Piperplay
Piper Learning (Piperplay) is a San Francisco EdTech company that designs and sells Raspberry Pi-based hands-on STEM learning kits for K-12 classrooms, homeschool families, and ESA programs via direct e-commerce, resellers, and the Google for Education channel.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States
- Headcount1–10
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingHardware or Manufacturing
What Piperplay does
Piper Learning, Inc. (operating as Piper and Piperplay) is a San Francisco-based EdTech company founded in 2014 by Harvard graduate and inaugural Google Science Fair winner Dr. Shree Bose. The company designs, manufactures, and distributes hands-on STEM learning kits that pair Raspberry Pi microcontrollers/computers with proprietary software platforms (StoryMode, PiperCode, and Mission Control) to combine physical hardware assembly with Minecraft-based storytelling and Google Blockly drag-and-drop coding. Its product portfolio consists of the Piper Computer Kit V4B (a buildable computer, $399 retail) and the Piper Make ecosystem anchored by a Base Station ($99) with 12+ widget extensions covering sensors, robotics, light shows, solar energy, soil sensing, and biomedical applications.
The business model is primarily a one-time hardware sale with a thin professional-development services layer. Individual SKUs range from $59 (Game Controller) to $399 (Computer Kit V4B), with classroom bundles priced at $1,049 (Foundations, 20 students), $2,999 (Robotics), and $4,999 (Comprehensive) for the Make line, and $3,999 for the Computer Kit classroom bundle (10 kits plus curriculum). Live virtual professional development is sold at $449 per one-hour session. Distribution is omnichannel: direct e-commerce via playpiper.com, Amazon marketplace, eight authorized resellers (MakerMaven, TEQ, Stemfinity, Mackin, Geyer Instructional, OES Robotic, Educate-Me, Robotix Education in Canada), the Allied States Cooperative for member districts, Google for Education Build Partner channel (Chromebook-native, Classroom-integrated), and ClassWallet for ESA-funded purchases across Texas, Arizona, and Tennessee.
Customer segments are split between K-12 schools and school districts (named deployments include LAUSD, Long Beach USD, Detroit Public Schools, Broward County, Kings Canyon USD, Calexico USD, Orin Smith Elementary, Bayou View Middle School) and individual homeschool families, with the recent ClassWallet-ESA channel adding a third segment. Piper is FERPA- and COPPA-compliant, has secured five notable industry awards (Amazon #1 STEM Toy 2017, ISTE Best of Show 2019 and 2026, Bett Kids Judge 2024), and has raised approximately $9.7 million in disclosed equity funding across a 2016 seed ($2.1M) and 2017 Series A ($7.6M led by Owl Ventures).
Piperplay firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Piperplay
- Legal name
- Piper Learning, Inc.
- Website
- https://playpiper.in
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 1–10 employees
- Short description
- Piper Learning (Piperplay) is a San Francisco EdTech company that designs and sells Raspberry Pi-based hands-on STEM learning kits for K-12 classrooms, homeschool families, and ESA programs via direct e-commerce, resellers, and the Google for Education channel.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Piperplay industry classification
Industry- Product category
- STEM Educational Kits
- NAICS
- Doll, Toy, and Game Manufacturing (339930), Software Publishers (5132)
- SIC
- Games, Toys & Children's Vehicles (No Dolls & Bicycles) (3944)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Math & STEM Learning Technology (incl. Coding/Robotics Platforms) (EDAJAMAG)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- DIY Kits, STEM Electronics & Maker Bundles Retail (CRACAKAN), Robotics Kits, Parts & Lab Equipment Providers (Education-Focused) (EDAMADAN), STEM Project-Based Learning (PBL) & Challenge Platforms (EDAFANAI), STEM Teacher Tools, Curriculum & Lesson Planning Platforms (EDAFANAK), Science & STEM Lab Equipment & Supplies (Chemistry, Biology, Physics, Makerspaces) (EDAEAIAC)
Keywords
Where Piperplay is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- San Francisco
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Piperplay business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Hardware or Manufacturing
- Cost components
- Supply Chain, Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations
Revenue model
- Hardware Sales: Physical STEM learning kits including Piper Computer Kit, Piper Make Base Station, and various widgets/extensions sold as one-time purchases. Core revenue driver with multiple price points from individual products to classroom bundles.
- Professional Development Services: Live online training sessions provided by Piper experts covering product implementation, offered as 1-hour virtual sessions or multi-hour customized training for educators.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Computer Kit V4B with Sensor Explorer |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Robotics Expedition Set |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Make Game Controller |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Make Base Station |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Computer Kit V4B Classroom Bundle |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Make Classroom Bundle #1 - Foundations |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Make Classroom Bundle #2 - Robotics |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | Piper Make Classroom Bundle #3 - Comprehensive |
| One time/ perpetual license | Pay-as-you-go | 1 Hour Piper Professional Development |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels6 records
Marketing channels6 records
Piperplay product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Piper designs, manufactures, and sells hands-on STEM learning kits that combine Raspberry Pi-based physical hardware assembly with interactive coding and storytelling software (PiperCode, StoryMode, Mission Control). The company offers two primary product systems—the Piper Computer Kit and the Piper Make Base Station with modular widget extensions—sold to K-12 schools, homeschool families, and individual consumers, with classroom bundles and live professional development services for educators.
Product overview
Piperplay is an EdTech company offering hands-on STEM learning products designed to transform passive screen time into active building experiences. The product portfolio consists of two main systems: (1) the Piper Computer Kit V4B, a computer-building kit combining Raspberry Pi hardware with Minecraft-based StoryMode and Blockly coding through PiperCode; and (2) the Piper Make ecosystem, a modular physical computing platform anchored by the Base Station with 12+ widget extensions covering sensors, robotics, game controllers, solar energy, and biomedical concepts. Both systems support the same educational approach of hands-on building combined with interactive coding, and share curriculum resources, educator guides, and classroom bundles. Additional offerings include professional development services, spare parts, and SD card replacements. The products target Grades 3-6 (Piper Computer) and Grades 5+ (Piper Make) with emphasis on K-12 education, homeschool, and informal learning environments.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Piper Computer: A STEM kit where kids build and code their own computer using Raspberry Pi, inspired by Minecraft, combining tactile building with interactive storytelling.
- Piper Make
Products and services
- Piper Computer Kit V4B with Sensor Explorer A hands-on computer-building STEM kit that combines tactile hardware assembly with a Raspberry Pi microcomputer, Minecraft-based StoryMode, and Google Blockly-powered PiperCode. Designed for children in Grades 3-6, the kit teaches circuitry, coding, and physical computing through guided projects.
- Piper Make Base Station The foundational kit for all Piper Make products, featuring a Raspberry Pi microcontroller and access to 10+ self-guided missions with characters and storylines. Serves as the platform base for all Piper Make widget extensions and accessories.
- Robotics Expedition Set A robotics system that lets children use code to control sensors, movement, and real-world interactions through structured engineering builds. Winner of the ISTE Best in Show 2026 Award.
- Piper Computer Kit V4B Classroom Bundle A classroom-scale bundle including 10 Piper Computer Kits, Premium Curriculum License, Spare Parts Kit, 10 Sensor Explorer Kits, and a 10-Port USB Charger, designed for K-12 classroom STEM instruction.
- Piper Make Classroom Bundle #1 - Foundations A classroom bundle supporting 20 students that includes the Piper Make Base Station and foundational widgets for electronics and coding learning in Grades 5+.
- Piper Make Classroom Bundle #2 - Robotics A classroom bundle supporting 20 students with robotics components for advanced engineering and physical computing instruction.
- Piper Make Classroom Bundle #3 - Comprehensive A complete classroom bundle supporting 20 students with all Piper Make components including Base Station, sensors, robotics, and widgets for end-to-end STEM curriculum delivery.
- Piper Professional Development Live online training sessions delivered by Piper experts covering implementation of the Piper Computer Kit or Piper Make product lines, offered to schools and educators to support classroom adoption.
Quantifiable outcome
- 43.1% increase in digital fluency
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Piperplay
Customer profileNamed customers14 records
Segments3 records
Ideal customer profiles2 records
Piperplay technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
Integration3 records
Feature5 records
Piperplay partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
13 partnerships are on record, tiered core, major and minor.
- Google for EducationcorePiper became an official Google for Education Build Partner in April 2021. Piper Make works seamlessly with Chromebooks and integrates with Google Classroom. The partnership enables Google Blockly-powered coding (PiperCode) and Google Single Sign-On functionality.
- Raspberry PicorePiper Make launched in partnership with Google and Raspberry Pi in March 2021. The platform uses Raspberry Pi microcontrollers as the core hardware component for all Piper Make products and Piper Computer Kit.
- Butte County Office of Education (BCOE)majorPartnership between Play Piper and BCOE as Far North Region lead in Educator Workforce Investment Grant (EWIG) funded through CDE Foundation. Seasons of CS initiative provided hands-on projects and training to 107 educators with 48 hours of training.
- MakerMavenminorAuthorized reseller of Piper products
- TEQminorAuthorized reseller of Piper products
- StemfinityminorAuthorized reseller of Piper products
- MackinminorAuthorized reseller of Piper products
- Geyer Instructional ProductsminorAuthorized reseller of Piper products
- OES RoboticminorAuthorized reseller of Piper products
- Robotix EducationminorAuthorized reseller serving Canadian customers following shipping restrictions to Canada effective 12/31/22
- ClassWalletminorPartner for education savings account (ESA) fund utilization, enabling families to purchase Piper products through the ClassWallet platform
- Allied States CooperativeminorPiper is a member of Allied States Cooperative, enabling streamlined purchasing for member school districts
- Texas Association of Latino Administrators and Superintendents (TALAS)minorPlay Piper sponsors the TALAS Student Scholarship to support next generation of Latino leaders
Scale indicators6 records
Recent moves9 records
Expansion highlights5 records
Piperplay competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Arduino Education: Arduino's education arm sells STEM kits (Arduino Starter Kit, CTC, Engineering Kit) for classroom physical computing, directly comparable to Piper Make's STEM-electronics and robotics positioning.
- Tynker: Tynker is a K-8 coding and STEM learning platform (Blockly-based) sold to schools and families — overlapping with PiperCode/Mission Control software experience and K-12 school procurement channels.
- VEX Robotics: VEX provides K-12 robotics kits (VEX IQ, V5) and the VEX Robotics Competition platform — a direct competitor in educational robotics with similar educator, classroom and competition use cases to Piper Make and Robotics Expedition.
- LEGO Education: LEGO's education division sells hands-on STEAM kits (SPIKE, WeDo, Mindstorms) for K-12 classrooms, directly competing with Piper in the physical-building-meets-coding category with similar curriculum and classroom-bundle pricing.
- Sphero: Sphero (including acquired littleBits) builds programmable robots and STEAM kits for K-12 with classroom bundles and curriculum — overlapping with Piper's robotics kits and Piper Make ecosystem on target customer and channels.
- Kano Computing: Kano makes buildable computer and coding kits for children (Kano Computer Kit, Pixel Kit) — very close direct competitor to the Piper Computer Kit with similar Raspberry Pi-based hardware and storytelling-driven software experience.
Broad incumbents
- Microsoft MakeCode: Microsoft's MakeCode platform (block-based and Python editors for micro:bit, Minecraft, arcade) competes with PiperCode and Mission Control as a free, broadly distributed coding platform with strong institutional backing in schools.
- Raspberry Pi Foundation (Education): Raspberry Pi supplies the core microcontroller Piper is built on while also offering its own educational experiences (Code Club, projects) — broad incumbent that simultaneously enables and competes with Piper's curriculum and hardware ecosystems.
Emerging players
- Ozobot: Ozobot makes small programmable robots and STEM kits (Evo, Bit) for K-12 with classroom bundles — emerging player focused on a narrower robotics niche but with overlapping STEAM and coding curriculum use cases.
Others
- Stemfinity: Stemfinity is an authorized Piper reseller and broader STEM product distributor to schools — relevant as a channel partner/peer in how the product reaches districts, more than as a direct product competitor.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat5 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Piperplay social profiles
Digital presencePiperplay compliance and trust
Trust signalCompliance2 records
Piperplay financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Piperplay leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles11 records
Piperplay funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds2 records
Investors6 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Piperplay 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 Piperplay
What does Piperplay do?
Piper designs, manufactures, and sells hands-on STEM learning kits that combine Raspberry Pi-based physical hardware assembly with interactive coding and storytelling software (PiperCode, StoryMode, Mission Control). The company offers two primary product systems—the Piper Computer Kit and the Piper Make Base Station with modular widget extensions—sold to K-12 schools, homeschool families, and individual consumers, with classroom bundles and live professional development services for educators.
Is Piperplay a public or private company?
Piperplay is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Piperplay founded?
Piperplay was founded in 2014. It employs 1 to 10 people.
Where is Piperplay based?
Piperplay is headquartered in San Francisco, United States, in the North America region.
How does Piperplay make money?
Two revenue lines are on record. Hardware Sales are the primary driver. The others are professional Development Services.
Who are Piperplay's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Arduino Education, Tynker, VEX Robotics, LEGO Education, Sphero and Kano Computing. Broad incumbents are Microsoft MakeCode and Raspberry Pi Foundation (Education). Ozobot is listed as an emerging player. Stemfinity is listed as an others.
Does Piperplay have an API?
No public API is recorded for Piperplay.
What industry is Piperplay in?
Piperplay's product category is STEM Educational Kits. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAJAMAG, Math & STEM Learning Technology (incl. Coding/Robotics Platforms), with a secondary code of CRACAKAN, DIY Kits, STEM Electronics & Maker Bundles Retail. Its NAICS code is 339930 and its SIC code is 3944.