Grockit

Grockit, founded in 2006 by Farbood Nivi and Michael Buffington, was an online learning company that developed a collaborative and adaptive platform for test preparation. The founder, Farbood Nivi, had an extensive background in the education sector, having worked as a master teacher, curriculum developer, and academic director at prominent test-prep companies The Princeton Review and Kaplan. This experience informed his view that the traditional one-size-fits-all classroom model was insufficient, leading him to create a platform centered on personalized and social learning.

The company's core offering was an online service designed to prepare students for standardized exams such as the SAT, ACT, GMAT, GRE, and LSAT. Grockit's platform was distinguished by its use of adaptive learning algorithms that tailored questions to a user's individual strengths and weaknesses. If a student performed well in one area, the system would present more challenging problems, while it would offer easier questions in subjects where the student struggled. A key feature was its emphasis on social learning, allowing users to study collaboratively in groups, interact with peers and instructors in real-time, and learn from each other's successes and failures. This approach was inspired by the one-room schoolhouse model, aiming to make studying more engaging and effective.

Grockit operated on a subscription-based business model, charging users a monthly fee for premium access to its suite of tools, which included practice questions, video lessons, personalized study plans, and performance tracking. The company served a diverse client base, including individual students, K-12 schools, and universities. Over its history, Grockit raised significant venture capital, securing a total of $44.7 million over several funding rounds from investors including Benchmark, Atlas Venture, and Integral Capital Partners. In July 2013, the test preparation assets and social learning platform of Grockit were acquired by Kaplan, Inc. Following the acquisition, the Grockit team rebranded and shifted its focus to a new product called Learnist, a social learning application for curating educational content. The Grockit platform itself ceased stand-alone operations in September 2016.

Keywords: Grockit, Farbood Nivi, social learning, adaptive learning, test preparation, online education, edtech, Kaplan, GMAT prep, SAT prep, ACT prep, GRE prep, LSAT prep, personalized learning, peer-to-peer learning, venture capital, Learnist, exam prep, online tutoring, study tools, educational technology, standardized tests, Michael Buffington, Benchmark Capital