In an exclusive interview, Satisha Naraharimurthy, Founder and CEO of Roombr discusses the inspiration behind the creation of their innovative educational technology solutions. Focusing on transforming traditional classrooms into interactive learning environments, the conversation delves into how Roombr leverages AI, digitization, and custom-built hardware to enhance both teaching and learning experiences. The spokesperson highlights the company's mission to support personalized learning, the seamless integration of technology in classrooms, and how their products align with India's National Education Policy for holistic education.
DQ: What inspired the creation of Roombr?
Satisha: The idea for Roombr arose from the traditional classroom model where the teacher stands at the front, and students passively absorb information. This setup lacks collaboration, communication, and project-based learning, creating an unsocial environment. Our goal is to make the classroom more engaging, focusing on making teaching more effective and learning more efficient. Instead of having students spend time outside the classroom for additional learning, we aim to create an environment where they acquire all necessary skills within the classroom, through increased teacher engagement and interactive learning.
DQ: How are you managing to provide personalized learning experiences for students?
Satisha: Our digital classroom suite allows teachers to create pre-class sessions based on the needs of specific students. The teacher can record lessons and make them available to students later, providing personalized attention. This approach helps address individual learning needs while allowing students to progress at their own pace.
DQ: Can you elaborate on the "world-top computer" and how it simplifies classroom technology?
Satisha: Technology in classrooms often comes with complications—multiple gadgets, cables, and technical know-how that teachers may not possess. Our "world-top computer" solves this by integrating everything into one device. It includes full-fledged computing, a dual-camera system with HD recording, microphones that capture sound from 30 feet away, and 21 speakers. This setup makes the projected area interactive, turning it into what we call a "wall-top computer." The device offers simplicity for teachers while enabling complete classroom digitization, without the need for complicated setups.
DQ: Are these devices designed and manufactured in-house?
Satisha: Yes, these devices are designed, developed, and assembled entirely in India. We are proud to say that it’s a completely “Made in India” product.
DQ: How does Roombr's vision align with India’s National Education Policy (NEP)?
Satisha: The NEP focuses on improving the quality of education, and digitization plays a crucial role in that transformation. Our digital classroom solutions align perfectly with this policy by making teaching more effective and learning more efficient, reducing the need for students to seek external resources or tuition. Additionally, we enable a holistic education by allowing students to focus on skill development alongside academic learning.
DQ: How does AI integrate into your educational technology, and what advantages does it offer?
Satisha: AI in our solutions enhances the teacher’s ability without taking away human interaction. First, it automatically records and chapterizes lessons, eliminating the need for teachers to do it manually. Second, it can create tests based on the lessons taught, without requiring teacher input. These two AI-powered features greatly simplify classroom management and give teachers more time to focus on interactive learning.
DQ: With the evolving education sector, where do you see the industry and Roombr in the next 5-10 years?
Satisha: The future of education is in digitization, and that’s where we’re focusing. Our goal is to enable classrooms to fully adopt digital tools, making teachers more productive and students more engaged. In the next 5-10 years, we aim to capture around 10-20% of the classrooms in India. This will create a significant impact on how education is delivered, not just in India, but globally.
DQ: Can you explain the role of Intel and Texas Instruments (TI) in your products?
Satisha: Intel is our partner for the computing elements, while Texas Instruments (TI) provides the optical engine with DLP technology. This partnership ensures that our products offer high-quality performance in both computing and display capabilities, allowing us to deliver a seamless digital classroom experience.