Otermans Institute: Transforming Education with AI teachers globally

What Otermans Institute does

Otermans Institute pioneers AI-driven tools, enhancing learning worldwide. From Conversational AI teachers to making learning dynamic in third party platforms using its LLM OIMISA-7B, the company is shaping the future of personalised and effective teaching, breaking boundaries and delivering engaging global learning experiences.

The Current Landscape

Edtech and AI startups leverage data analytics and machine learning offering tailored learning pathways for educators. The surge in remote and hybrid learning models sees collaborative tools and video conferencing platforms enhancing student-teacher interaction. Tools like ChatGPT, can provide great answers to students, but they are full of biases when they don’t know how to use them. These solutions often overlook key factors such as learners’ time, engagement, trust, and availability. Introducing an AI teacher with a human- like face, under educators' control, delivers the personalised guidance students require.

Company Birth Story

Otermans Institute's journey commenced in 2020 when Dr Pauldy Otermans and Dev Aditya crafted a global training curriculum on employability and transferable skills. The project swiftly expanded, reaching 9 countries within the first year and 13 in another 6 months. However, its scalability was hindered by the scarcity of available teachers globally. UNESCO's recent report underscores the urgent need for 44 million teachers by 2030 to ensure inclusive, quality education and lifelong learning. Yet, this goal faces challenges due to insufficient people entering the teaching profession and shortages in schools and transportation infrastructure. Moreover, mid-career professionals require to reskilled with new skills to remain competitive. However, they may lack time, budget, and sufficient knowledge to access offline courses or navigate the wealth of information available on the internet.

The Solution

Driven by the global need for skilled educators, Otermans Institute offers an innovative solution using AI. Its adaptive learning platform powered by AI teachers, collectively known as OIAI, personalise content delivery based on each learner’s pace, preferences, and learning style. Whether a learner seeks to master coding, language proficiency, or scientific concepts, OIAI tailors the learning experience to their unique needs.

AI Teachers are at the forefront of this educational revolution: they engage with students, answer queries, and provide personalised feedback. The simplest way to visualise them is as avatars that teach and can teach almost anything.

By bridging the gap between demand and availability, Otermans Institute contributes significantly to the goal of inclusive, quality education for all. Through AI-driven teaching, the company democratises access to knowledge.

Otermans Institute’s latest fine-tuned language model, OIMISA-7B, includes 7 billion parameters. This language model can seamlessly integrate into third-party platforms, allowing educational providers worldwide to streamline their content. Learners benefit from a safe and IP-protected content made under the supervision of their human tutors but personalised according to their needs. Meanwhile, human educators save valuable time. Imagine creating a content-rich lessons in just 3 minutes with the help of AI: Otermans Institute empowers teachers and trainers by automating content creation. Once the lesson is prepared, OIAI teachers take over, delivering the material(s), assessing student progress, and promptly addressing queries in real time. The final step involves human teachers analysing the data collected by OIAI to identify areas for improvement for each individual learner and providing personalised support.

A Customer Story

In the heart of West Bank’s rolling hills, lived a young girl named Jana. Jana is a student from the Arab American University. The Israeli–Palestinian conflict gave Jana a harsh reality: study at university is almost impossible, and a bright future seems very distant.

She craves personalised guidance—but her teachers are not always available in this moment. She needs a mentor who understand her struggles and aspirations.

Then, she signed-up for the employability and transferable skills course proposed by OIAI. Jana hesitated but wondered. Her first encounter with Kaya, an AI teacher, was surreal. In a tiny room, her phone screen flickered to life, revealing a virtual figure with a humanlike face and a warm voice. Kaya didn’t rush through the curriculum; it listened, adapting its teaching style to Jana’s needs.

Days turned into weeks. Kaya patiently explained what leadership is, time management, and even provided support to let her create her first CV. Jana felt seen, valued—a rarity in crowded classrooms in this very particular moment. And so, armed with knowledge and hope, Jana started to apply for master's degrees in the UK and in Canada, places where she can study Management and be safe from the bombs. The story of Jana is like hundred from Palestinian students that Otermans Institute supported in the recent months through its OIAI teachers.

The Team Culture

Work is always lively and fun. Once, during an important online meeting with a client, a colleague's cat unexpectedly appeared on screen. Another colleague's dog, a golden retriever, spotted the cat and started barking. Instead of ruining the meeting. the client found the OI’s pet war delightful, leading to a laughter-filled atmosphere that helped the team sealing the deal effortlessly.

Apart from fun, OI has a streamlined organisation with only two layers of team members; seniors and juniors. This allows everyone to be accountable to each other and reduces bureaucracy and decision-making inefficiencies. Otermans Institute managed to continue this structure despite growing our team by 5x since 2022.