ElevenLabs founder Mati Staniszewski is among a group of high-profile tech leaders backing imagi, an AI literacy platform that has already reached hundreds of thousands of students across more than 100 school districts in all U.S. states. The company just closed a $4.5 million seed funding round, reflecting growing confidence that structured AI education for children is becoming essential, not optional.

What Is imagi, and Why Does It Matter?

imagi is an AI education platform designed specifically for K-12 students, offering direct, supervised access to artificial intelligence tools within a curriculum built around genuine AI literacy. The platform operates with safety guardrails and partnerships with OpenAI and Lovable, a software development platform. The company was founded by Dora Palfi, who serves as CEO, and Beatrice Ionascu, the CTO, following research conducted at KTH University in Stockholm.

The timing reflects a broader recognition among educators and tech leaders that today's schoolchildren are growing up in a world where AI is already embedded in daily life. Unlike previous generations who learned to adapt to technology after it arrived, this cohort will need to understand AI from the ground up to thrive professionally and civically.

Who Else Is Investing in This Vision?

The funding round was led by Brighteye Ventures and Day One Capital, with participation from several notable investors and angels spanning tech, music, and entrepreneurship. Beyond Staniszewski, the round includes:

• Music and Entertainment: Will.i.am, the Grammy-winning artist and entrepreneur, participated in the funding round.
• Tech Leadership: Thomas Dohmke, former CEO of GitHub, and Fredrik Hjelm, CEO and co-founder of Voi, a micromobility company, both backed the round.
• EdTech Founders: The founders of Kahoot, the popular quiz and learning platform, contributed through their investment vehicle We Are Human.
• Serial Entrepreneurs: Sophia Amoruso and Simon Squibb, both known for building successful ventures, also participated.
• AI and Tech Executives: Leaders from OpenAI, Spotify, and Lovable joined the round, alongside Morgan Stanley and Sparkmind Capital.

This breadth of backing suggests that AI literacy is no longer seen as a niche concern but as a foundational skill comparable to reading, writing, and mathematics.

How Does imagi Keep AI Safe for Children?

One of the central challenges in bringing AI into classrooms is managing risk. imagi addresses this through structured curriculum design, educator oversight, and partnerships with established AI companies. The platform ensures that students interact with frontier AI tools, meaning cutting-edge models, but within a supervised environment where teachers can guide learning and intervene if needed.

Dora Palfi, the CEO, explained the philosophy behind the approach: "Today's schoolchildren are the first generation who will never know a world without AI. This means AI education won't just be the new ICT, but the new literacy. But unlike reading schemes, AI is not designed with children in mind. This means we need safe, tested AI education for children, with guardrails trusted by educators and parents," she stated.

"Within weeks of introducing imagi into my classroom, my students weren't just building apps for educational purposes, but for their friends, for their families, and for anyone with a problem that needed solving. Seeing the shift in their mindsets from consumers to creators is the true power of AI in education," said Lisa Haines, a STEM teacher in Indiana.

Lisa Haines, STEM Teacher, Indiana

What Does This Mean for the Future of AI Education?

The investment signals confidence that imagi has found product-market fit. The platform is already operating across all 50 U.S. states and has engaged hundreds of thousands of young people. With this new capital, the company plans to scale access to safe AI tools for millions more students.

Benoit Wirz, a founding partner at Brighteye Ventures, noted: "imagi sits at the intersection of two of the most important trends in education: the mainstreaming of AI and the urgent need for structured, safe digital literacy. Dora, Sari and Beatrice have built a product that schools can actually trust, and the traction they've achieved so far speaks for itself," he explained.

The company recently expanded its leadership team in November 2025 by hiring Sari Hurme-Mehtälä as Chief Growth Officer. Hurme-Mehtälä previously sold her company Kide Science to Accelerate Learning, becoming the first Nordic EdTech company to achieve an exit to a U.S. acquirer.

Steps to Understand AI Literacy in Modern Education

• Recognize the Shift: AI literacy is becoming as fundamental as traditional reading and writing skills, requiring schools to integrate AI education into core curriculum rather than treating it as an elective or advanced topic.
• Prioritize Safety and Structure: Effective AI education requires guardrails, educator oversight, and partnerships with established AI companies to ensure students learn responsibly and understand both capabilities and limitations.
• Focus on Creator Mindset: The goal is not just to teach students how to use AI tools, but to shift their thinking from passive consumers to active creators who can solve real-world problems using AI.
• Engage Multiple Stakeholders: Successful AI education requires buy-in from educators, parents, technologists, and policymakers working together to establish trusted standards and best practices.

Fabian Hedin, co-founder of Lovable, emphasized the broader context: "Teaching young people coding and computing has often lagged behind the pace of technological change. In the AI era, students and teachers keep on asking if software engineering will even exist in the future. Software development is transforming, not disappearing, and we're glad to be partnering with imagi to ensure that the first truly AI native generation can safely learn about the cutting edge of technology," he stated.

Laura Modiano, head of founder experience at OpenAI, added perspective on why this matters: "The goal of education has always been to help young people succeed in the world they're growing into, and today learning to navigate AI should be at the very top of the agenda. imagi's technology will help make high quality AI teaching available to every student," she noted.

The convergence of investment from ElevenLabs founder Staniszewski and other tech leaders reflects a broader consensus: AI education is no longer optional. As AI capabilities advance faster than any previous technology, schools that fail to provide structured, safe access to these tools risk leaving students unprepared for the world they will inherit.