How Bhanzu Solved the Global Maths Problem

Summary

Neelakantha Bhanu, the fastest human calculator, founded Bhanzu to transform maths education worldwide. Through strategic expansion, cultural adaptation, and innovative technology, Bhanzu has reached students across diverse markets. Bhanzu's journey has essential lessons for founders looking to tailor their product approach to resonate with local preferences and educational systems. 

How Bhanzu Solved the Global Maths Problem
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The celebrated Indian mathematician Shakuntala Devi once said, “Why do children dread mathematics? Because of the wrong approach. Because it is looked at as a subject.”

Maths wasn’t five-year-old Neelakantha Bhanu Prakash’s favourite subject either. However, in 2005, he suffered an injury that forced him to stay at home for a year. That year, Bhanu, as he is often addressed, developed a love for solving puzzles. These puzzles ignited a life-long passion in him, which led him down the path of teaching maths to millions of others around him. 

Today, Bhanu runs a cross-border maths-focused edtech platform called Bhanzu, which aims to humanise the subject for students globally. Bhanzu’s approach is unique because it does not tie to a specific curriculum or teaching pedagogy. 

“We are building a universal maths curriculum to teach how a six-year-old should learn maths anywhere in the world,” says Bhanu. 

Making mathematics enjoyable for children has never been more crucial. The World Economic Forum identified mathematics as a critical foundational skill for any career. In addition, edtech, global education, and training are expected to be a $10 trillion industry by 2030. Zoom into India, and the market is currently sized at $7.5 billion and slated to grow at a dizzying 25.8% CAGR to reach $29 billion by 2030. 

Bhanu is building his business at a pivotal time. For founders, Bhanu’s journey has essential cultural sensitivity and adaptability lessons as they consider cross-border expansion. This article also highlights the need for continuous innovation and a deep understanding of local learning dynamics to stay ahead in the competitive edtech market.‍

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Identifying markets
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‍Early in the company-building process, Bhanu discovered the real opportunity lies in building a global firm. 

“From the first day, we knew that Bhanzu was an international product, or a company, which has to revolutionise maths education globally,” says Bhanu. 

Bhanu began the legwork for Bhanzu in India, bootstrapping a programme in southern India for 30,000 students to understand how maths instruction works. After incorporating in November 2020, and successfully launching its flagship product in India in Jan 2022, Bhanzu identified its first international market six months later: West Asia.

West Asia’s proximity to India and an overlapping time zone made it an ideal market for Bhanzu's live-class model. The company, meanwhile, leveraged its existing pool of Indian teachers to cater to West Asian students.

“I was clear that we should not make Bhanzu’s operational complexity drastically higher. We couldn’t afford to have five teams in five different time zones,” Bhanu says.

Leveraging proxy markets for strategic expansion

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Going to the US was always on Bhanzu’s agenda, but Bhanu did not want to rush the process. Operational efficiency was his North Star in the early days of expansion, and Bhanu zeroed in on Australia as a proxy market for the US. 

Given the similarities in the education markets between the two countries, the ANZ (Australia and New Zealand) region was a strategic starting point. 
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“The idea was to use Australia as a proxy market to figure out product-market fit and then scale in the US,” - Bhanu.
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• Choosing the correct proxy:

Bhanu acknowledges that no two geographies will be identical, so no perfect proxy exists. But some indicators make the choice easier.

The starting point for choosing a proxy market for Bhanzu was looking at its competitors. Many of these competitors established companies without significant venture capital funding. 

Japanese company Kumon, which has a global footprint, provided valuable benchmarks for Bhanzu. “We spoke to franchisees in various countries and analysed revenue density. We discovered that while unit economics differed between India and the US, they were strikingly similar in the US and Australia. This suggested an identifiable consumer pattern and pricing dynamics,” says Bhanu.

The time zone difference between India and Australia was also manageable for the leadership growing the Indian business. Another factor was the high percentage of Asians in Australia and New Zealand. 

“Operational constraints primarily drove our decision to focus on Australia. However, we've learned valuable lessons, particularly regarding pricing and positioning,” Bhanu adds. 

Eventually, Bhanzu launched in the US in 2023, adapting its learnings from Australia to align with the US’s specific dynamics.
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• Market research matters:

When eyeing proxy markets, knowing what will not work is equally important as understanding what will. 

While looking for proxy markets to the US, Bhanu rejected the UK despite the apparent similarities. The reason: maths is optional in the country after the tenth grade. “In the UK, the way maths is perceived is different. So the cultural nuance plays a much larger role,” explains Bhanu. 

The culture question: Adapting to diverse markets
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Bhanu’s knack for tailoring content to resonate with diverse audiences has fueled Bhanzu’s international expansion. By leveraging culturally relevant references, such as pop culture, he captured the attention of learners worldwide. He used this knowledge to build Bhanzu as not just a cross-border brand but also a cross-cultural one

An interesting example is using baseball as a hook to appeal to first- and second-generation Asian immigrant children in the US, a significant portion of Bhanzu’s user base. Baseball is a way for them to assimilate locally, and a teacher who understands this can use appropriate references in their teaching methodology. 

Bhanu understands the importance of connecting with students on a personal level. For example, he understands that while children along the US East Coast idolise superheroes, those on the West Coast look up to NFL stars. Similarly, West Asian geographies offer better ways to draw students in than a beach reference. 

While Bhanu aims to provide a universal maths curriculum, he also understands that it cannot be completely independent of the local teaching methodologies. So, Bhanu and his team built the product to provide flavour to the local curriculum.
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“One of the first things we did was to split our R&D teams by geography, not by product function,” - Bhanu.
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Indian teachers often encounter challenges such as accents and language barriers when teaching students from diverse backgrounds; Bhanu, however, feels these challenges have more accessible solutions. Student psychology and establishing a connection with the student, meanwhile, are challenges that teachers and business leaders need to strive to address. 

These minute details have also informed Bhanzu’s brand positioning in different markets. 
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Pricing strategies
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Bhanu swears by competitive benchmarking as a tool for understanding market dynamics and making informed business decisions. 
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But in the edtech space, he says, an interesting finding for the company was that demand responds to price differently across industries. For example, lowering prices sometimes increases sales, especially in markets like the US. In fact, for products like education, a lower price can sometimes diminish perceived value.
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“Our philosophy on pricing has broadly been to align it with our expected contribution margin. We factor in the value we offer in each market, including our product’s unique features and benefits,” - Bhanu
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The challenges

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For founders looking to venture into cross-border edtech, Bhanu has sage advice. He warns against falling into what he calls “thought paralysis” regarding market expansion. Expanding into a new geography is not a static, one-time event. It is an ongoing process of evolution and experimentation. 

He also doesn’t believe that a global product needs an entirely global team to work well. He recommends having more culturally diverse people on board who are open to knowing and learning.

“We have a role called cultural sensitivity experts, where we get folks from humanities backgrounds or experience in international relations. And I also find people with diverse interests show a more layered understanding of different markets and product development,” he says. 

Bhanu believes that people who are multilingual, interested in anime, watch K-dramas, or watch Turkish soaps are more likely to learn new things and use newer teaching methods.
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The AI conundrum
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Education is an evolving space. The role of technology, particularly artificial intelligence, is becoming increasingly more relevant for students and teachers alike. But learning is a human experience. 
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Bhanu acknowledges that in the longer term, educators may face the prospect of being replaced by AI-only tutors.

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“Teachers can become more effective with AI tooling than just having an AI-first tutor. What teachers bring to the table is a deeper human connection that keeps students motivated,” - Bhanu. 

Bhanzu's current approach combines the best of both worlds: a solid pedagogical foundation with cutting-edge AI tools. This hybrid model ensures students receive personalised attention while benefiting from AI’s efficiency and insights.
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In the long run, the key is to strike the right balance between technology and human interaction. 

As Bhanu and Bhanzu travel the world with their innovative offerings that make mathematics engaging for students, they are turning the daunting ‘subject’ into an object that feeds their curiosity and sets them on a path of exploration.