Photo Illustration: Chantal Jahchan. Photos: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg
The AI Pioneer Who Wants to Replace Teachers With Algorithms
Derek Li pulled his sons out of school to be taught by artificial intelligence. Now he’s betting the US is ready for machine-led learning.
On a scorching July afternoon in Shanghai, dozens of Chinese students hunch over tablet screens, engrossed in English, math and physics lessons. Algorithms track every keystroke, and the seconds spent pondering each question. A pair of teaching assistants linger quietly in the background, intervening only when necessary.
For Derek Li, the 47-year-old founder of Chinese ed-tech company Squirrel Ai Learning, this is the future of education: adaptive software powered by artificial intelligence that’s able to pinpoint knowledge gaps, measure progress and adjust lessons on the fly. He compares it to autonomous driving, where a computer takes over the main tasks under minimal human supervision.