The IOE and partners established UCL EDUCATE to redress the lack of research evidence in the educational technology (EdTech) sector. The programme matches business innovators with academic research to ensure EdTech delivers effective learning. It is now the world's leading research accelerator for EdTech ventures.
Kaitlin Fritz (UCL History of Art 2018) and Olga Kravchenko launched Musemio in 2018. They received support from UCL Innovation & Enterprise at BaseKX, UCL's entrepreneurship hub, and also took part in UCL EDUCATE.
The company's core offering is a simple headset and mobile app which delivers educational games and adventures. Topics range from ancient Egyptian culture and planetology to dinosaurs and the history of computing. Musemio has collaborated with museums and cultural organisations globally to create these digital experiences.
Musemio believes passionately that their VR games must be curriculum-led and evidence-based.
"From the beginning, we recognised the importance of having an educational product that not only sparks children's wonder in arts and culture but also reinforces key learning outcomes for their age," says Kaitlin.
Musemio has received over £150,000 in grants, scholarships and equity investment and won many awards, including Innovate UK's Fast Start competition for cutting-edge startups.
In addition to the app and VR games, Musemio is also launching complementary learning tools. Arts and history audiobooks feature Mio, Musemio's robot guide. There is also a children's eBook of activities and stories.
Image: Founder of UCL EDUCATE, Professor Rose Luckin speaking at City Hall. Image by Eternal Weddings for EDUCATE on behalf of UCL.