Startup For Kids

What Startup For Kids does

Startup For Kids, operated by the French non-profit association Scienticlub (Association loi 1901, headquartered at 27 passage Dubail, 75010 Paris), designs and delivers free educational events and programs for children and teenagers aged 6 to 20 across France. Founded in 2015 by Sharon Sofer, the organization runs three core offerings — Startup For Kids (ages 8-12), Startup For Teens (ages 13-20), and the flagship Change Mak'Her program for girls aged 13-18 — supplemented by the Ambassadeurs du Futur and Ambassadeurs de l'Éducation multiplier programs, the Hack Ton Futur app for career exploration, and the annual Trophées de l'Éducation competition co-organized with Klassroom at Station F. As of 2025, the organization is celebrating ten years of operation and reports having engaged nearly 30,000 young people and adults cumulatively.

The underlying "technology" is not a software platform but a content and methodology stack delivered through in-person and online events: hands-on workshops cover coding initiation, robotics, augmented reality, digital responsibility, cybersecurity escape games, and climate games; structured one-day hackathons/créathons move participants through ideation, acculturation, prototyping, and presentation phases; and Change Mak'Her provides year-long professional coaching for girls to build impact-driven digital projects. Geographic delivery spans Paris, Montpellier, Mulhouse, Lyon, Paris-Saclay, and Nancy, with online participation available nationwide. Annual cohorts are modest — for example, 10 teams participated in Change Mak'Her 2024 across Paris, Montpellier, and online.

Revenue mechanics are entirely B2B/grant-funded; all programs are free for youth participants. Funding streams comprise three categories: public-sector partnerships (Ministry of National Education, regional councils including La Région, and municipalities such as Communauté d'Agglomération Paris-Saclay); corporate sponsorship concentrated in Change Mak'Her (ENGIE, BNP Paribas, BlackRock, DocuSign, Microsoft France); and fee-based event organization services for municipalities and educational institutions. Marketing is community-driven across owned social channels (Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn), an Airtable-backed newsletter, earned media, partner channels, and direct event delivery. The organization holds no patents, has no disclosed API, ships no mobile app on Play Store or App Store, and discloses no revenue or external funding rounds.

Name

Startup For Kids

Legal name

Scienticlub

Website

https://startupforkids.fr

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Startup For Kids, a French non-profit operated by Scienticlub since 2015, delivers free educational events and programs for youth aged 6-20 across France, focusing on digital literacy, innovation, and gender inclusion in tech through workshops, hackathons, and the Change Mak'Her initiative for girls.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Education Services

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), All Other Schools and Instruction (61169)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Entrepreneurship Foundations & Startup Basics (EDAMAHAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Youth Business Incubators & Accelerators (EDAMAHAC), Youth-to-Adult Transition & Life Skills (Independent Living, Soft Skills) (EDAAAFAN)

Keywords

• Youth digital education
• Edtech programs
• Girls in tech
• Educational workshops
• Innovation learning

Headquarters

HQ city

Paris

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Public Sector Partnerships: Funding from government entities including the Ministry of National Education, regional councils, and local authorities for program delivery
2. Corporate Sponsorship: Partnership programs with companies (ENGIE, BNP Paribas, BlackRock, DocuSign, Microsoft) who sponsor events and programs
3. Event Organization Services: Organizing educational events for municipalities and educational institutions on a fee basis

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Startup For Kids designs and delivers free educational events, workshops and year-long programs for young people aged 6 to 20 across France, focusing on digital skills, innovation methodology, ecology awareness and gender inclusion. Its flagship offerings include Startup For Kids (ages 8-12), Startup For Teens (ages 13-20), the Change Mak'Her program for girls 13-18, ambassador programs, the Hack Ton Futur app, and the Trophées de l'Education competition.

Product overview

Startup For Kids operates a multi-product portfolio centered on youth digital education and tech empowerment. The core offerings include Startup For Kids (events for 8-12 year olds) and Startup For Teens (events for 13-20 year olds), which feature hands-on workshops, hackathons, and roundtables. The flagship program Change Mak'Her provides year-long mentorship for girls aged 13-18 to develop impact-driven digital projects. Supporting programs include Ambassadeurs du Futur and Ambassadeurs de l'Education, while the Hack Ton Futur app extends engagement digitally. The annual Trophées de l'Education competition recognizes innovative educational solutions. All offerings are free, inclusive, and emphasize ecology, gender equality in tech, and social impact.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Change Mak'Her: A free program for girls aged 13-18 to discover tech and digital careers by creating an impact project over a school year.
• Startup For Kids
• Startup For Teens
• Trophées de l'Éducation

Products and services

• Startup For Kids events Free, innovative and interactive events for children aged 8-12 (CE2 to 5e) featuring workshops on digital technology, tech, innovation, soft skills and ecology to prepare young people for tomorrow's challenges.
• Startup For Teens events Events for young people aged 13-20 in late middle school, high school and early higher education to discover digital, technological and industrial careers in a fun way through innovation, digital and ecology sensitization.
• Change Mak'Her program A completely free program for girls aged 13-18 to discover tech and digital careers, develop an impact project (on ecology, gender equality, inclusion, mental health) and create a digital solution on current issues, with professional coaching and mentorship.
• Ambassadeurs du Futur program Program for young people to become ambassadors of the future, spreading awareness about digital technology, ecology and innovation among their peers.
• Ambassadeurs de l'Education program Ambassador program engaging educators and education professionals to promote digital literacy and tech education in schools.
• Hack Ton Futur app An app that helps young people explore their future career options in a fun and engaging way.
• Public-sector event organization services Paid event-organization services delivered to municipalities, communautés d'agglomération and educational institutions (e.g. annual Startup For Kids Paris-Saclay edition at École CentraleSupélec) to deliver innovative educational programs for local youth.
• Private-actor partnership offers Partnership and sponsorship offerings for private companies seeking to support youth education, diversity in tech and environmental awareness through programs such as Change Mak'Her.

Quantifiable outcome

• Nearly 30,000 youth participants have attended events
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

18 partnerships are on record, tiered core, minor and major.

• ScienticlubcoreOthersParent association under French law 1901 that publishes and operates the Startup For Kids brand. Scienticlub is the legal entity responsible for the organization.
• EdTech FrancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational federation of French EdTech companies working to make technology and innovation useful for education throughout life.
• AFINEFcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation of digital education and training companies working to promote and develop these sectors in France and internationally.
• EdTech LyonminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerRegional community bringing together EdTech actors, researchers, major accounts and companies to exchange and share best practices.
• Communauté d'Agglomération Paris-SaclaycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLocal government authority organizing annual Startup For Kids Paris-Saclay events at Ecole CentraleSupélec in Gif-sur-Yvette.
• Ecole CentraleSupéleccoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPrestigious engineering school hosting the Paris-Saclay edition of Startup For Kids events.
• Ministry of National Education (Education Nationale)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerFrench government ministry providing official support and endorsement for the Change Mak'Her program.
• Microsoft FrancemajorGTM or Marketing PartnerTechnology company supporting events with accessibility expertise and resources; Philippe Trotin serves as Microsoft France Accessibility Lead.
• Groupe TheodomajorGTM or Marketing PartnerDigital consulting group created in 2009 with multiple subsidiaries, organizing Women in Tech events and promoting diversity in tech careers.
• makesensecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSocial entrepreneurship incubator and accelerator, partnering on EdTech acceleration programs including the Banque des Territoires accelerator.
• La MeleeminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization supporting the Change Mak'Her program.
• KlassroommajorGTM or Marketing PartnerEdTech company co-organizing the annual Trophées de l'Éducation competition and Klassroom Edtech Day at Station F.
• WILLA (ex Paris Pionnières)majorStrategic or Co-development PartnerStartup incubator focused on diversity and inclusion in entrepreneurship, offering workshops to winners of the Trophées de l'Éducation.
• Station FmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOne of the largest startup campuses in France, hosting the annual Trophées de l'Éducation and Klassroom Edtech Day events.
• Paris & ComajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerMajor French startup incubator and accelerator, providing mentorship programs for Trophées de l'Éducation winners.
• Ma Petite PlanètecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerAssociation running ecological challenge programs for schools, partnered with Change Mak'Her for environmental education.
• Change NowminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerOrganization focused on climate solutions, contributing to Change Mak'Her ecology modules.
• Inclusion ConseilminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerConsulting firm focused on inclusion, providing expertise for Change Mak'Her inclusion sessions.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Emerging players

• Zeste de Savoir: French non-profit community for sharing free educational content including programming tutorials. Comparable as a French non-profit delivering free digital education, though primarily adult-focused and content-led.
• makesense: International social entrepreneurship community and incubator that engages youth in impact projects. Comparable to Startup For Kids through shared partner ecosystem, youth engagement methodology, and impact-driven program structure.
• Bayat/Robotique & Education: French associations delivering robotics and coding workshops in schools. Comparable to Startup For Kids' robotics and coding atelier offerings within the broader French STEM education ecosystem.

Broad incumbents

• Simplon: France-based network of free coding schools focused on inclusion and digital skilling for underrepresented groups, including youth. Comparable mission around free digital training for disadvantaged populations and corporate/public-sector funding model.
• Ecole 42: Free, peer-to-peer computer science school founded by Xavier Niel. Comparable free, corporate-sponsored model for digital skills education in France, though aimed at adults rather than youth.

Direct peers

• Women in Tech France: French non-profit promoting gender diversity in technology through events, mentorship, and programs targeting girls and women. Directly comparable to Change Mak'Her in addressing gender inequality in tech, with corporate sponsorship model.
• Magic Makers: French EdTech organization running paid digital creation workshops (coding, robotics, 3D printing) for children aged 6-15 in schools and extracurricular settings. Highly comparable as a France-based, youth-targeted digital education program operator with similar workshop-based pedagogy.
• France-ioi: Non-profit association that promotes programming and algorithmic skills among French youth through free online courses and competitions. Directly comparable free, association-structured approach to digital education for young people in France.
• Klassroom: French EdTech company that co-organizes the Trophées de l'Education with Startup For Kids. Closely linked peer operating in the French K-12 digital engagement and homework-help space with overlapping event ecosystem.

Others

• La Fondation Orange: Corporate foundation of Orange that funds digital inclusion and education programs for youth in France. Comparable as a stakeholder in the same funding ecosystem rather than a competitor, often co-funding programs similar to Startup For Kids' offerings.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/StartupForKids
• Facebookfacebook.com/startupforkids
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/startup-for-kids
• Instagraminstagram.com/startupforkids

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Startup For Kids