Technology

Especially for Estonian students

We are developing learning applications for Estonian students in collaboration with technology partners

A dedicated learning app supports students’ learning and thinking skills more effectively than regular ChatGPT or other large language models because it does not simply provide answers. The learning apps are continuously evaluated and improved to meet 19 behavioral criteria developed by Estonian educational psychologists and researchers led by Jaan Aru. Examples of these criteria include:

the AI helped plan how to approach a task

helped the student notice mistakes or misunderstandings

explored the student’s thinking by asking for explanations

emphasized that errors and confusion are part of learning

encouraged the student to find new contexts for a concept

offered ways to practice the solution in a new context

used correct Estonian language and communication norms

responses were not too long (overloading working memory)

responses did not contradict interpretations of history, geopolitics, minorities etc, currently accepted in Estonian society

responses were logical, relevant, and factually accurate

When will the learning app reach students?

December 2025

  • Amendment to the law enabling the app’s release
  • Introductory training for all 20,000 students; training materials shared in AI Leap channels, and workshops with youth organizations

 January–March 2026

  • ChatGPT Edu accounts made available to all grade 10–11 students in schools participating in the program
  • Monitoring results and improving app responses to promote learning-supportive behavior
  • Further app development with University of Tartu researchers and the Institute of the Estonian Language to better align with Estonian language and cultural criteria
  • Scientific study on the app’s impact on student development, led by Jaan Aru

April–May 2026

  • Publication of the University of Tartu impact study
  • Evaluation of AI Leap’s first-year results
  • Development of AI Leap’s second-year strategy

The learning app communicates in Estonian and reflects local culture

The continuous development of the learning app also involves the Institute of the Estonian Language (EKI), whose researchers ensure that the app communicates with students only in proper Estonian and follows local cultural norms.

EKI’s Estonian language corpora are used to train the model’s Estonian language and communication skills. The goal is for the app to reach the highest level of Estonian language proficiency. Its communication style and responses must align with local cultural context and expectations, to support students’ learning motivation, persistence, and, in some cases, the development of their Estonian language skills.

The learning app communicates in Estonian and reflects local culture

collaboration with technology partners

We collaborate with the world’s leading tech companies

In developing the app, we work with technology partners – primarily OpenAI and Google – to adapt artificial intelligence for educational purposes. The collaboration is based on strict contracts, defining responsibilities, data processing, and quality standards.

Estonian partners contribute pedagogical design, Estonian language data, and testing, while international technology partners ensure reliability, security, and the implementation of updates. All changes and updates are evaluated for compliance with educational and ethical standards before being introduced.

FAQ

Collaboration with major corporations takes place under strictly regulated conditions that guarantee the protection of Estonian students’ data and interests. All data used by the app is stored on European Union servers and processed in accordance with the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). Chat content is not used for model training or commercial purposes, and partners have no right to copy or share this data.

The AI Leap Foundation and Estonian educational institutions retain data ownership and control what information the app collects and how it is analyzed. Every update or change made by a technology partner undergoes an independent ethical and data protection review before implementation to ensure that Estonian students are not test subjects but users of safe and transparent educational technology.

The AI Leap workspace follows the principle of “secure by default” – all system-level solutions are designed to minimize potential risks to students and schools. Students’ conversations are not accessible to teachers or schools (unless shared voluntarily) and are not used for model training – unlike free ChatGPT accounts that many students use daily.

When mental health topics arise, the model immediately directs students to Estonia’s official support services and trusted sources instead of attempting to act as a therapist. The foundation continuously analyzes workspace usage data (excluding personal data) to identify potential risks and to support the most frequently used and pedagogically effective learning methods.