CHALK: 비주얼 LLM 기반 개념 학습 가속화

Although online education has become widespread, it still relies on one-way video lectures or uniform curricula, resulting in low learning efficiency and high dropout rates. In fact, the completion rate of typical MOOCs or e-learning courses is only 10-15%, which is due to a lack of feedback tailored to individual students' understanding and difficulty in generating interest.

In schools and academies, teachers receive real-time questions and supplement explanations, but online, such two-way communication is lacking, and it is difficult for learners to receive immediate tutoring even when they encounter difficulties. In addition, abstract concepts (e.g., mathematical and scientific principles) are difficult to understand with text or 2D drawings alone, which reduces learning efficiency.

In short, existing digital education has problems with low engagement and achievement because it does not provide 1:1 personalized guidance or rich visual explanations.

The CHALK platformlarge-scale multimodal AI (Visual LLM)is used to implement an AI teacher that teaches by conversing with students. When users ask what they don't know in natural language, the AI tutor instantly generates 3D drawings, animations, etc. to explain in a"Conversational Lecture"format.

For example, when learning complex physical laws, the AI shows the situation in a 3D simulation and answers students' questions to explain the concepts. This is a similar experience to immediate Q&A tutoring, where learners can improve their understanding by receiving immediate feedback and additional explanations.

CHALK's AI is trained with data from leading instructors around the world to follow the explanation methods of top teachers, and if it detects that a student does not understand a certain part, it provides different angle analogies or additional hints. In addition, it analyzes the student's reactions and response patterns during learning to create anindividual Brain Mapand creates acustomized learning path (Fast Track)that supplements deficient concepts and skips parts that are already known.

Through this, each student can efficiently learn in a path optimized for them within the global standard curriculum. The platform interface isgamifiedwith learning motivation factors such as badges and rankings, and can be used on multiple devices such as PCs, tablets, and VR to increase accessibility.

The 2024 beta test resulted in acompletion rate of 76.4%, which is more than 5 times higher than the industry average, proving that CHALK's high immersion and immediate feedback system are effective. In a nutshell, CHALK's key differentiation is that it overcomes the limitations of existing online education by implementing the interaction of tutors and visual understanding support on a large scale with AI.

Individual learners (B2C) such as middle and high school students and university studentsare the main customers. For example, a student may subscribe to CHALK for individual AI tutoring for in-depth learning or preparation for the SAT or college entrance exam after school. In addition, parents can purchase it as a substitute for their children's private education expenses or for supplementary learning.

Furthermore,educational institutions (B2B)can also consider adopting it, using it as an assistant teacher in schools or introducing AI tutors in academies to support one instructor in individually guiding multiple students. In fact, FIRSTHABIT is collaborating with MIT CSAIL, etc. and is recognized for its technology, and is promoting partnerships with overseas education companies and planning to commercially launch CHALK 4.0 in the US market.

Therefore, there is a possibility of licensing to MOOC companies such as Coursera or educational content companies as B2B2C, or pilot introduction into public education systems. However, in the short term, a strategy of developing as an individual subscription service to directly target learners around the world is likely.

As the first commercial version (4.0) was unveiled at CES, it is expected to grow as a B2C app in the English-speaking test preparation market and the private education market in Korea, and then expand the platform scale.

AI education is a huge blue ocean market, and CHALK is riding the wave of edutech demand that has exploded since ChatGPT. If the language barrier is resolved, it can be applied to curricula in various countries, and as FIRSTHABIT has stated that it has trained with 100,000+ expert data, it can be expanded to various fields.

However, since accuracy and reliability are critical areas, managing AI errors or bias issues remains a challenge. From the perspective of parents or schools, content verification and evidence of educational effectiveness of AI tutors are important, so initial reputation management is necessary.

However, the high completion rate and learning performance in the beta are positive signals, and this data can be used to appeal to schools and education offices. The cost structure is a software service, so scalability is high as the number of users increases, and the cost of AI computation per person can be charged in proportion to the usage time, so there is sufficient potential for monetization.

As a Korean startup, it has already achieved results such as winning domestic and international awards and attracting investment, so the atmosphere is that resources are being secured to support market expansion. Once the platform is established, it can evolve into an educational content marketplace or an AI teacher development platform, and expansion into new segments such as school grade linkage or corporate in-house education is also expected.

Overall, CHALK's scalability is very high - if successful, its impact is expected to be so great that it could change the global education paradigm.

With simultaneous wins at the CES 2026 Innovation Awards (Artificial Intelligence and Education categories), CHALK has emerged as a leading player in the field of AI education. Experts say that "CHALK AI has greatly improved educational efficiency by focusing on learners'understanding, retention, and engagement" and noted the 5-fold increase in learning completion rates.

In particular, joining the MIT CSAIL Alliances and collaborating with world-class researchers is also mentioned as a positive factor in terms of technology and innovation. Media reports introduce CHALK as "AI tutor" or "learning like a game," praising it for making boring e-learning fun and effective.

However, there are some concerns. Some education experts pointed out the sustainability of learning motivation, saying, "No matter how smart AI is, it is a separate matter whether students will study steadily," and in the traditional education world, there are cautious opinions such as the suitability of AI tutors for evaluation test preparation and the controversy over replacing teacher roles.

In addition, given that it is difficult to completely guarantee the accuracy of AI answers, there is an opinion that a device is needed to correct this in the event of misconcept learning. However, the overall evaluation is very positive, with praise such as "showed the future of education" and "the first AI tutor platform to prove learning efficiency with data."

In the market, expectations are expressed with the reaction that "a Korean startup has emerged through CES that will change the global edutech landscape."