Shahzad Ahmed: an EDHEC alumni banking on AI to democratise education

Who

Originally from Pakistan, Shahzad Ahmed moved to Lille, France in 2012 where he did his MiM an MSC in Marketing from EDHEC graduating in 2015. Since then, Shahzad naturalised as a French citizen and built a career in digital transformation and growth, first in fashion and then the technology industry. In 2020 Shahzad moved to the UK, and in early 2024 launched Hoja AI - an AI based edtech platform for K-12 students - alongside co-founders Pavan Konanur (Insead), Dr. Katherine Tatarinov (University of Geneva) and Fouad Yaseen (Malardalen)

What

Traditional educational methods often struggle to provide personalized attention to each student, leading to disengagement and ineffective learning experiences. This issue is exacerbated by rising tuition costs, creating barriers to quality education. 

Recognizing this gap, Hoja AI (www.hoja.ai) was founded to democratize education by offering personalized, AI-driven study companions that adapt to each learner's unique needs, making education more engaging, accessible, and cost-effective. Hoja focuses on students aged 13-18 (i.e. K-7 to K-12) offering interactive courses, microlessons, and study support, leveraging AI to deliver content and personalisation at scale.

The platform focuses on adaptive learning and personalization, using AI to tailor content to students' needs. At Hoja we firmly believe that each child deserves personalised attention to keep learning engaging and effective, and Hoja with its buddies does exactly that. The approach to education should be one that builds bridges, not barriers - and in a world with spiraling tuition costs, Hoja leverages AI for good to make education more equitable.

The business development

Hoja is early on in its journey but already has 50K downloads and 20K active learners on the platform with a 4.2 star rating. We also have run pilots with the United Nations, Institute Florimont and the Government of Pakistan. 

We completed a friends and family round in mid-2024 raising 340K GBP. This year we will be opening our pre-seed raising 2M. The aim of this raise is to support our expanded growth and build an enhanced buddy experience providing students with more enhanced functionalities and additional curriculum coverage.  

Currently we are growing our b2c user base with direct digital marketing, whereas on the b2b front we are reaching out directly to schools. As we grow, we will look to leverage the network effect enabling users to build and share their buddies with other users. 

Message to the Alumni

The UK offers a vibrant environment for launching startups, thanks to its investment-friendly initiatives like the Seed Enterprise Investment Scheme (SEIS) and Enterprise Investment Scheme (EIS), as well as a wealth of entrepreneurial networks and mentors.

At Hoja, none of our four founders are originally from the UK, which has presented challenges in navigating the local fundraising landscape and identifying and connecting with key networks and individuals. This is why we are particularly enthusiastic about the “Le Pari” initiative and the opportunities it offers.

To date, our leads and initial investments have primarily come from personal outreach within our networks and school friends from France. We are thrilled to see this process becoming more structured. 

To our fellow French alumni—you have achieved remarkable success. Please consider sharing your experiences and expertise to support others when they seek you out. At Hoja, we believe in the positive karma of contributing positively to the community. Let's continue to support one another.