What inspired you to start Geekie? What challenge were you trying to solve?
A strong desire to address the significant educational disparities in Brazil. Having grown up there, I witnessed firsthand the challenges many students faced in accessing quality education, especially those from underprivileged backgrounds. Traditional education systems struggle to provide individualized attention to each student, leaving many behind and failing to help them reach their full potential.
We saw an opportunity to leverage technology to create a more equitable and effective educational ecosystem, providing personalized learning experiences that could adjust to each student’s pace, style, and needs. This approach would not only help students learn more effectively but also empower teachers with data-driven insights to better support their students.
What were your career steps to becoming Co-founder and CEO of Geekie?
My journey to co-founding Geekie began as a private teacher throughout my college years. After pursuing an MBA and MA in Education from Stanford, I worked in investment banking in New York until 2007, when I had to return to Brazil as my father got sick. Returning to Brazil and facing again the inequalities of the educational system had a tremendous impact on me, and I felt a calling to make a larger impact. These experiences culminated in co-founding Geekie, allowing me to combine my business acumen with my passion for improving education in Brazil and providing opportunities for students to develop their full potential regardless of economic and social background.
What surprised you the most about the founder’s journey?
It takes much longer and it is much more complicated than we can imagine. The journey will test how much you really want it and how you want to achieve it – your core values. And never underestimate the amount of people who want to help you, as long as you are true to yourself and honest about your mistakes. All you have to do is ask. Nicely.
How do you see the future of education evolving?
Despite the amazing technological evolution with Generative AI, I see the future of education evolving around scaling proven pedagogies backed by research. We already know what works, but we have not been able to scale it so every student has access to. By design, the traditional models have failed to do so. Thus in my opinion we must rethink what a school is and what students do in the 5-8 hours they spend there.
What role do you think new education ventures will play in this evolution?
New education ventures are critical as innovation rarely comes from the status quo. The necessary changes to address inequalities will not come from incumbents, whose focus is on selling materials and not on improving learning. With Generative AI, the big question now is whether new ventures will be able to create distribution channels quicker than incumbents will be able to innovate.
What was your favorite class or experience at Stanford when you were a student? How did you learn about education?
All my favorite experiences at Stanford relate to time spent with the amazing group of people I had the opportunity to live with for two years. Whether discussing in class, studying together, playing soccer, cooking or traveling, all memories were inspiring and humbling. Looking back, those were the best memories for sure!
After Geekie, you returned to Stanford as an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR). What has been your most memorable experience so far as an EIR?
My most memorable experience as an Entrepreneur in Residence has definitely been being able to mentor, help and hopefully inspire current students. It is part of giving back to a community that has transformed my life and helped me so much. Whether in classrooms, grabbing a coffee, walking or through a course I taught last quarter (EDUC 236 – How Will AI Change the EdTech Industry?), every interaction with students has been inspiring and fulfilling.
What advice would you give to aspiring founders looking to start their ventures?
There are many things I could mention. One advice is to focus on execution. Great ideas are common and will be copied. Execution is what sets successful ventures apart. In order to do so, build a strong company culture from the start. Recruiting, training, compensation and priorities should reflect such culture.