Southcarolina Magazine

ARLINGTON, Va. – November 14, 2020 – SmartGurlz, makers of programmable robots, apps, and action dolls, as well as the Smart Buddies educational program, has raised more than $130,000 so far in an equity crowdfunding campaign on the WeFunder platform. Founded by a woman of color, SmartGurlz has generated $2M in revenue in its quest to educate girls and kids of color in STEM fields.

As seen on Shark Tank and in coverage from ABC, CNN, Forbes, and the Financial Times, SmartGurlz makes programmable robots that reflect a diverse society and help teach kids coding skills. SmartGurlz has also released Smart Buddies, a coding kit for schools that covers fundamental coding concepts and also contains a literacy component and materials covering social-emotional learning and STEM career paths.

“We are so excited and grateful for the support of our many individual investors,” says CEO and co-founder Sharmi Albrechtsen. “We appreciate their courage in taking a risk to support our positive mission to engage and educate girls and minorities in STEM.”

 

SmartGurlz has earned the confidence of investors from Morgan Stanly as well as New York University’s Impact Investment Fund (NIIF). Developed as a joint venture between the faculty advisors and students of NYU’s Stern, Wagner, and Law schools, NIIF invests in enterprises that will make a lasting social impact. In July 2020, NYU announced that SmartGurlz had beaten competitors to win a $25,000 investment from NIIF.

Designed to address kids’ preferred learning styles and brain function, the Smart Buddies digital learning program is poised to capture a share of the $40 billion ed-tech market, which has been experiencing double digit growth for over 10 years, with the coding robot segment being one of the strongest. 

“Unfortunately,” says Albrechtsen, “most companies have developed product based on the stereotype that coding is for boys and with no recognition for the severe under-representation of minorities in that field. SmartGurlz and Smart Buddies address this opportunity.”

For more information, please visit the SmartGurlz WeFunder page.

 

 

A digital learning company founded by a woman of color, SmartGurlz offers a line of award-winning robots, apps, and action dolls, as well as Smart Buddies, a coding kit for schools or at-home learning. The SmartGurlz team includes a former vice president of Hasbro, executive vice president of LeapFrog, and a host of MythBusters.