Accurate enough? A high school in London has announced it’s going to be replacing some teachers with AI, despite experts warning not to since AI is still prone to weird hallucinations — just ask this founder who had to train his AI to stop RickRolling users.

In this Open Letter:

• Future view: Changing the way we learn, forever.
• Interns for Mahala, R1m’s UX up for grabs & Woolies goes dark.
• Last chance: Only 10 spots left at CT’s lekker-est startup event.
• How most of us buy our cars: And the results are in.
• Just for you: Share this 10 times and get Pro membership.

Together with:

Did someone forward you this email? Join 12,202 South Africans reading The Open Letter by signing up here.

TRENDING NOW

A Whole New Way to Classroom

Covid sent online learning into overdrive…

Rocketing it from a respectable $164bn (R2.9 trillion) industry pre-Covid to an attractive $200bn (R3.6 trillion) and $240bn (R4.3 trillion) in 2022.

But, unlike a few things around Covid, e-learning has shown some real staying power.

The industry is expected to 5X globally to a cool $1 trillion by 2030.

So, naturally, there are a lot of players in this space… From your “familiar faces” like Coursera, Udemy, Khan and Shaw Academy to big universities offering unprecedented programmes like MIT’s online programmes and even a few free courses. 

To exciting newcomers like Jordan Peterson launching his own university.

Heck, one of SA’s most memorable exits in the last ten years was Cape Town brothers Rob and Sam Paddock’s online academy, GetSmarter, which sold for about R1bn. 

So, if you’re wondering how all these people can play in this pace, there’s something you should know…

It’s bigger than most of us think

See, when you think e-learning, most people immediately jump to K12 learning (you know, regular school, grade 1 to 12) and tertiary education.

But it is so much bigger than that. Also think:

• Corporate training –  ±R6 trillion industry
• Professional development – ±R790bn
• Microlearning – ±R27bn
• Language learning – ±R1.1 trillion
• Healthcare training – ±R1.9 trillion
• Financial literacy – ?? (surely billions)
• Coding and programming – ±R7.1 trillion

And you probably also need to think beyond the standard teacher-student concept (almost the entire world is short of teachers!) and start thinking about empowering people to teach each other.

Think of subject matter experts, retirees and experienced professionals sharing their insights; coaches and mentors able to connect with wider audiences; developers, IT pros and others in the tech space sharing skills and even tradespeople, musicians, writers, etc. all sharing the secrets of their craft with the next generation.

All that’s needed is a more creative space/way to teach…

The SA EdTech Building a Fully-Integrated Digital Classroom

Launched in 2018, local EdTech player Lessonspace is building a platform for virtual classrooms, online tutoring & collaborative learning.

Central to their platform is their collaborative whiteboard. And much like on actual whiteboards teachers and tutors can use it to make notes, draw drawings, and explain concepts.

What makes Lessonspace really interesting though is its set of education-specific tools that are built specifically for a wide range of subject matter including:

• Mathematics: Editable graphs and equations straight from the built-in resource drawer.
• Languages: Activities to help teach specific languages (10 at the moment, with more to come).
• Music: interactive sheet music so that students can learn to read and play different notes, songs etc.
• Coding: The collaborative whiteboard offers pair programming, complete with syntax highlighting.

Where most of its magic happens is as a tool existing EdTech tools plug into. This allows the platforms and institutions to focus on what they are good at, you know, courses and student matters, and leave the online classroom experience (high-quality video streaming without issue etc) to the experts.

This week, Lessonspace Founder Matthew Henshall was on this week’s podcast. Catch the entire episode.

With platforms like Lessonspace building bespoke, industry-specific tools and platforms to make the e-learning experience better for students and teachers alike, they’re poised to ride the online learning wave in a big way. We’re watching this space.

Podcast Highlights:

• Get the lowdown on Lessonspace’s central, most important company value.
• Understanding your customer and rolling with a changing customer landscape. 
• Insights for serial builders to hone ideas and cross-pollinate lessons.
• Education and the tech on everyone’s lips: Artificial Intelligence.

IN SHORT

🎓 Free Startup Interns. Graduate placement platform Jobox is on a mission to place 4’000 interns at SA companies; if approved, these interns will be paid a stipend at no cost to you. If you could do with an extra set of hands at your company, check out the InternFIT Programme.

🫡 Salute an SA Legend. South Africa’s most loved Maths and Science teacher William Smith (you know, the uncle from SABC 3) has passed away at the age of 85. Tributes have been pouring in for the teacher who helped countless South African learners and students pass Maths and Science. RIP, Sir.

🧠 Chipped Brain. Neuralink has confirmed its 2nd brain device implant surgery went well, with the recipient, Alex, able to design 3D objects and play video games.

🛵 In the Dark. Woolworths’ on-demand delivery platform Woolies Dash has seen a 71% growth in sales in the last year. The retailer will launch more ”dark stores” — not open to the public — to keep up with demand and to counteract the challenges of fulfilling online orders from local stores.

👩‍🚀 Startup Moonshot Help. Got an idea to get to market or pitch? Our friends at Jack Studios are celebrating their 10th birthday by giving startups a chance to secure R1 million worth of services — from UX to design, pitches to product help — to take a new idea to the moon. What you waiting for?

😎 The Stack. Founders need tools and suppliers they can trust. Check out our Founder’s Stack with advanced lead sourcing and contact through Apollo and your own startup CFO without the hefty price tag with OCFO.

CHECK THIS OUT

Building Solid = Building Smart

When building Lean, especially early-stage, one of the last things you need to consider is the legal ramifications of testing and “breaking things”.

But, as many YCombinator startups learned in the 2010s, as soon as your idea gets legs, legalities become a big thing — one California University found up to 62% of new tech startups run into legal issues per year.

The truth is startups need legal advice for everything from company structure and compliance to contracts and agreements, securing your IP, employee matters, risk management and dispute resolution — and don’t even get us started on fundraising and managing investor relationships.

But there’s a catch: What startup can afford their own in-house legal person?

Fortunately, you don’t need to hire internally. You just need a savvy legal eye with ventures experience to step in and help every now and again.

That’s why we keep Dommisse Attorneys’ number handy — they know what high-growth companies need. Ask them yourself.

Engage SA’s Most Vibrant Startup Community

Want to unlock valuable opportunities on tap?

In the last 48 hours alone, in our online community, we…

• Got Danei some pro design feedback on their trivia-style mini-game.
• Helped Pieter get the ball rolling in finding a non-tech co-founder.
• Had a good community laugh-cry session about the pressures of building big things when your old-school parents just want you to “get a freakin’ job”… #startuplife

And we have only 10 tickets left for our Cape Town event, so, you know…

Next week, 27 August at Stitch’s offices in Solan Road, Cape Town, we’re learning from successful African innovators and meeting the extended Open Letter community — grab your ticket here for only R150 or go for free if you are part of The Open Letter Pro (only R250).

Coming Up Next Week

• Wednesday 10-11: Office Hours, where we all log in and work together, + the whole Open Letter team is at members’ disposal.
• New: Free monthly startup strategy calls for all pro members.
• Support: All day, every day: unlimited introductions, recruitment, service provider referrals and business-building insights.

What You Said…

We asked how you purchased your vehicle, and cash is king…

🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🚘 Bought a nice car with balloon payment and swapping for a new one every few years. (10%)

🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩 💵 Cash, baby (48%)

🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🚲 I don’t have a car (18%)

🟨🟨🟨⬜️⬜️⬜️ 📈 Normal bank loan (24%)

⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️⬜️ 🔑 I lease mine (0)

Your 2 cents…

“Bought a car via loan, almost done with balloon payment”

Angeline

Nice one, Angeline. Trust you got the wheels you wanted… 🚘

“As an immigrant worker, getting a credit is an uphill battle. So I decided to work multiple jobs while living waay below my means to be able to save up for a car & pay for advancing my tertiary education.”

Isaac

Well done, Isaac. It’s tough but we’re all rooting for you. 💪🏽

“I fought hard to buy my car cash. It is second hand and I did not want to take out a loan. Less monthly expenses was the main goal! ”

Michelle

Remarkable, Michelle, hope you get many happy kms from it. 🚙

“Started off with balloon payment, then paid off the car early and now it is paid in full”

Madelein

Good one, Madelein. Hope you managed to save some on interest. 🏁

“First choice, so dumb, but hey. It's a hybrid so my petrol expense is decreased. And yes, that is what I need to tell myself so that I can sleep at night.”

Andersen

Hmm, nah we think you can sleep soundly, Sir! 🔋

‍