– By Aftab Shaikh, Sr. Communication Associate
Artificial intelligence is emerging as a powerful tool in early childhood education, enhancing foundational learning through interactive and engaging experiences. At Rocket Learning, AI is not a substitute for educators or caregivers but an enabler—bridging learning gaps, supporting vernacular language development, and making high-quality education accessible to underserved communities.
In this edition of our Drivers of ECCE series, we speak with Mr Vishal Sunil, CTO & Co-Founder of Rocket Learning, to explore how AI can complement pedagogy while ensuring safety, cultural relevance, and meaningful engagement. He delves into the development of Appu—Rocket Learning’s AI-powered learning buddy developed collaboratively with Google.org—designed to encourage playful, curiosity-driven learning at home. From tackling linguistic challenges in AI to fostering caregiver involvement, Vishal shares key insights on building human-centric AI—embracing challenges with resilience to create solutions that truly empower educators, caregivers, and children alike.
Q: How does Rocket Learning leverage AI to develop voice enabled tools for early childhood care and education?
Vishal: AI is opening up incredible possibilities for early learning, and we’re making sure it speaks every child’s language—literally. With voice-first interactions and adaptive learning, kids engage naturally, picking up skills in a way that feels effortless and fun.
But it’s not just about the kids. We’re building tools that actually work for parents, teachers, and Anganwadi workers—fitting right into their daily routines. Real impact, real scale.
Q: Why is vernacular language so important in ECCE, and how effective has it been for Rocket Learning so far?
Vishal: The National Education Policy (NEP) makes it clear that a child’s mother tongue is crucial, especially as the first language of instruction. To truly reach low-income communities, teaching in English alone isn’t effective—parents need to be part of the learning journey. At Rocket Learning, we strongly believe that mothers, parents, and guardians are a child’s first and most important teachers. Enabling them to engage with their child’s learning and reinforcing local mother tongues is essential.
However, incorporating vernacular languages into AI-driven education is not straightforward. Most AI models rely on internet-sourced data, which has low vernacular penetration and is predominantly in English. Dialects and linguistic nuances are often lost. That’s why, for us, it’s critical to develop AI tools that prioritise vernacular languages, ensuring they serve the communities that need them most.
Q: What makes adapting AI to vernacular languages so challenging, and how do you tackle it?
Vishal: AI is only as good as the data it learns from, and right now, most models are trained on an internet that’s predominantly in English. That means many Indian languages—especially regional dialects—get left behind.
We’re fixing that by building a content bank designed specifically for vernacular learning. Instead of just translating, we train AI to teach in these languages naturally, keeping cultural and linguistic nuances intact. Take Rajasthan, for example—Marwadi is a key dialect, and we make sure AI understands and adapts to it.
The real challenge is scale. India has hundreds of languages, and low-resource communities often have the least AI support. Our goal is to bridge that gap, making AI a tool that truly serves every child, in every language they call home.
Q: What is Appu, and how does it enhance home learning and linguistic development in young children?
Vishal: Appu is a generative AI-powered learning companion that makes early education fun, interactive, and engaging. It takes the form of a playful, animated elephant that chats with kids and caregivers through simple conversations, rhymes, and hands-on activities—all in just a few minutes per session.
Young children learn best by asking questions, exploring, and making sense of the world around them. APPU taps into that natural curiosity, helping them build language skills, recognise numbers, and develop problem-solving abilities—without it ever feeling like a lesson.
Q: Since Appu is a mobile-based application, how do we ensure that children are not directly using the phone unsupervised? How do we encourage caregiver or Anganwadi worker involvement?
Vishal: Screen time is a big concern, and we’re super intentional about keeping it low. Appu isn’t about kids staring at a screen—it’s about talking, listening, and learning through real conversations. The experience is voice-driven, so instead of tapping and swiping, kids are speaking, responding, and engaging naturally.
Caregivers and educators are at the heart of this. The app is designed for co-use, where an adult kicks off the session, joins in, and reinforces learning. That way, it’s not just about what kids learn but also about strengthening the connection between them and their caregivers.
Q: Can you share any breakthrough innovation or unique approach as part of this project that Rocket Learning has developed in early childhood care and education?
Vishal: One of the biggest breakthroughs for us has been building AI that doesn’t just deliver content but actually teaches in a structured, effective, and safe way. We’ve developed a “pedagogical safety-in-the-loop” approach—meaning every interaction with Appu follows sound educational principles, with human oversight baked in.
Take something as simple as counting. Appu doesn’t just recite numbers; it adapts to different learning styles—using rhymes, everyday objects, and call-and-repeat exercises to make learning stick. We’ve spent months testing and refining every module to make sure each interaction is engaging, high-impact, and designed for real learning. From recognising letters to grasping basic numeracy, every step is intentional, making AI-driven education both meaningful and measurable.
Q: With Appu, what does the future look like? What is the roadmap ahead?
Vishal: We’re just getting started with Appu, but the vision is big—every child learning at their own pace, driven by curiosity, and excited to explore. We want learning to feel natural, playful, and rewarding, not like a chore. And most importantly, we want parents and caregivers to see real progress in their children, firsthand.
At launch, Appu would’ve reached around 1 lakh users in our cohort, and early beta tests are already showing promising results. One of the things we’re most excited about is how AI can significantly boost instructional time with almost no extra effort from caregivers. As we scale, the goal is to cover all 200 key learning objectives Rocket Learning has mapped out for early education.
With generative AI, we can constantly refine and improve learning experiences—rolling out fresh, high-quality content every week while keeping pedagogy at the core.