Three parents—Reni Cao, Xiao Zhang, and Susan Rosenthal—were worried about their children’s screen time, so they left their tech jobs to create a product that encourages children to engage with the real world while also helping them learn a new language. Their move has paid off, as the company recently raised $4.8 million in funding. The newly launched gadget is called Dex and resembles a high-tech magnifying glass with a camera lens on one side and a touchscreen on the other. When kids use the device to take pictures of objects, the AI utilizes image recognition technology to identify the object and translates the word into the selected language. It also features interactive story lessons and games. VIDEO While kid-focused language learning apps like Duolingo Kids exist, Dex argues that it takes a more engaging approach that emphasizes hands-on experiences, allowing children to immerse themselves in the language. “We’re trying to teach authentic language in the real world in a way that’s interactive,” Cao told TechCrunch. “The kids are not only listening or doing what they are told to do, but rather, they are actually thinking, creating, interacting, running around, and just being curious about things, and acquire the necessary language associated with those concepts and objects.” Dex is designed for kids ages 3 to 8 years old and currently supports Chinese, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Spanish. It also offers support for 34 dialects, including Egyptian Arabic, Taiwanese Mandarin, and Mexican Spanish. In addition to object recognition, Dex features a library of interactive stories that encourage children to actively participate in the narrative. As the story unfolds, kids are prompted to respond, such as greeting characters in the language they are learning. The device comes with a dedicated app for parents to see a detailed overview of their child’s progress, including the vocabulary words they’ve learned, the stories they’ve engaged with,...
First seen: 2025-08-20 15:19
Last seen: 2025-08-20 19:23