytics tools (Reddit).
• Leadership focusing on iterative monthly SWAT reviews and 6‑month strategic planning cadence .

🌍 Differentiation & Market Position

• Strict IB focus vs broader platforms (YouTube, Khan Academy).
• Highly curated content: no fluff, direct to IB exam-style questions with examiner-backed format (revisionvillage.com).
• Widespread positive sentiment: r/IBO users call it a “10/10 for Math”, praising question quality and organization (Reddit).

📊 Risks & Considerations

• Customer accessibility: Gold membership cost is higher than alternatives; though a significant portion is free, some students still see it as pricey (Reddit).
• Market concentration: strong in IB Math, but expansion into other subjects (e.g., sciences, English) shows potential—or risk.
• Competitive landscape: emerging rivals like Revision Dojo, Bioninja, or even free platforms adapting IB-specific content.
• Dependence on Crimson support; future independence or further capital raises could shift valuation dynamics.

✅ Investment Case Highlights

• Large, growing user base: 1.3M+ active users, deep global market penetration.
• Proven educational impact: documented grade improvements create strong value proposition.
• Strong backing & leadership: Crimson Education’s funding, plus a high‑caliber management team.
• Focused niche play: IB-exclusive specialization gives defensiveness vs broader ed‑tech tools.
• Tech-forward expansion: AI feedback systems, analytics, and planned flashcards/features increase stickiness.

🔍 Areas to Probe Further

1. Financials: revenue breakdown (Gold vs free), margins, churn, user growth rates post‑2021.
2. Pricing strategy: evaluation of scalability and retention, especially across value-sensitive markets.
3. Subject diversification: viability beyond Math—cost and returns in sciences, languages, etc.
4. Competitive moat: analysis of copyright risks (if question derivatives), content obsolescence risk, platform replicability.
5. Exit strategy / liquidity path: acquisition or IPO options— how Revision Village fits into Crimson’s long-term plan.

Kognity

🏛️ Company Origins & Overview

• Founded in 2014 in Stockholm, Sweden, by Hugo Wernhoff (and a co-founder), stemming from his previous test-prep venture; Wernhoff aimed to merge pedagogy and technology in a unified platform (Kognity).
• Initially targeted international curricula including IB DP and Cambridge IGCSE; later expanded into U.S. high school science aligned to NGSS (Kognity).
• Market presence:
• Reaching 250,000+ students and 200+ employees worldwide (Dealroom.co).
• Operational in 120+ countries and 1,300+ schools (Kognity).

💰 Funding & Financial Health

• Total funding ~$29.4 M over 3+ rounds (tracxn.com).
• Major rounds include:
• 2016, 2018, 2019, with $5 M raised in March 2023 from Mars Growth Capital (MUFG/Liquidity Group) targeted at U.S. science expansion (FinSMEs).
• Partnership in 2021 with Nordic growth fund Alfvén & Didrikson injecting $20 M .
• Financial performance:
• $31.5 M in revenue in 2024—up from $17.9 M in 2023—and doubling since 2021 ($13.2 M) (Latka).
• Burn/valuation at approximately $100 M enterprise value .

✅ Strengths

• Curriculum-aligned, interactive platform: integrates textbooks, assessments, analytics, and workflow in one hub (Kognity).
• Strong adoption in schools: widespread usage internationally and enterprise-grade relationships with institutions (Latka).
• Continuous, agile content updates: dynamic updates align with syllabus changes e.g., IB Psychology FE2025 (Kognity).
• Robust analytics layer: educators get actionable data across classes and students (Kognity).
• Proven financial growth and valuation: high revenue growth (~76 % YoY from 2023 to 2024) with strong capital backing (Latka).

⚠️ Weaknesses

• Complex sales model privileging schools: individual students/parents can't subscribe—for platforms like yours that target direct-to-students, this limits reach .
• High price and deployment friction: annual per-student fees requiring minimums (e.g., 15 IB DP students) could hamper adoption (Kognity).
• Dependence on institutional contracts: school budget cycles and administrative delays can slow growth.
• Subject matter focus uneven: strongest in sciences; Math offerings present but not as emphasized as competitors like Revision Village.

🌱 Opportunities

• Inroads into U.S. state curricula: moving beyond IB to NGSS opens access to millions of students (Kognity, Kognity).
• Expand subject portfolio: creating IB Math Prep courses with interactive analytics could align with your business model and fill current product gaps.
• Use of acquired tutoring assets: the 2022 acquisition of Elite IB boosts capacity to deliver tutoring services at scale (FE News).
• Leverage data-driven pedagogy: Kognity’s teacher tools and student analytics can support cohort-based learning and parent-facing progress reporting—areas you're already tapping into.
• Form global school partnerships: their educator hub, demos, and awards build credibility; strategic collaborations could yield user acquisition in emerging IB markets.

🛑 Threats

• Institutional dependency risks: reliance on school contracts and budget priorities increases exposure to administrative or political changes in education.
• Competition from niche platforms: free and agile IB Math platforms (e.g. Revision Village, IB Math Dojo) offer direct-to-student access and personal branding.
• EdTech saturation in U.S.: established players (Khan, Pearson, CK-12) may pose threats when Kognity expands into standard curriculum.
• Content maintenance overhead: keeping content synchronized with evolving curricula (IB, NGSS, etc.) demands high investment.
• Churn from SaaS fatigue: districts hesitant about renewals due to budget cuts or competing priorities.

📊 Investment Perspective

Strengths & momentum: The revenue trajectory (75% YoY growth), substantial institutional distribution, and strong backing make Kognity a compelling mid-stage ed‑tech play with solid fundamentals.

Risks & validation: Key due diligence points include:

1. Contract renewal and churn rates from school clients.
2. Gross margins—is per-student subscription profitable at scale?
3. Customer acquisition cost vs lifetime value, especially for U.S. state rollout.
4. Product differentiation in IB Math vs specialized direct-to-student offerings.
5. Integration strategy for tutoring via Elite IB.

🔍 If you're considering investing:

• Explore subscription contract terms (length, renewal, price per student).
• Benchmark ed‑tech SaaS multiples given the EV/Rev of 3.2× ($100 M EV on ~$31.5 M revenue) (Latka, FE News).
• Understand their U.S. growth strategy—specifically traction with NGSS and state standards.
• Review pipeline in Math for IB/prep expansion—ask: are they planning competitor-style student offerings?

Smaller ones (including YouTubers)

IB Task Maker

🏛️ Company Overview & Origins

• Launched circa 2020, IBTaskMaker is a private, Denmark-hosted platform offering a large database of IB-aligned math questions, assessment creation tools, gradebooks, report generators, and AI-driven report comments (LinkedIn).
• Originally targeted IB Diploma Analysis & Approaches (SL/HL) and Applications & Interpretation (SL/HL), plus MYP modules for Years 1–5 (ibtaskmaker.com).
• Features include:
• 3,200+ SL/HL AA questions (2200 SL/HL Paper 1, 2000+ Paper 2, 135+ Paper 3) (ibtaskmaker.com).
• Full AA SL/HL, AI SL question banks and MYP modules (ibtaskmaker.com).
• Tools: drag‑and‑drop task creation, markschemes, time‑allocation graphs, gradebook analytics, AI report comments (ibtaskmaker.com).
• Small operation (~2–10 employees) .

✅ Strengths

• Deep IB-specific content: large, syllabus-aligned problem sets across multiple IB curricula (AA, AI, MYP).
• Built-in assessment creation: enables teachers to quickly generate custom quizzes or mock exams with auto-formatting.
• Analytics & AI integration: tracks student performance and generates ATL-linked report comments—adds value for teachers and parents.
• Positive testimonials: praised by educators and students alike for question depth and exam simulation (ibtaskmaker.com).
• Lean structure: small size enables fast updates and agile enhancements.

⚠️ Weaknesses

• Limited scale: small team and narrow reach limits growth potential and resilience.
• Teacher-first model: primarily aimed at educators; lacks direct-to-student B2C strategy, reducing market scope.
• Uncertain pricing and no free tier: absence of clear subscription details; cost may deter price-sensitive users.
• User feedback issues: some students find marking schemes unclear, especially for complex questions .
• Website UX concerns: SEO and mobile-friendliness appear weak, potentially affecting discovery and retention .

🌱 Opportunities

• Expand B2C access: launch student/parent subscriptions or integration into your IB Math Study prep funnel.
• Mobile app / gamification: improve engagement and extend platform.
• Content depth in AI HL: complete the HL content bank to attract top-tier AA/AI users.
• School partnerships: package for schools, tapping into budgets willing to pay for teacher/admin tools.
• Complementary services: integrate with tutoring (e.g., IB Math Prep), grade escalation, or teacher training.

🛑 Threats

• Competition: major players like Revision Village, plus emerging free AI-based tools and YouTube tutorials.
• Content clarity issues: user frustration with mark schemes could harm reputation.
• Tech limitations: poor mobile and SEO performance impact growth.
• Small team risk: founder dependency and limited financial resilience.

📊 Investment Summary

• Strengths: niche IB focus, strong content alignment, teacher-centered tools, and analytics make it a solid ed‑tech platform.
• Risks: small scale, unclear monetization, and UX shortcomings. Competitive landscape is intense.
• Questions to ask:
1. What is the current pricing, membership numbers, churn, and revenue model?
2. User satisfaction and feedback on mark schemes—are there plans to enhance clarity?
3. Roadmap: HL AI completion, mobile app launch, B2C strategy?
4. What partnerships or school/MYP adoption can scale distribution?