Henry Motte-de la Motte: AI Tutors, Global EdTech, and the $1M Parenting Dilemma – E591
"I think what's interesting is that's been borne out in our data. Our business model is tutor outsourcing, so we have tutors based in Asia and we staff them with tutoring and education companies around the world. Those companies have been implementing AI into their operations. They are competing with AI-only solutions. The feedback we're getting from clients is those who can afford it want a human component—they'll want that one hour of English, that one hour of math every week. Then, you know, the rest of the week they can do all sorts of other things, but they still want that human, regular touchpoint. Mm-hmm. And that's where we come in. We provide the teachers for that regular touchpoint." - Henry Motte-de la Motte, CEO of Edge Tutor
"AI allows you to personalize. Those who can afford it will have the highest human element because those with the means have essentially AI-enabled human teachers. Mm-hmm, mm-hmm. So you get the human element. There's also a trust element. You know what's so interesting is a lot of the guys in Silicon Valley talk, and you ask them how they raise their kids—no screen time. Make it make sense. It's classic NIMBYism, right? They're all for social equality, but please, not in my backyard. No social housing behind me. You have entire school systems trying to reduce the use of technology. Sweden has gone back to pen and paper because they've proven that you learn more when using pen and paper than digital devices." - Henry Motte-de la Motte, CEO of Edge Tutor
"Most of my team—we use AI in our operations. We use it in teacher recruiting, we use it in teacher training. I half-jokingly tell all my colleagues like, 'Ask ChatGPT before you ask me, because ChatGPT is a lot smarter than me, and you know.' Mm-hmm. 'Only ask me if you still can't figure it out with the AI tools you use.' But that's quite different to how most people learn. Most of us are actually lazy learners. We're not in the 5% hyper-proactive learners. You can also be a very proactive learner for some topics, but not for others. I'm constantly learning about the space that I'm in. I used to speak Spanish, and I've been trying to learn it again over the last three years. I've signed up to a bunch of high-quality software solutions. I'm not learning Spanish because I'm just not motivated enough." - Henry Motte-de la Motte, CEO of Edge Tutor
Henry Motte-de la Motte, CEO of Edge Tutor, and Jeremy Au reconnect two years after their last conversation to discuss how global tutoring has evolved. They examine the rise of AI in education, differences in learner motivation, and how human connection and structure remain critical to learning. They explore Edge Tutor’s expansion into 30 countries, the decision to stay focused on English and math, and how demographic and economic shifts are transforming education into a premium service. Their conversation also touches on the societal role of parenting, immigration, and childcare policy as key levers to address falling birth rates and education equity.