Synthesis
Synthesis School is a private edtech company offering an AI-powered adaptive math tutor for children ages 5-11 and a live collaborative learning program for ages 8-14, sold via direct-to-consumer subscriptions to families in 50+ countries.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersLos Angeles, United States
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Synthesis does
Synthesis School, Inc. is a private, direct-to-consumer education technology company headquartered in West Hollywood, California, founded in 2014 by Josh Dahn in connection with an experimental school at SpaceX established with Elon Musk. The company operates two core products: Synthesis Tutor, an AI-powered adaptive math learning platform for children ages 5-11 that delivers K-5 and beyond math curriculum through a gamified, multi-sensory experience built on DARPA-validated digital tutor research; and Synthesis Teams, a live, online collaborative class program for children ages 8-14 that develops problem-solving, communication, leadership, and teamwork skills through team-based strategy games with peers from 50+ countries, led by expert coaches.
The underlying technology combines AI-driven adaptive content sequencing and continuous real-time micro-assessments with multi-sensory delivery (text-to-speech via ElevenLabs, visual elements, interactive manipulatives), infrastructure hosted on AWS with Vercel for edge and application hosting, and Stripe for payments. The product is specifically designed to be neurodiverse-inclusive (dyslexia, dyscalculia, ASD, ADHD, 2E learners) and is fully COPPA and FERPA compliant. The company is led by CEO Chrisman Frank, with Josh Dahn as cofounder, and a headcount of 11-50 employees.
Synthesis monetizes through self-serve subscriptions priced at $25-$45/month for individual Tutor plans and $29-$70/month for family plans, $95/month for Teams, and one-time fees for holiday/summer camps and lifetime access ($999-$1,499). Distribution is entirely product-led, primarily through the company's websites (synthesis.com, tutor.synthesis.com, portal.synthesis.com) and the iPad App Store, with marketing via content (a Concepts blog), organic social, paid digital advertising, and email. The company claims 25,000+ families using the Tutor globally, with no disclosed revenue, a single small early-stage funding event in March 2022, and no parent company or institutional ownership structure on record.
Synthesis firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Synthesis
- Legal name
- Synthesis School, Inc.
- Website
- https://synthesis.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Synthesis School is a private edtech company offering an AI-powered adaptive math tutor for children ages 5-11 and a live collaborative learning program for ages 8-14, sold via direct-to-consumer subscriptions to families in 50+ countries.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Synthesis industry classification
Industry- Product category
- K-12 Educational Technology
- NAICS
- Exam Preparation and Tutoring (611691), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)
- SIC
- Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI Tutoring Systems (Conversational Tutors, Homework Helpers) (EDAFAFAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Adaptive Learning & Personalized Instruction Software (EDAJAMAE), Early Numeracy & Math Readiness Tools (EDACANAB), Integrated Tutoring + Learning Content Platforms (Curriculum + Tutors) (EDANAGAL)
Keywords
Where Synthesis is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Los Angeles
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Synthesis business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Technology or R&D, Personnel, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Synthesis Tutor Subscriptions: Monthly and annual subscription revenue for the AI-powered math tutoring platform. Individual plans start at $35/month (first month) and $25/month (annual). Family plans support up to 7 children. Lifetime access available as one-time purchase ($999 individual, $1,499 family).
- Synthesis Teams Subscriptions: Monthly subscription revenue for live, team-based learning sessions. Priced at $95/month for individual access. Provides weekly game sessions, discussion sessions, and coaching with students from around the world.
- Holiday Camp Revenue: One-time fee for seasonal camp programs such as Holiday Camp at $115 for the Dec 23-Jan 4 period.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Individual Monthly Plan |
| Subscription | Annual | Individual Annual Plan |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Individual Lifetime Plan |
| Subscription | Monthly | Family Monthly Plan (up to 10 students) |
| Subscription | Annual | Family Annual Plan (up to 7 kids) |
| One time/ perpetual license | Multi-year contract | Family Lifetime Plan (up to 7 kids) |
| Subscription | Monthly | Synthesis Teams Monthly |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Holiday Camp |
Go-to-market motion2 records
Distribution channels4 records
Marketing channels9 records
Synthesis product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Synthesis develops and sells an AI-powered adaptive math tutoring platform (Synthesis Tutor) for children ages 5-11, delivered via web and iPad. It also offers Synthesis Teams, a live online collaborative class program based on team games and simulations for children ages 8-14, plus seasonal Summer/Holiday Camps. The Tutor adapts to each child's ability using a methodology derived from DARPA digital tutor research, with multi-sensory design for neurodiverse learners.
Product overview
Synthesis offers an integrated educational platform for children with two core products: Synthesis Tutor (an AI-powered adaptive math learning platform for ages 5-11) and Synthesis Teams (a live collaborative class program for ages 8-14 that develops problem-solving and teamwork skills through team-based games). These are supplemented by seasonal Summer Camp programs and the free Adaptive Flashcards tool. The company originated from an experimental school founded at SpaceX in 2014 with the goal of developing students who can solve complex problems and exercise good judgment.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Synthesis Tutor: AI-based adaptive math tutoring platform for children ages 5-11 that gamifies math practice.
- Synthesis Teams
- Synthesis Summer Camp
Products and services
- Synthesis Tutor An adaptive, personalized digital math tutoring platform designed for children ages 5 to 11. Uses AI to provide patient, one-on-one tutoring that adapts to each child's demonstrated ability, covering the standard K-5 math curriculum (counting, addition, subtraction, multiplication, division, fractions, algebraic thinking, and more) through a gamified, multi-sensory learning experience. Available via web, Chromebook, and a native iPad app, with a 7-day free trial.
- Synthesis Teams A live, online collaborative class program based on team games and simulations for children ages 8 to 14. Develops complex problem-solving, communication, leadership, and teamwork skills through interactive strategy games with peers from around the world, led by expert coaches and including weekly game sessions, discussion sessions, coaching, and monthly feedback reports. Priced at $95/month.
- Synthesis Summer Camp Seasonal camp programs offering immersive learning experiences for children, including game development camps and holiday camps where kids learn through creating and analyzing games. Sold as one-time programs (e.g., Holiday Camp at $115 for the Dec 23 - Jan 4 period).
Quantifiable outcome
- Students performed better than 99.99% of classroom students after 16 weeks using the DARPA digital tutor methodology
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use Synthesis
Customer profileNamed customers7 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles4 records
Synthesis technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability5 records
Feature5 records
Synthesis partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Four partnerships are on record, tiered core.
- DARPA Research TeamcorePartnership with the team that created the original DARPA digital tutor program. Synthesis partnered with this team to expand upon their research and tailor-made a platform for children ages 7-10 using modern AI tools. The DARPA program demonstrated unprecedented learning effectiveness.
- SpaceXcoreSynthesis originated from an experimental school founded at SpaceX by Elon Musk in 2014. The school's goal was to develop students who are enthralled by complexity and solving for the unknown. The Synthesis approach was developed through this experimental school.
- Amazon Web Services (AWS)coreCloud infrastructure provider for hosting, compute, and S3 asset and TTS audio storage. All customer data, student learning data, and account data processed and stored.
- StripecorePayment processing partner handling parent name, email, payment card information, and transaction data.
Scale indicators3 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Synthesis competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Khanmigo (Khan Academy): Khan Academy's AI tutor (Khanmigo) provides conversational, personalized tutoring for K-12 students across multiple subjects, including math. It is the most direct competitor to Synthesis Tutor in the AI tutoring space, with a similar self-serve model and a free tier that pressures Synthesis' paid subscription.
- DreamBox Learning: DreamBox provides adaptive, intelligent math learning for grades K-8 using a similar personalized, multi-sensory approach. It is a direct competitor in the adaptive K-8 math category with established school and consumer channels.
- IXL Learning: IXL offers adaptive practice and learning across math, English, science, and social studies for K-12. It is a direct peer in adaptive personalized learning for K-12, with a subscription model and broad subject coverage that contrasts with Synthesis' focused math approach.
- ALEKS (McGraw Hill): ALEKS is an AI-driven adaptive math assessment and learning platform for grades 3-12, originally spun out of UC Irvine research. It directly competes with Synthesis Tutor in adaptive K-12 math, with similar mastery-based progression and a longer market history.
- Squirrel AI: Squirrel AI is a China-based adaptive AI tutoring platform serving K-12 students across multiple subjects. It is a direct peer in AI-driven adaptive tutoring, with significant scale and capital that positions it as a global competitor to Synthesis.
- Outschool: Outschool is a marketplace for live, small-group online classes for kids, including enrichment and team-based formats. It is the most direct peer to Synthesis Teams, providing live collaborative learning experiences to children globally.
Broad incumbents
- Mathnasium: Mathnasium is a large, established franchise network providing in-person math tutoring for K-12. While it operates via physical centers rather than online adaptive software, it directly competes for the same parent's math tutoring budget as Synthesis Tutor.
Emerging players
- Newsela: Newsela provides adaptive instructional content for K-12, with a focus on literacy. It overlaps with Synthesis in the adaptive learning and content delivery model, but focuses on reading rather than math.
- Prenda: Prenda is a microschool platform that pairs small groups of students with guides for personalized learning. It is a partial peer to Synthesis Teams in providing small-group, learner-centered experiences, though it operates more as a school alternative than an online class.
- Galileo Learning: Galileo operates summer camps and enrichment programs for K-8 students focused on innovation, design, and creative problem-solving. It is a partial peer to Synthesis Summer Camp and Teams in delivering project-based enrichment, with overlapping audiences of engaged, education-focused parents.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Synthesis social profiles
Digital presenceSynthesis compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Synthesis financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Synthesis leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Synthesis funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds1 record
Investors4 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Synthesis 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 Synthesis
What does Synthesis do?
Synthesis develops and sells an AI-powered adaptive math tutoring platform (Synthesis Tutor) for children ages 5-11, delivered via web and iPad. It also offers Synthesis Teams, a live online collaborative class program based on team games and simulations for children ages 8-14, plus seasonal Summer/Holiday Camps. The Tutor adapts to each child's ability using a methodology derived from DARPA digital tutor research, with multi-sensory design for neurodiverse learners.
Is Synthesis a public or private company?
Synthesis is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Synthesis founded?
Synthesis was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Synthesis based?
Synthesis is headquartered in Los Angeles, United States, in the North America region.
How does Synthesis make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Synthesis Tutor Subscriptions are the primary driver. The others are synthesis Teams Subscriptions and holiday Camp Revenue.
Who are Synthesis's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Khanmigo (Khan Academy), DreamBox Learning, IXL Learning, ALEKS (McGraw Hill), Squirrel AI and Outschool. Mathnasium is listed as a broad incumbent. Emerging players are Newsela, Prenda and Galileo Learning.
Does Synthesis have an API?
No public API is recorded for Synthesis.
What industry is Synthesis in?
Synthesis's product category is K-12 Educational Technology. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAFAC, AI Tutoring Systems (Conversational Tutors, Homework Helpers), with a secondary code of EDAJAMAE, Adaptive Learning & Personalized Instruction Software. Its NAICS code is 611691 and its SIC code is 8200.