In partnership with
Good morning ☀️, leader of the next generation.
Technology is reshaping how the world works.
The real question is not what it can do — but how we choose to use it.
We focus on using technology to support human evolution.
Progress works when responsibility stays human.
⚡ WHAT'S AT STAKE TODAY ⚡
- 🎓📱 Former Google trio is building an interactive AI-powered learning app for kids
- 🔬💻 From invisibility cloaks to AI chips: Neurophos raises $110M to build tiny optical processors for inferencing
- 📊🇺🇸 A timeline of the US semiconductor market in 2025
- 🍎⌚ Not to be outdone by OpenAI, Apple is reportedly developing an AI wearable
- 📱⚡ Quadric rides the shift from cloud AI to on-device inference — and it's paying off
- 🎵🤖 Spotify brings AI-powered Prompted Playlists to the US and Canada
- 🏢💻 Anthropic has to keep revising its technical interview test as Claude improves
- 🔍🗣️ Google snags team behind AI voice startup Hume AI
- ✅🎤 Todoist's app now lets you add tasks to your to-do list by speaking to its AI
Former Google employees launch interactive AI learning app for children
Former Google trio is building an interactive AI-powered learning app for kids
Three former Google employees have launched Sparkli, an AI-powered interactive learning app designed to transform how children engage with educational content. Founded by Lax Poojary, Lucie Marchand, and Myn Kang, the startup aims to move beyond traditional text-based AI responses to create immersive learning experiences for curious young minds.
The inspiration for Sparkli came from the founders' personal experiences as parents. When their children asked complex questions about how cars work or weather patterns, traditional AI tools like ChatGPT or Gemini provided lengthy text explanations that failed to capture children's attention. "Kids, by definition, are very curious," Poojary explained. "What kids want is an interactive experience."
The founding team brings significant tech experience to the venture. Poojary and Kang previously co-founded Touring Bird, a travel aggregator, and Shoploop, a video-focused social commerce app at Google's Area 120 incubator. Poojary later worked on shopping initiatives at Google and YouTube, while Marchand, now serving as CTO, was also a Shoploop co-founder before joining Google.
Sparkli differentiates itself by creating multimedia learning "expeditions" that combine audio, video, images, quizzes, and games. The app can generate complete learning experiences within two minutes of receiving a question, using generative AI to create all media assets on demand. Instead of static content, children can explore topics through choose-your-own-adventure formats without the pressure of right or wrong answers.
The platform addresses modern educational gaps by teaching contemporary skills like design thinking, financial literacy, and entrepreneurship—topics often absent from traditional curricula. Users can explore predefined topics across various categories or ask custom questions to create personalized learning paths. The app also features daily topic highlights to encourage continuous discovery.
Recognizing that effective educational technology requires pedagogical expertise, Sparkli's first two hires were a PhD holder in educational science and AI, and an experienced teacher. This deliberate approach ensures content development follows sound educational principles rather than purely technical capabilities.
Safety remains paramount in the app's design. While companies like OpenAI and Character.ai face lawsuits over harmful content exposure to children, Sparkli implements strict content moderation. Sexual content is completely banned, and when sensitive topics like self-harm arise, the app redirects conversations toward emotional intelligence and encourages parent communication.
The startup is currently piloting with an educational institute serving over 100,000 students across their school network. Last year's testing involved more than 20 schools, targeting children aged 5-12. Teachers use the platform to create class-opening expeditions that spark discussions and assign exploratory homework to gauge student understanding.
Drawing inspiration from Duolingo's engagement model, Sparkli incorporates gamification elements including streaks, rewards, and quest cards based on student avatars. These features encourage regular usage while maintaining educational focus.
The company has secured $5 million in pre-seed funding led by Swiss venture firm Founderful, marking the firm's first pure-play edtech investment. Founding partner Lukas Weder, himself a parent, sees Sparkli as offering children an alternative to video games while teaching practical skills absent from traditional curricula.
While currently focused on school partnerships globally, Sparkli plans to launch consumer access by mid-2026, allowing parents to download the app directly. This phased approach enables the team to refine their educational approach through institutional feedback before broader market release.
Investor-ready updates, by voice
High-stakes communications need precision. Wispr Flow turns speech into polished, publishable writing you can paste into investor updates, earnings notes, board recaps, and executive summaries. Speak constraints, numbers, and context and Flow will remove filler, fix punctuation, format lists, and preserve tone so your messages are clear and confident. Use saved templates for recurring financial formats and create consistent reports with less editing. Works across Mac, Windows, and iPhone. Try Wispr Flow for finance.
Neurophos secures $110M for revolutionary optical AI processors
From invisibility cloaks to AI chips: Neurophos raises $110M to build tiny optical processors for inferencing
Duke University spin-out Neurophos raised $110 million in Series A funding led by Gates Frontier to develop revolutionary optical processing units for AI. The Austin-based startup uses "metasurface modulators" derived from invisibility cloak research to create chips 10,000 times smaller than traditional optical transistors.
Their optical processing unit claims to outperform Nvidia's B200 GPU, delivering 235 POPS at 675 watts versus B200's 9 POPS at 1,000 watts. The company expects to launch production chips by mid-2028.
🎙️ The Supercharged Podcast Is Growing
Conversations with the People Building the AI Future
The Supercharged Podcast is becoming a place where real conversations about AI happen — beyond hype, tools, or surface-level takes.
We sit down with industry leaders, founders, builders, and operators who are actively using AI — or building AI-first businesses — to understand how it’s actually changing the way work gets done.
From strategy and systems to experimentation and execution, these are practical, honest conversations with people shaping what comes next.
⚡ Trends for the Future
Todoist's app now lets you add tasks to your to-do list by speaking to its AI
Todoist launches AI voice feature to convert speech into organized tasks.
Doist, the company behind popular to-do app Todoist, has launched "Todoist Ramble," an AI-powered voice-to-tasks feature that converts natural speech into organized task lists. The new functionality allows users to describe their tasks verbally while the app captures details like deadlines, priorities, duration, and assignees in real-time.
The feature addresses a common challenge for busy users who think of tasks while on the go but find it difficult to stop and type them out. With Ramble, users simply tap the voice icon and start speaking, with the AI processing their unstructured speech into organized to-dos. The system even responds to mid-speech corrections like "Actually, make that Thursday" or "that's all."
Ramble is powered by Google's Gemini 2.5 Flash Live model through Vertex AI, which provides real-time speech understanding. The technology transcribes audio and identifies tasks, dates, and other relevant details as users speak. Importantly, Doist emphasizes that audio isn't stored or used for AI training, and the app maintains SOC2 Type II certification.
This launch reflects a broader trend in AI-powered productivity tools. Similar functionality appears in hardware devices like Amazon's Bee wearable, Plaud's meeting transcription tools, and upcoming smart rings from Sandbar and Pebble that allow quick voice input for task creation.
Before its official launch, Ramble underwent extensive testing with 150,000 Todoist Experimental users, generating 290,000 sessions in just three weeks. Task creation success rates improved from 40% in October to 62% by December, while new users on entry-level plans upgraded at five times the previous rate after using Ramble.
The feature is now available across iOS, Android, desktop, and web platforms, supporting 38 languages. While Beginner plan users get limited monthly sessions, Pro and Business subscribers enjoy unlimited access through convenient shortcuts and widgets.
⚡ Let’s Make AI Actually Useful:
What Would Move the Needle in *Your* Industry?
AI has potential — but generic advice rarely helps.
What would be genuinely valuable for AI to do in your industry right now?
• Automate a painful workflow?
• Improve decision-making?
• Replace a manual process that wastes time?
• Help your team upskill faster?
Tell us what you’d want AI to handle — or where you feel stuck.
We’re using these insights to curate **industry-specific trainings, live webinars, and practical guidance** you can actually apply.
AI represents our greatest opportunity to amplify human creativity and solve challenges that will transform every aspect of life for the better.
Ilya Sutskever is the co-founder and former Chief Scientist of OpenAI, where he led the research that resulted in breakthrough AI systems, including GPT models and reinforcement learning advances. As one of the world's leading deep learning researchers and a former student of Geoffrey Hinton, he has made fundamental contributions to neural network architectures and training methods, while advocating for developing increasingly powerful AI systems with careful attention to safety and alignment with human values.
🌡️ Use the Satisfaction Thermometer to show us how much you enjoyed The Supercharged today ;)
The Supercharged is aiming to be the world's #1 AI business magazine and is on a mission to empower 1,000,000 entrepreneurs worldwide by 2025, guiding them through the transition into the AI-driven creative age. We're dedicated to breaking down complex technologies, sharing actionable insights, and fostering a community that thrives on innovation, to become the ultimate resource for businesses navigating the AI revolution.
The Supercharged is the #1 AI Newsletter for Entrepreneurs, with 25,000 + readers working at the world’s leading startups and enterprises. The Supercharged is free for the readers. Main ads are typically sold out 2 weeks in advance. You can book future ad spots here.
I'm sending this email because you registered for one of our workshops or our affiliates brought you. You can unsubscribe at the bottom of each email at any time.
