Challenging AI content in EdTech with originality

No time to listen to the whole episode? We’ve picked the top conversational highlights from every section to enrich or supplement your listening experience. This can serve as a standalone summary of the conversation as well:

Why did you move back to India after being well-established in the Middle East when Tutorials Point started taking off?

• Despite the opportunity to start a business in the Middle East, Mohtashim wanted to create job opportunities in India. “If I can provide job opportunities for a few friends in India, that will give immense satisfaction,” he recalls of his decision to move back.
• He believes in contributing to reducing unemployment and supporting families, which gives him immense satisfaction.

When did you start realizing that Tutorials Point could become the primary source of income?

• Mohtashim shares that the turning point was in 2008 when he first monetized the site and realized its potential. By 2012, the revenue had significantly surpassed his salary from a high-paying job in Oman.
• “I never thought of doing business out of this content, but it pushed me,” he recalls talking about Tutorials Point.

Do you think AI is already impacting Tutorials Point or ed-tech in general?

• Yes, Mohtashim acknowledges the impact of AI tools like ChatGPT on content creation. “If content creators stop creating good content, AI will also not work in the long run,” he warns.
• However, he believes that generating content is a skill that AI cannot fully replicate. He also mentions the need for regulations to ensure fair use of content by AI tools.

Are you planning to integrate AI within your tech stack for content creation?

• Not really. Mohtashim believes in the value of generating original content and the skills it imparts to students. “Generating content itself is a skill,” he asserts.
• “We are thinking of putting the things where the entry barrier is a little difficult,” Mohtashim says. By focusing on curated, high-quality video courses and maintaining a structured approach to content, Tutorials Point aims to provide value that AI-generated content cannot easily replicate.

Have you considered raising funding in the past? Are you looking to raise funding in the future?

• Tutorials Point has always self-sustained through advertisement revenue. “We had surplus funds lying in our bank, so we never felt the need for extra funds,” he reveals.
• Mohtashim mentions that they are considering raising funds in the future to scale their new paid model and marketplace for video courses and e-books.

How have you tackled Google’s algorithm updates that could affect traffic and revenue?

• Mohtashim believes in creating user-friendly and valuable content, which naturally aligns with SEO principles. “Whatever is user-friendly is search engine friendly as well,” he explains.
• He emphasizes the importance of unique and useful content to maintain relevance and tackle algorithm changes.

What do you think Tutorials Point has done differently to maintain relevance even through the entire boom and bust cycle of ed-tech?

• Tutorials Point has always offered free, high-quality content focusing on user needs. “We wrote a thousand pages' worth of content in a hundred pages,” Mohtashim shares.
• Recently, they have pivoted to include a paid model with curated video courses and e-books, setting a higher entry barrier to maintain quality.

What do you see as the difference in spending habits on Tutorials Point between audiences in India/Asia and the US/Europe?

• Despite having a majority of web traffic from India, the revenue predominantly comes from the US. “Our 60-70% traffic is from India, but it contributes only 10% revenue while the USA contributes around 90% revenue.” he shares.
• Mohtashim notes that Indian users are less inclined to pay for educational content, preferring free resources despite their value.