“Millions of students in India struggle with communication and future-ready skills not because they lack potential, but because they lack access to personalised, high-quality support.”
For Massimo Monish Reddy, entrepreneurship means creating impact at scale. He saw a clear gap, traditional education wasn’t equipping K–12 students with real-world skills like communication, entrepreneurship and critical thinking.
Founder and CEO Massimo Monish Reddy is leading Zene AI, an edtech startup launched in 2022. Zene AI uses real-time AI feedback, personalised speaking exercises, and gamified modules based on Bloom’s 2 Sigma research. So far, it has helped thousands of K–12 students build English fluency, 21st-century competencies, and entrepreneurship skills.
True Calling
In an exclusive chat with Entrepreneurs Today, the 30 under 30 recipient, Massimo, reveals,
“While observing classrooms, I saw that teachers were overburdened, and students rarely had the chance to practice speaking or explore entrepreneurial thinking in ways that built confidence. Inspired by the potential of AI to individualise learning at scale, I set out to build a solution that could function like a personal tutor for every child.”
What makes Zene AI stand apart is that it brings personalised tutoring with AI at scale, which allows every student to have their own private, judgment-free space where they can speak and make mistakes. He further adds,
“What makes it truly unique is how it blends proven pedagogy with advanced AI technology, designed to replicate the impact of 1:1 tutoring, and accessible to schools at an affordable cost.”
Rocky Road
One of the early challenges Massimo encountered was helping schools and educators adapt to a new way of teaching. Most teachers were deeply committed to their students but hadn’t been equipped to integrate technology into their classrooms.
“Rather than push change, we focused on support,” Massimo explains. “We partnered with forward-thinking schools, demonstrated real student progress, and showed how AI could complement teachers, not compete with them. Over time, as results came in, even the most traditional classrooms began to embrace the shift.”
Celebrating Feats
Despite the initial hiccups, Zene AI is well known across India and South Asia for the impact they have had in transforming the education system. The real victory, though, is in the moments that matter when a student speaks up with confidence or starts thinking like an entrepreneur.
Massimo reiterates the same emotion as he notes,
“All we care about is student progress, engagement, and feedback from teachers and schools. Our focus is always on how effectively the platform is helping students build real-world communication and entrepreneurship skills.”
A New Dawn of Education
Massimo’s vision for Zene AI is to become the go-to platform for communication, entrepreneurship, and future-ready skills in K–12 education across India and South Asia. He believes every child deserves access to high-quality, personalised learning that builds confidence, fluency, and real-world readiness.
To reach over one million students, he plans to deepen school integrations, forge district-level partnerships, and expand regional language support so learners can grow in both their mother tongue and beyond.
Massimo is strengthening Zene AI’s core AI models to deliver truly adaptive, human-like feedback, while expanding the curriculum to include global skill-building programs with a strong focus on entrepreneurship.
Through collaborations with governments, NGOs, and impact organisations, he aims to bring Zene AI to under-resourced communities, always keeping the tech student first and working alongside educators who believe, as he does, that every child deserves the tools to speak up, create, and lead.
The Takeaways
One of the lessons Massimo learned is that meaningful change never happens overnight. He realised that momentum comes from consistency and that building something lasting takes time. Despite moments of doubt, resistance, and setbacks, he found that showing up every day, listening, learning, and improving made all the difference.
As he signs off, he reminds the budding entrepreneurs,
“Stay consistent. You don’t need to have everything figured out on day one. What matters is your ability to keep moving forward, even when it’s uncomfortable or uncertain. The breakthroughs come through persistence, not perfection. Trust your vision, stay close to your users, and remember small steps, taken every day, lead to a big impact.
