How Artificial Intelligence Can Improve the Classroom Experience

 

Levi Belnap wants to make this clear from the beginning—artificial intelligence will never replace human teachers, at least not in our lifetime. What he and his colleagues at Merlyn Mind believe is that AI can enhance teachers’ work. On this episode of EdTech Today, Levi introduces us to his nascent company’s offering and provides some insights on how they believe the classroom experience can be better for all involved.

The company launched out of stealth mode last month to unveil the first digital assistant built specifically for education that empowers teachers to more naturally use the technology in their classrooms and simplify their work. The company also announces it has closed $29 million in funding to date, led by Learn Capital.

The Merlyn Mind team spent the last three and a half years working in tandem with educators to create Merlyn, the first digital assistant built specifically for education. In 2021 alone, Merlyn Mind has piloted Merlyn in over 50 classrooms across more than 20 different schools as the company accelerates the release of Merlyn to help educators take back their classrooms from the complexities of technology. Merlyn gives teachers more natural command of the devices and digital services in their classrooms and untethers them from the front of the room. Responding to both voice and remote control, Merlyn empowers teachers with choices that simplify how they use classroom technology.

“We’ve been investing in education technology companies for more than a decade at Learn Capital, and Merlyn Mind has brought together what is quite simply the dream team,” said Rob Hutter, Founder & Managing Partner at Learn Capital and board member of Merlyn Mind. “Incredible professionals from IBM Watson Labs, HP Education, Amazon Alexa, Google, Facebook, Broadcom, and Roku have come together to work on a unified product experience for an extremely urgent mission–that of reclaiming the classroom for teaching from the complexity of technology itself.”

“I’ve worked closely with the Merlyn Mind team to understand what educators really need from their technology, and what we know is teachers don’t just need more technology, they need the right technology,” said Emily Schindler, Associate Director at Creativity Labs, University of California-Irvine. “Merlyn Mind wants to give teachers what they need most, more time and freedom to think about student learning and the ability to better leverage their greatest asset, themselves.”

Before COVID-19, teachers already spent half of their time focused on administrative tasks (McKinsey & Co., 2020), managing more than 900 different applications in the classroom according to LearnPlatform. After COVID-19, teachers’ jobs have become even more difficult, with more than 97% of K-12 educators reporting learning loss in students over the past year when compared with children in previous years, according to Horace Mann Educators Corporation. Merlyn helps teachers manage the complexity of teaching with technology in the classroom and frees teachers to focus more of their time on the individual needs of their students.

The Merlyn assistant is accessed through Symphony Classroom, an AI hub custom-built for the unique needs of education. With Symphony Classroom, teachers can control classroom devices like the front-of-room displays, teacher laptops, the internet browser, and the applications teachers use daily. Merlyn integrates with the apps and devices teachers already use and love, including Google Slides, Google Drive, Classcraft, Nearpod, Newsela, and more to meet teachers where they already are.

Listen to Previous Episodes of EdTech Today!

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Twitter – @MarketScale
Facebook – facebook.com/marketscale
LinkedIn – linkedin.com/company/marketscale

Follow us on social media for the latest updates in B2B!

Image

Latest

pcp
PCP Attribution Analysis
May 22, 2025

Dr. Sam Ambewadikar, RVP and Medical Director at Anthem National Accounts, joins Brent to unpack the power of primary care attribution analysis—a tool he helped pioneer to spotlight the clinical and financial impact of members not having an established PCP. Drawing from his background as a practicing pediatrician and claims analytics leader, Dr. Sam shares…

Read More
sydney health
Sydney Health Demo
May 22, 2025

In this episode, Christina Firouztash, Executive Advisor of Digital Solutions at Anthem, gives a dynamic walkthrough of the Sydney Health app—Anthem’s flagship digital member experience. Christina showcases how Sydney delivers personalized, simple, and equitable navigation across benefits, including virtual care, pharmacy, financial transparency, and social services access. From contextual chatbots and ID card access to…

Read More
pharmacy
Pharmacy Part 1
May 22, 2025

In this episode, Brent chats with Katie Brennan, National Sales Director at CarelonRx, about making pharmacy benefits more accessible, consistent, and member-friendly. Katie spotlights Carelon new advanced home delivery model, which brings the pharmacy counter—and the pharmacist—into the member’s home. With fewer retail pharmacies offering extended hours and many patients lacking reliable transportation, CarelonRx is…

Read More
inclusive care
Inclusive Care
May 22, 2025

Sammy Gonzalez, Regional Vice President at Elevance Health, joins Brent for a deeply personal and impactful conversation on health equity and inclusive care. Sammy shares a powerful story of medical misdiagnosis tied to cultural assumptions, underscoring how bias—even unintentional—can hinder care quality. He highlights Elevance’s work to improve diversity in provider networks, enhance cultural competency,…

Read More