Big data and artificial intelligence aren’t usually topics associated with education, but thanks to two local startups these tools are being developed in Christchurch to help prepare students for the future.

Last week Charlie Tomlinson and Raphael Nolden, presented to the EdTech Asia Summit 2017 on software tools developed here with the potential to help students around the world.

Charlie Tomlinson from software startup EdPotential moderated a panel on ‘Current Trends in Big Data and Analytics in Education’. The sophisticated software developed by EdPotential enables schools to inquire into their assessment data, analyse it to identify gaps and strengths and then act to target solutions that improve student achievement.

Raphael Nolden from maths tutoring startup Osnova spoke on ‘Emerging Tech: AI and Automation in Education and the Workplace’. Osnovo has developed an AI maths tutor, called Amy, which is being trialled in ten New Zealand schools and the company is currently capital raising after participating in Flux Accelerator.

“The Summit was a great event with a real mix of people, companies, investors and vendors from across the education technology community and the wider Asia region.

“It enabled us to showcase technology developed and used in Christchurch to educators from across Asia,” said Charlie.