By leveraging the power of Meta Llama, FoondaMate—a fast-growing, AI-enabled study aid for middle and high school students in emerging markets—has been able to provide a highly relatable and engaging learning experience to millions of students.
FoondaMate, which means "study buddy" in Zulu, is accessible through popular messaging platforms like WhatsApp and Messenger, making it easy for students to ask questions and receive conversational replies that help them with their schoolwork. FoondaMate can:
- Rephrase content for different levels of English comprehension
- Include local language and slang to make the conversation more relatable
- Use emojis appropriately to engage teenage users
As FoondaMate co-founder Tao Boyle notes:
"The impact of a 24/7 study buddy, accessible on an application students already use, is utterly transformative in environments like this. LLM technology, when paired with a localised knowledge base and delivered in a way that is affordable and easy to use, may become the single most transformative tool for equal access to education we have ever seen."
FoondaMate has the potential to significantly improve educational outcomes. In fact, the platform has already demonstrated its effectiveness, with an advertised2 30% increase in university eligibility among South African students who use FoondaMate compared to their peers who don't.
The FoondaMate team has taken a responsible approach to integrating Meta Llama into their platform, gradually expanding its use as their training set grew and leveraging the safeguard mechanisms and tools created by the open-source Llama community.
By providing personalised, engaging, and accessible learning support, tools like FoondaMate can potentially help bridge the educational divide.