Prior to OKpanda we built successful businesses that reached millions of users in the gaming and social media space. However, despite the many happy users we served with fun and entertainment, we wanted to build something more meaningful and long term.
To decide what to do the first step was to look deep inside and find our true drive. After months of reflection the conclusion was that it is to empower people who want to help themselves. A few months of brainstorming later, including reviewing 800 ideas and building business models for 50 of them, it was clear that Education was the area we wanted to focus on, and particularly English.
English is the de facto lingua franca of the digital and business worlds. It is an incredible tool to unlock communication and the gates to participation in the global economy. Also, it's a huge business, generating over $30B in revenue annually and experiencing an exciting transition from brick and mortar to digital.
We thought that with our background, and with the rise of mobile learning, there was an opportunity to build something new and awesome in the space.