UK – 6 Bit Education, a Birmingham, UK-based provider of an edtech platform that automates grading, raised £800k in funding.
The funding has come from the MEIF Proof of Concept & Early Stage Fund, which is managed by Mercia and part of the Midlands Engine Investment Fund, Mercia’s EIS funds and capital from angel investors.The company intends to use the funds to build its team, creating two new jobs, and adding new features to the platform.Co-founded by Robert Stanyon, Manjinder Kainth and George Bartlett, 6 Bit Education develops Graide, a software platform that cuts the time taken by teachers to mark maths and science papers. It is aimed at higher education institutions and can be used to mark both coursework and exam papers for ‘STEM’ subjects. It can not only assess the final answers, but also a student’s workings. The system, which incorporates artificial intelligence, learns an assessor’s marking style so they do not have to grade the same answer twice. As the assessor works through the paper, Graide automates more and more of the feedback. As part of the investment, Mercia has introduced two EdTech specialists from its Non-executive Director Network. Andrew Doyle has been appointed as Chair while Tony Austwick joins as an adviser. Both have significant experience in early and growth stage technology companies, and the education sector. 20/05/2022
