In the Forbes interview, Kavita Ghai, co-founder of Nectar, discusses how her AI startup is transforming education by providing a safe, personalized, and effective AI platform that improves student outcomes and supports teachers, while prioritizing privacy and responsible AI use. With recent funding, Nectar aims to expand its impact nationwide, helping students gain both academic and workforce skills as AI becomes increasingly essential in education.
In this Forbes interview, Maggie McGrath speaks with Kavita Ghai, co-founder of Nectar, an education-focused AI startup. Nectar has just closed a $12.5 million Series A funding round led by Rethink Impact, aiming to expand its AI tools from California’s community colleges to educational institutions across all 50 states. The company’s mission is to provide a safe, effective, and purpose-built AI infrastructure for classrooms, addressing the growing need for responsible AI adoption in education as more students and teachers turn to AI tools.
Ghai highlights the measurable impact of Nectar’s AI on student outcomes. In the California Community College system, which serves 2.1 million students, research showed that after one term of using Nectar AI, students experienced a 20% increase in GPA, a 13% rise in final scores, and a 36% boost in intrinsic motivation to learn. Additionally, retention rates improved, meaning more students stayed in their classes and progressed toward graduation. Anecdotal evidence also suggests that students are gaining valuable AI literacy and workforce skills, with some even securing jobs as AI prompt engineers after using Nectar.
Nectar AI is designed as a personalized learning partner, similar to ChatGPT but tailored specifically for education. It integrates with learning management systems (LMS) and adapts to each student’s learning style, providing support both inside and outside the classroom. The platform allows for the creation of specialized assistants, such as FAFSA advisors and career coaches, to help students with administrative tasks and career planning. Importantly, teachers can set guardrails, such as requiring the AI to use the Socratic method or preventing it from giving direct answers to homework, ensuring that the tool supports learning rather than enabling shortcuts.
A key differentiator for Nectar is its focus on privacy and safety. The platform is FERPA-compliant, ensuring that student and institutional data remain private and are not shared with external AI model providers like OpenAI or Anthropic. Student conversations with the AI are kept confidential, fostering a safe environment for asking questions without fear of judgment. Teachers are supported with prompt libraries and onboarding to help them customize the AI for their courses, and the company emphasizes that AI is meant to augment, not replace, human educators.
Ghai also discusses the challenges of fundraising as a woman of color and first-time founder, noting the persistent gender gap in venture capital funding. Despite these obstacles, she attributes Nectar’s success to a strong product, clear results, and a focus on solving real problems in education. Looking ahead, Nectar plans to expand into K-12 and postgraduate markets, with features in development to give students holistic insights into their learning strengths and career paths. Ghai concludes by stressing the urgency for educational institutions to adopt responsible AI, as the technology is rapidly becoming integral to both learning and the workforce.