At Ello, we're on a mission:

To unlock the limitless potential within all children.

Millions of children aren’t getting the individualized literacy support they need during the critical early elementary years to succeed as learners.

65%
of 4th graders in the US are behind grade level in reading.
42%
of 8th graders are considered functionally illiterate.

To tackle this problem in a new way, Ello’s team is bringing together their expertise in AI, machine learning, education, business, and psychology.

We created Ello, the first-ever AI reading coach that works with real books to help struggling readers with evidence-based instruction & motivation.

Who We Are

We’re a tight-knit team with deep experience in K-12 education, childhood development, and technology, who came together to support parents in creating the best learning environment for their child.
Co-Founder, CEO
Tom Sayer
Co-Founder, CXO
Dr. Elizabeth Adams
Co-Founder, CTO
Catalin Voss
Advisor
Michael Auli
Advisor
Terry Winograd
Advisor
Nick Haber
Software Engineer
Anish Nag
Lead Engineer, Backend & Ops
James Mwangi
Load more
Senior Curriculum Specialist
Lauren Sittel
Software Engineer
Victoria Akeyo
Head of Product
Andrew Li
People & Partnerships
Jackie Neumann
Software Engineer
Alena Adushkina
QA Manager
Eli Ongaro
Lead Graphic Designer
Sergii Hohlov
Customer Support Specialist
Andrew Chun
Executive Assistant
Doli Caliwanagan
Chief of Staff
Zac Elder
Senior Fullstack Engineer
Brian Muthomi
Lead Engineer, Unity
Marllon Villano
Software Engineer, Unity
Phillipe Augusto
Operations Associate
Derlene Sosa
Customer Success Representative
Sarah Tenney
Executive Assistant
Anna Rizza Laganse
Senior Machine Learning Engineer
Joe Lou
Lead Scientist, Speech
Henry Zhou
Operations Associate
Anthony DiPisa
Customer Support Specialist
Jeremi Short
Applied Scientist
Derek Chong
Senior Technical Recruiter
Erin Slack
Head of Operations
Apeksha Kothari
Senior Product Manager
Dina Koldeibekova
Curriculum Specialist
Megan Girdler
Curriculum Specialist
Stephanie Darling
Curriculum Specialist
Molly Richards
Technical Program Manager
Andrew Wooler
Business Operations Manager
Aashil Desai
Executive Assistant
Violet Trachtenberg

Who We Are

We’re a tight-knit team with deep experience in K-12 education, childhood development, and technology, who came together to support parents in creating the best learning environment for their child.
Co-Founder, CEO
Tom Sayer
Co-Founder, CXO
Dr. Elizabeth Adams
Co-Founder, CTO
Catalin Voss
Advisor
Michael Auli
Advisor
Terry Winograd
Advisor
Nick Haber
Software Engineer
Anish Nag
Lead Engineer, Backend & Ops
James Mwangi
Senior Curriculum Specialist
Lauren Sittel
Software Engineer
Victoria Akeyo
Head of Product
Andrew Li
People & Partnerships
Jackie Neumann
Software Engineer
Alena Adushkina
QA Manager
Eli Ongaro
Lead Graphic Designer
Sergii Hohlov
Customer Support Specialist
Andrew Chun
Executive Assistant
Doli Caliwanagan
Chief of Staff
Zac Elder
Senior Fullstack Engineer
Brian Muthomi
Lead Engineer, Unity
Marllon Villano
Software Engineer, Unity
Phillipe Augusto
Operations Associate
Derlene Sosa
Customer Success Representative
Sarah Tenney
Executive Assistant
Anna Rizza Laganse
Senior Machine Learning Engineer
Joe Lou
Lead Scientist, Speech
Henry Zhou
Operations Associate
Anthony DiPisa
Customer Support Specialist
Jeremi Short
Applied Scientist
Derek Chong
Senior Technical Recruiter
Erin Slack
Head of Operations
Apeksha Kothari
Senior Product Manager
Dina Koldeibekova
Curriculum Specialist
Megan Girdler
Curriculum Specialist
Stephanie Darling
Curriculum Specialist
Molly Richards
Technical Program Manager
Andrew Wooler

Our Investors

Working at Ello

Mission-Driven

Everyone at Ello is dedicated to solving one of the most important issues facing the world today: ensuring all children learn to read, and in doing so helping maximize their potential. We are honored to do the work to achieve this mission, and each of us takes ownership of our part in achieving it. Our mission is our strongest recruiting tool.

Impact & Delight

Ensuring all children can read is critical to our world, and we pursue this mission with urgency. But learning can be and should be fun. We feel fortunate that our work can have the combined impact and delight that gives young readers the intrinsic motivation and skills to become lifelong learners.

A Culture of Care

Once you’re part of Ello, you’re part of a small, caring team that actively empowers one another, communicates with honesty grounded in empathy, and values our relationships. Our mission necessitates that our team represents various backgrounds. We want team members to bring their whole selves to Ello, and to feel valued in doing so.

Backed By the Best

Ello was part of Y Combinator’s W20 batch. We just raised a seed round from leading US and European VCs including Human Capital, Project A Ventures, Reach Capital, Khosla Ventures, Victress Capital, Elysium, Homebrew, WndrCo, and K9 Ventures. In 2021, Ello took 2nd place in the largest EdTech pitch competition, the GSV Cup.