Devi Sahny, CEO, ASCEND NOW.

hat’s entrepreneur Devi Sahny’s mantra. Founder of edtech startup, Ascend Now, her journey in entrepreneurship started when she was sophomore and working as a teaching assistant at university. She realised that college students learn better in a personalized format rather than a large group format, so she launched her first startup connecting college students to other college students.

“No one would attend my TA-led group classes because they were a little bit intimidated by its formality. And yet, many students would ask me for one-on-one or peer-to-peer options. She adds, “I focused on teaching Philosophy and Economics (my two majors), asking the students how they preferred to learn. A basketball player once asked me to tutor him on the basketball court – he said it helped him visualise concepts. He later said the learning felt personal and meaningful, like a partnership between the teacher and the student because he had a say in his learning journey. That feedback really inspired me.”

After graduation and three years in investment banking at Goldman Sachs, Devi moved to Singapore to launch her edtech startup. She started talking to schools, students and parents to understand the pain points in education.