From «why?» to wisdom: helping children find answers and build knowledge. How the Ukrainian startup Mahaon works

In our recurring Who Are These People segment, Vector offers founders the opportunity to discuss their projects, covering aspects such as their products, marketing strategies, monetisation, investments, and plans. The focus this time is on Mahaon, a Ukrainian startup developing a web-based platform that generates short educational video responses to children’s questions. The purpose of Mahaon is to help each child access the knowledge they need exactly when they’re most receptive to learning — the moment they ask a question.

Vector’s editor-in-chief Yuliia Tkach interviewed Vitalii Mazhara, co-founder and CMO, about the product’s features, promotion, investments, and plans.

Conception

Mahaon has three co-founders.

• Olha Petriv, CEO. With a background in AI policy and EdTech, she has worked with organisations like UNESCO and the Council of Europe, teaching the fundamentals of AI to school students. In the startup, her responsibilities include the strategic vision and the adherence of the technology to ethical guidelines. 
• Orest Petriv, CTO. A full-stack developer with expertise in machine learning and engineering.
• Vitalii Mazhara, CMO. A designer and storyteller with a focus on visual narratives for children.

Olha and Orest are siblings. The foundation of their relationship with Vitalii was laid during joint work in the educational and creative landscape. Mahaon’s concept emerged in autumn 2023 from personal stories: the frustration experienced by both children and parents when kids’ questions go unanswered. Recognising the scarcity of quality, personalized, and safe learning content for children, the team set out to build a tool that would immediately generate tailored video responses.

The Mahaon web platform (MVP) went live in February 2025, and the team immediately began its first round of testing.

«Mahaon is designed to tap into a child’s inherent desire for knowledge, going beyond simple answers to foster deeper learning. All too often, parents, overwhelmed by work and the pressures of daily life, sidestep the relentless “why?” questions or promise to answer later. In the best-case scenario, a child’s genuine curiosity is met with a distracting cartoon or YouTube video — a far cry from a real answer. When we neglect to answer children’s “why?” and “what for?” questions, we risk dimming the bright spark of their natural curiosity and love for learning.

We champion the idea that education should transform from a monotonous necessity into a personalised and dynamically interactive experience. «It’s our endeavour to reimagine the landscape of early education, crafting a space where every child’s question unlocks their very own learning adventure», — Vitalii explains.

Complementing the co-founders is an AI/ML engineer who brings experience in crafting generative applications. The startup also benefits from the guidance of strategic advisers: Reface’s co-founders Roman Mohylnyi and Oles Petriv (Olha and Orest’s brother).

Product and audience

Mahaon is a web-based platform designed to generate short educational video responses to children’s questions. Mahaon uses an algorithm that understands the query, adapts the explanation to the child’s developmental stage, and produces personalized video responses. The platform’s AI is specifically designed to provide answers to children’s questions.

• When a query is entered, the system analyses it and retrieves an answer customised to the child’s age and level of understanding.
• The video generation is automated: the explanatory text is produced by AI and then voiced by a friendly narrator.
• The video features relevant animations or images on the screen.
• Mahaon learns from each interaction. Parents unlock insights into their child’s interests through the platform’s analytics.

Vitalii describes: «Imagine a 6-year-old, Bohdan, engaging with Mahaon by asking, “Why is the sky blue?“. Within seconds, the app weaves together a short (up to 40-second) cartoon where endearing characters and simple visuals unravel the mysteries of sunlight, the atmosphere, and scattering in language a child can easily understand. The answer sparks further thought in Bohdan, leading him to ask: “So, what would happen if there was no atmosphere?“. Mahaon seizes this moment of curiosity, using the new “what if?” to fuel the conversation forward with the next video.

The product has successfully launched its MVP and now boasts an active user base exceeding 700, with a solid 8% already converted to paying subscribers. The team underwent the second batch of the Mission Possible acceleration programme from September 2024 to April 2025.

«The world through a child’s eyes is a constant source of inquiry — up to the age of 12, they might ask more than 40,000 questions. Sadly, a child’s natural curiosity often goes unmet, with most questions either unanswered or answered too late to matter truly. More than just a parental hurdle, this causes the risk of extinguishing the flame of children’s innate inquisitiveness and their intrinsic drive for learning. As Harvard and MIT research demonstrates, when a child’s curiosity is met with silence, their brain slowly shifts out of its natural exploratory gear», — the co-founder emphasises.

Mahaon leverages the synergy between children’s education, dynamic video content, and powerful generative AI. The total addressable market (TAM) for global EdTech targeting children aged 3–12 was estimated at about $13,4 billion in 2024.

Mahaon is focusing on the US, UK, and EU, a region where the serviceable addressable market (SAM) for children’s educational technology amounts to $8.5 billion.

The startup’s short-term goal is to capture 5% of its serviceable obtainable market (SOM), which is approximately $425 million.

Mahaon’s main target demographic is parents with children between 3 and 12 years old in the US, the UK, and Europe. It also targets schools and kindergartens.

Business model and marketing strategy

The initial monetisation strategy is subscription-based (B2C), with plans to scale into the B2B sector (kindergartens, schools, educational platforms). The team is also looking into the potential for technology licensing.

To promote the platform, they use video content across social media (TikTok, Instagram Reels, YouTube Shorts), showcasing real examples of children’s questions and the video responses generated by Mahaon. A key part of their outreach involves collaborations with educational bloggers and creators who connect with parents. The platform is fostering a community of early users and parents, empowering them to become product ambassadors.

Investments 

Mahaon received a $25,000 grant from Seeds of Bravery and advanced to the semi-finals of Latitude59 (at the time of writing). The co-founders haven’t disclosed their personal investments. The team has opened a funding round aiming to raise $350,000.

Plans

The team is preparing to launch its mobile application. The native iOS and Android applications are nearing their final form. Once development is finalised, the app will be released on the App Store and Google Play, with an initial rollout in the US and European markets, along with expanding the video library and establishing B2B partnerships.

Simultaneously, Mahaon is developing a marketing strategy to reach parents through Facebook, TikTok, Instagram, and other social media. The team intends to partner with popular educational YouTubers and influencers to showcase the app’s potential to a larger audience.

Looking to expand its impact, Mahaon is exploring collaborations with educational institutions, considering options such as integrating the app into their curricula or licensing its technology for use across their learning platforms. The learning methodology is being developed with the input of child psychologists and educators.

At the moment, Mahaon is in the process of raising $350,000 in investment to cover 18 months of active development. «With these funds, we aim to enhance the product and AI capabilities, build a substantial library of video answers, and achieve a significant launch in the US», — summarises Vitalii Mazhara.