Who?
Founder Filippo Yacob is also the creator of Cubetto, a screen-less coding robot used by over 20 million children in 180 countries to teach computational thinking in early learning. He also founded kids FinTech Pigzbe, a pocket money app and connected piggy-bank acquired by Abu Dhabi Commercial Bank in 2021. Co-founder and CTO Dr Joe Brown holds a PhD in machine learning from Oxford University.
Why?
Yacob was watching YouTube videos with his two children on their tablets when it occurred to him that he had little-to-no control of the content his kids would be able to access. Nearly half of all children aged eight and under have their own connected tablet device, spending an average of 2.25 hours a day on screens.
What?
URSOR is a safe browser and search engine for kids aged 4-12. It allows them to access essential learning materials, have fun and discover new interests online; they are not tracked while inappropriate content is also filtered out. URSOR is available for download on the Apple store for iPads only, with Android and mobile coming soon. A monthly subscription is $9.99 while an annual fee is priced at $83.99.
How?
The videos, websites and experiences accessible by child users are hand-picked by a team of parents that care, not by a recommender system. The children-focused app also gives parents access to tools such as screen time management, a simple dashboard that gives them visibility on what their children are searching and clicking on, and the ability to block other apps while using URSOR to prevent children from erratic app hopping.
Where?
URSOR is based in London.
They say:
Yacob: “The internet is great, but it wasn’t built for kids… digital childhoods are a phenomena that busy parents today simply have to deal with. I just wanted a tool that would make the Internet a better place for my own children and the children of my friends, but I quickly realised that tool didn’t exist, and that safe access to the internet is a problem shared by every single parent with an Internet connection. Our mission at URSOR is to make the internet a tool for parenting, as opposed to something parents have to worry about.”