Seeing clearly with Brighteye: making impact central in Edtech

A new guide just launched!

By Professor Natalia I.  Kucirkova, Director of International Centre for EdTech Impact; WiKIT

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Balancing the twin engines of impact and scale has long been one of the toughest challenges in the Edtech sector. Traditional venture capital funding has typically prioritised scale above all else: solve a user problem, secure product-market fit, and rapidly grow your user base. Demonstrating whether the product actually works- that is, whether it improves learning- has often been treated as something to be addressed later. But we are seeing the tables starting to turn.

We’re seeing a growing shift in priorities, with increased interest in reversing this logic and putting impact front and centre. Why? First, the market is saturated with similar solutions that compete on marketing more than on the product. This is putting off consumers. Second, COVID-19 acted as a global Edtech stress test. With millions of teachers and parents exposed to online learning tools for the first time, many became more discerning about what actually supports children’s learning, and they now demand higher quality. And third, funding realities are forcing a strategic rethink. As investor attention pivots toward AI, Edtech has faced a funding winter: in 2024, global EdTech VC investment dropped to approximately $2.4 billion, its lowest level in a decade.

The current political climate around digitisation in education reflects a widening divergence: on one end, a strong push toward AI integration in U.S. schools, and on the other, renewed public investment in printed materials across several Nordic countries. This contrast highlights an urgent need for a shared anchor, and that anchor is increasingly called evidence of impact. Regardless of where a product lands on the political spectrum or geographic map, evidence can serve as a unifying framework, shifting the conversation from politics to quality. It ensures that the effectiveness of the tool itself remains at the centre of decision-making.

The "New Old" World of Evidence

For some Edtech companies, engaging with evidence is a natural starting point. Such companies are often spin-outs from universities, born from rigorous academic research. Take KiDe, for example, based on five years of academic research led by Ph.D. Vartiainen, and acquired by Accelerate in 2023.

Others, like Duolingo, have built robust internal research teams focused on ongoing product efficacy. Companies such as Paper regularly commission external evaluations to assess and improve their impact. These examples show that aligning with evidence doesn’t just demonstrate impact: it can also enhance credibility, inform product development and attract mission-aligned investors.

But for companies newer to the world of impact and evidence, the pathway can feel unclear and daunting. Many worry about the time research takes. Edtech products are evolving rapidly, especially with emerging AI capabilities, and companies fear that research will only capture a limited snapshot of what their technology can do. Others are concerned about cost: research has a reputation for being expensive, raising questions about whether budgets meant for growth or marketing now need to be diverted. And perhaps most importantly, there's anxiety around reputation. What happens if the research results aren't as positive as hoped? Will it damage the brand they've worked hard to build?

These are real concerns, but they are navigable. And more importantly, the long-term value of evidence, both in building better products and earning user trust, is well worth the investment. The Edtech landscape is maturing, and so must the strategies that guide it.

The Brighteye Guide: Busting Myths Around EdTech Evidence and Impact

Brighteye Ventures has just launched an excellent new guide that tackles some of the most common myths Edtech startups face when thinking about evidence and impact. The guide offers concrete, practical solutions. It shows that research doesn’t have to be expensive, slow, or always outsourced. The guide walks through how to run rapid cycles of evaluation, highlights low-cost and in-house research strategies, and outlines a range of methodological options suited to different stages of a company’s growth. Crucially, it emphasises that impact is a journey, and the approach needs to evolve with the company.

At the Centre, we were proud to collaborate with Brighteye on this guide. Our researchers work closely with Brighteye-backed companies as impact mentors, helping them navigate this journey thoughtfully and strategically.

The guide builds on a playbook our Centre originally co-developed with Owl Ventures, and it’s part of a growing toolkit available to any Edtech company that wants to get serious about impact without being overwhelmed.

When leading investors are signalling that impact matters, it’s not just a trend. It’s a real opportunity to reshape what’s possible in Edtech. And that’s something I find deeply motivating. We are many who want to move the needle in education and now is the time.

You can access the guide on Brighteye's Collections page.