Listenwise
Listenwise is a U.S. K-12 educational technology company that delivers curated, standards-aligned podcast and video lessons for grades 2-12, with auto-scored quizzes, interactive transcripts, and a companion ELD product (Lingolift), selling via freemium individual teacher accounts and subscription site licenses to schools and districts.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2013
- HeadquartersBoston, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Listenwise does
Listenwise (legal entity Listen Innovation, Inc.) is a U.S. K-12 educational technology company founded in 2012 by former NPR reporter Monica Brady-Myerov and headquartered in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts. The company operates a web-based platform delivering thousands of curated, standards-aligned podcast and video lessons (typically 3-6 minutes) for grades 2-12 across ELA, social studies, science, and current events. Content is hand-selected from trusted journalism brands (anchored by an NPR partnership since 2016) and enriched with interactive transcripts, auto-scored listening comprehension quizzes, Lexile/ELP tagging, and teacher guides with graphic organizers. A companion product, Lingolift, extends the platform to newcomer and emergent multilingual students with interactive videos featuring the Texthelp translation toolbar and speech recognition for speaking practice; the platform has further expanded into writing assessment in 2025.
Underlying the product is a curated content library (over 2,800 podcasts cited as of 2022), integrations with Google Classroom and Texthelp, and a Boclips reseller relationship for video content. Listenwise holds ESSA Level IV evidence certification (achieved in 2023 via LearnPlatform by Instructure), is FERPA- and COPPA-compliant, and is a Student Privacy Pledge signatory. Pricing operates on a hybrid freemium/enterprise model: individual teachers can self-serve a free tier and a 30-day Premium trial, while school and district administrators request quotes for site-wide licenses. Distribution combines a product-led growth motion at the teacher level with an enterprise field sales motion at the district level, with concentrated go-to-market emphasis on California, Texas, and WIDA-aligned states.
The company is privately held, reports 1-10 employees, and has raised approximately $1.59 million in disclosed equity funding across 2013-2018 from investors including Bantam Group, LaunchPad Venture, NewSchools Venture Fund, and Voqal, supplemented by LearnLaunch accelerator support. Named customers include Clovis Unified School District (50 campuses, ~43,000 students), Vista Unified, Palm Springs Unified, and Lake Dallas Independent School District.
Listenwise firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Listenwise
- Legal name
- Listen Innovation, Inc.
- Website
- https://listenwise.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2013
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Listenwise is a U.S. K-12 educational technology company that delivers curated, standards-aligned podcast and video lessons for grades 2-12, with auto-scored quizzes, interactive transcripts, and a companion ELD product (Lingolift), selling via freemium individual teacher accounts and subscription site licenses to schools and districts.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Listenwise industry classification
Industry- Product category
- K-12 Educational Technology — Listening Comprehension and English Language Development Platform
- NAICS
- Educational Support Services (6117), Educational Services (611), Educational Support Services (61171)
- SIC
- Services-Prepackaged Software (7372), Services-Educational Services (8200)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Audio Learning Content (Podcasts, Audiobooks, Listening Programs) (EDAGALAM)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Assistive Reading & Writing Tools (Text-to-Speech, Speech-to-Text, OCR, Dyslexia Support) (EDAFAKAA), Assistive Hearing & Communication Access (Captioning, Hearing Support, Transcription) (EDAFAKAC), Accessibility for Live Instruction (Live Captions, Transcription, Translation) (EDAFABAL)
Keywords
Where Listenwise is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Boston
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices2 records
Markets served
Listenwise business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Supply Chain, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Subscription Licensing: Listenwise operates on a subscription model, offering both individual teacher accounts (with free tier available) and school/district-wide site licenses for administrators. Pricing tiers likely exist based on feature access (Basic Free vs Premium).
- School/District Site Licenses: Administrators can request quotes for site-wide deployment, indicating enterprise licensing for schools and districts with tiered pricing based on number of users or features.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Basic Free tier for individual teachers with limited features |
| Subscription | Annual | Premium subscription with full feature access for teachers and students |
| Subscription | Annual | School/District site license for enterprise-wide deployment |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels8 records
Listenwise product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Listenwise is a K-12 educational technology platform that delivers thousands of hand-curated 3-6 minute podcast and video lessons for grades 2-12, aligned with ELA, social studies, science, and English Language Development standards. The platform embeds auto-scored listening comprehension quizzes, interactive transcripts with synchronized highlighting, and Lexile-tagged content for differentiated instruction. Its companion product Lingolift provides interactive video lessons with speech recognition feedback, translation into 15+ languages via the Texthelp Toolbar, and English/picture dictionaries to support newcomer students and emergent multilinguals across all four language domains (listening, speaking, reading, writing).
Product overview
Listenwise is an educational technology platform offering a unified product portfolio centered on developing students' listening comprehension and language skills. The core product, Listenwise, provides thousands of curated podcast and video lessons with auto-scored quizzes and interactive transcripts for grades 2-12. Lingolift serves as a companion product specifically designed for newcomer students and emergent multilinguals, featuring interactive video lessons with speech recognition feedback and built-in translation supports. Together, these products form an integrated solution for teaching listening, speaking, reading, and writing across elementary and secondary education levels.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Listenwise Core Platform K-12 educational technology platform offering thousands of curated 3-6 minute podcast and video lessons for grades 2-12, aligned with ELA, social studies, science, and ELD standards. Includes auto-scored listening comprehension quizzes, interactive transcripts with synchronized highlighting, Lexile-tagged content, teacher's guides, and Google Classroom integration for teachers, schools, and districts.
- Lingolift Companion product to Listenwise designed for newcomer students and emergent multilinguals in grades 2-12. Features short, interactive video lessons with built-in supports including the Texthelp Toolbar (translation into 15+ languages, English and picture dictionaries), speech recognition for immediate personalized speaking feedback, and ready-made teacher's guides with embedded assessments. Addresses all four language domains: listening, speaking, reading, and writing.
- Elementary Lessons Podcast and video lesson library curated for elementary school students in grades 2-5, covering ELA, science, social studies, and current events, aligned with content-based instruction and ELD standards.
- Secondary Lessons Podcast and video lesson library for middle and high school students in grades 6-12, covering curriculum-aligned content across ELA, social studies, science, and current events.
- English Language Development (ELD) Lessons English Language Development lessons with extra scaffolding and supports for English learners at various proficiency levels, aligned with WIDA standards and designed for use across all four language domains.
- Listen Wise Book Professional development book titled 'Listen Wise: Teach Students to Be Better Listeners,' authored by founder Monica Brady-Myerov, providing theory and practice for improving students' listening abilities.
Quantifiable outcome
- Districts using Listenwise see 17% higher 'Exceeds Standard' rates on CAASPP compared to non-using districts
- +1 more outcomes
Companies that use Listenwise
Customer profileNamed customers5 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Listenwise technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
AI capability2 records
Feature6 records
Listenwise partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- LearnPlatform by InstructurecoreThird-party partner for ESSA Level IV evidence validation. LearnPlatform conducted research validation confirming Listenwise meets evidence requirements for ESSA Level IV.
- NPRcoreNPR partnership provides Listenwise with access to trusted public radio journalism content for classroom use. NPR's reputation for journalistic integrity provides quality-sourced audio content aligned with educational standards.
- Boclips (KnowledgeMotion Limited)coreBoclips provides video content through Listenwise. Listenwise acts as either reseller or commercial sales agent for Boclips content, with the platform serving as the access point for educational video content.
- Google ClassroomcoreIntegration with Google Classroom allows teachers to share audio links and assign Listenwise lessons directly through the LMS.
Scale indicators4 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Listenwise competitors and assessment
Company assessmentBroad incumbents
- BrainPOP: BrainPOP provides animated educational videos and quizzes across subjects for K-12. It overlaps with Listenwise on the short-form video/audio lesson + auto-quiz model and competes in district-wide curriculum adoption decisions.
- Discovery Education: Discovery Education is a large K-12 digital content platform with video, audio, and curated resources across subjects. It competes with Listenwise at the district licensing level as part of a broader content suite rather than a focused listening product.
- Amplify: Amplify offers K-12 curriculum, assessments, and intervention tools. It is a broad incumbent comparable to Listenwise in the ELA/ELD instructional content market and competes for district-wide curriculum and supplemental budget.
- PBS LearningMedia: PBS LearningMedia offers free, standards-aligned video and audio resources for K-12 classrooms. It is a broad incumbent alternative to Listenwise's curated audio/video lesson model and is often used as a free substitute in district adoption decisions.
Direct peers
- CommonLit: CommonLit is a free literacy platform for grades 3-12 with standards-aligned texts and comprehension assessments. It is comparable to Listenwise on the comprehension-assessment and ELA-aligned content dimensions, and competes for the same teacher and district budgets.
- Edpuzzle: Edpuzzle lets teachers turn videos into interactive lessons with embedded quizzes. It competes directly with Listenwise's auto-scored quiz model applied to video content, and targets the same K-12 teacher buyer.
- Newsela: Newsela provides standards-aligned nonfiction content for K-12 with reading-level differentiation. It is the closest large-scale peer to Listenwise in terms of curated content, Lexile-based differentiation, and district-license GTM, though it focuses on text rather than audio.
- Imagine Learning: Imagine Learning delivers K-12 literacy and English language learner programs. It is the most direct peer to Listenwise's Lingolift product for ELD instruction and competes for the same district ELL budget line items.
- Nearpod: Nearpod delivers interactive K-12 video lessons with embedded checks for understanding and LMS integration. It overlaps with Listenwise on the video-based lesson + auto-scored assessment model and shares the school/district sales motion.
- ReadWorks: ReadWorks provides reading comprehension passages and question sets for K-12, with nonprofit and district-licensed models. It is comparable on comprehension assessment and standards alignment, though focused on text rather than audio.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Listenwise social profiles
Digital presenceListenwise compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance3 records
Listenwise financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Listenwise leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles1 record
Listenwise funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds5 records
Investors7 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Listenwise M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Listenwise
What does Listenwise do?
Listenwise is a K-12 educational technology platform that delivers thousands of hand-curated 3-6 minute podcast and video lessons for grades 2-12, aligned with ELA, social studies, science, and English Language Development standards. The platform embeds auto-scored listening comprehension quizzes, interactive transcripts with synchronized highlighting, and Lexile-tagged content for differentiated instruction. Its companion product Lingolift provides interactive video lessons with speech recognition feedback, translation into 15+ languages via the Texthelp Toolbar, and English/picture dictionaries to support newcomer students and emergent multilinguals across all four language domains (listening, speaking, reading, writing).
Is Listenwise a public or private company?
Listenwise is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Listenwise founded?
Listenwise was founded in 2013. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Listenwise based?
Listenwise is headquartered in Boston, United States, in the North America region.
How does Listenwise make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Subscription Licensing is the primary driver. The others are school/District Site Licenses.
Who are Listenwise's main competitors?
Broad incumbents on record are BrainPOP, Discovery Education, Amplify and PBS LearningMedia. Direct peers are CommonLit, Edpuzzle, Newsela, Imagine Learning, Nearpod and ReadWorks.
Does Listenwise have an API?
No public API is recorded for Listenwise.
What industry is Listenwise in?
Listenwise's product category is K-12 Educational Technology — Listening Comprehension and English Language Development Platform. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAGALAM, Audio Learning Content (Podcasts, Audiobooks, Listening Programs), with a secondary code of EDAFAKAA, Assistive Reading & Writing Tools (Text-to-Speech, Speech-to-Text, OCR, Dyslexia Support). Its NAICS code is 6117 and its SIC code is 7372.