Re-skill — a startup that offers adaptive IT training using AI

The founder of the startup, Farrukh Umarov, shared the story behind the creation of the project and who Re-skill is for.

Farrukh Umarov, Dubai, founder of Re-skill, @farrukh_umari

How it all started

I am the co-founder of the EdTech startup Re-skill, which is considered a spin-off product of the organization ilmhona. ilmhona is a skill accelerator that has been operating for six years, where we teach programming skills and help people find jobs in programming and design.

At Re-skill, we use AI to create a unique educational product. Another co-founder of our startup is Said, a computer vision engineer and specialist in VR and AR. Our partner, Mukhtasham, is a machine learning engineer with strong technical skills.

We wanted to create a unique product that would allow people to acquire skills based on their preferences and goals. We decided to use a personalized adaptive approach so that everyone could successfully complete their training. One of the main problems with online education is that people don’t finish courses. Additionally, there are courses that don't consider the individual needs of students.

We are confident that our product will help solve these problems and provide educational opportunities not just to hundreds, but to millions of people around the world.

Target Audience

The target audience of Re-skill consists of two main profiles. The first includes those who are starting their learning from scratch. We provide these individuals with the opportunity to learn online based on their own skills and preferences.

The second student profile is those who have some basic knowledge but are not yet fully ready for employment. For them, we are developing a job-centric training function focused on market requirements. We analyze job vacancy requirements and compare them with the current skills of students. We then create a personalized training plan that helps bridge the gaps in their knowledge and skills. This plan not only introduces the topic but also adapts to the specific student, based on their existing knowledge and the requirements of the job vacancy. This is how we connect these two student groups and help them prepare for future employment, including resume and interview preparation.

We are launching the Re-skill project in the Central Asian region, but we are also considering expanding to other markets in the future.

Acceleration Programs

Last year, when our project was still in its early stages, we participated in the Prosperity Cup acceleration program by Accelerator Prosperity. Thanks to this program, we were able to refine our ideas into a concrete value proposition and turn them into a product. At the idea stage, the main result was packaging our ideas into one product.

Challenges

One of the main challenges is assembling the right team. With the ilmhona project, we managed to form a strong team that shares our mission. Another problem is the distance between team members, which hinders interaction and motivation. It is also sometimes difficult to evaluate ideas and beliefs.

However, challenges stimulate our growth and motivate us to move forward. Building a startup is not an easy task.

Achievements

With the Re-skill project, we have just begun, but we have already launched the product. This is a big step forward, and time will tell what comes next!

Plans

Our goal by the end of the year is to successfully test hypotheses, add useful features, and expand our product into other markets. Our main focus is on the successful launch and implementation of hypotheses because if we can achieve this from scratch, scaling up will be easier.

We also plan to attract investors to scale the project.