View source for Brainly

{{short description|Educational technology company}}
{{Infobox website
| name = Brainly, Inc.
| logo = Brainly_logo.svg
| logo_size = 
| screenshot = 
| caption = Brainly
| location = [[New York City]], [[United States]] <br> [[Kraków]], [[Poland]]
| industry = [[Education]]
| url = {{url|https://brainly.com|brainly.com}}
| language = [[Hindi]], [[English language|English]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]], [[Brazilian Portuguese|Portuguese (BR)]], [[French language|French]], [[Filipino language|Filipino (Tagalog)]], [[Turkish language|Turkish]], [[Romanian language|Romanian]], [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Polish language|Polish]], [[Italian language|Italian]], [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]]
| footnotes = 
| company_type = [[Privately held company|Private]]
| foundation = {{start date and age|September 2009}}
| creators = Michał Borkowski <br> Tomasz Kraus <br> Łukasz Haluch
| area_served = 35 countries
| key_people = Michał Borkowski ([[CEO]])
| website_type = [[Social network service]]
| num_users = 350 million<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.thefirstnews.com/article/education-app-becomes-worlds-number-after-surge-in-popularity-caused-by-pandemic-17902 |title=Education app becomes world's number one after surge in popularity caused by pandemic |access-date=27 November 2020 |archive-date=28 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201228085218/https://www.thefirstnews.com/article/education-app-becomes-worlds-number-after-surge-in-popularity-caused-by-pandemic-17902 |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}

{{Infobox software
| name = 
| operating system = [[iOS (operating system)|iOS]], [[Android (operating system)|Android]]
| website = {{url|1=https://apps.apple.com/us/app/brainly-the-homework-app/id745089947|2=iOS}}  {{url|1=https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=co.brainly&hl=en|2=Android}}
}}

'''Brainly''' is a company based in [[Kraków]], [[Poland]], with headquarters in [[New York City]]. It is a [https://brainly.com/ social learning platform where students and educators solve their academic problems together]. Brainly's mission is to inspire students to share and explore knowledge in a collaborative community.<ref>{{Cite web |title= |url=https://careers.brainly.com/our-culture |url-status=live}}</ref> It can also be used as a forum for students, parents, and teachers to ask and answer homework questions. The platform has elements of [[gamification|n]] in the form of points and ranks. It encourages users to engage in the online community by answering other users’ questions. {{As of|2020|11}}, Brainly reported having 350 million monthly users, making it the world's most popular education app.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|last=Westerby|first=Nick|date=2020-11-26|title=Education app becomes world's number one after surge in popularity caused by pandemic|url=https://www.thefirstnews.com/article/education-app-becomes-worlds-number-after-surge-in-popularity-caused-by-pandemic-17902|url-status=live|access-date=2020-11-27|archive-url=|archive-date=}}</ref>  

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== History==

Initially called Zadane.pl, the company was founded in 2009 in Poland by Michał Borkowski (current [[chief executive officer]]), Tomasz Kraus, and Łukasz Haluch. The first million unique monthly users were achieved within 6 months after the release.<ref>{{cite web|last1=Petrovich|first1=Liesha|date=2016-12-22|title=With 80 Million Users, Poland-based Brainly is Changing Education|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/liesha-petrovich/with-80-million-users-pol_b_13790336.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161223152827/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/liesha-petrovich/with-80-million-users-pol_b_13790336.html |archive-date=2016-12-23 |access-date=2019-01-31|website=[[HuffPost]]|publisher=[[BuzzFeed]]}}</ref> 

In January 2011, the company founded Znanija.com, the first international project dedicated to [[Russian language]] speakers.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Degeler|first=Andrii|date=2014-03-17|title=Crowdsourced School Homework: Brainly Plans to Teach the US|url=https://thenextweb.com/insider/2014/03/17/crowdsourced-school-homework-brainly-plans-take-us-market-success-europe/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140321034815/http://thenextweb.com:80/insider/2014/03/17/crowdsourced-school-homework-brainly-plans-take-us-market-success-europe/ |archive-date=2014-03-21 |access-date=2018-06-18|website=[[TNW (website)|TNW]]}}</ref> Several other versions in multiple languages for the following markets included [[Turkey]] (eodev.com), [[Latin America]] and [[Spain]] (brainly.lat), and [[Brazil]] (brainly.com.br). 

Brainly was initially funded by the [[co-founder]]s, but raised funds from [[Point Nine Capital]] in 2012.<ref>{{Cite web |last=O'Hear |first=Steve |date=2012-09-12 |title=Social Learning Network Brainly Raises $500K From Point Nine Capital, Angels |url=https://social.techcrunch.com/2012/09/12/social-learning-network-brainly-raises-500k-from-point-nine-capital-angels/ |url-status=live |website=[[TechCrunch]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Brainly |url=http://www.pointninecap.com/brainly |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140529084513/http://www.pointninecap.com/brainly |archive-date=2014-05-29 |website=Point Nine Capital}}</ref> 

In December 2013, seven new language versions of Brainly were released, including [[English language|English]], [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], [[India]]n and more.

In October 2014, the company announced that it had raised another round of funding from General Catalyst Partners, [[Runa Capital]], and other venture capital firms.<ref>{{Cite web|last=O'Hear|first=Steve|date=2014-10-15|title=Schoolwork Q&A Site Brainly Scores $9M Series A To Answer The U.S. Expansion Question|url=https://techcrunch.com/2014/10/15/brainly/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015190137/http://techcrunch.com/2014/10/15/brainly/ |archive-date=2014-10-15 |access-date=2016-04-18|website=[[TechCrunch]]}}</ref> The total amount of the investment was $9 million, and the company opened headquarters in New York City.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2014-10-15|title=Brainly Expands to U.S. with $9M Venture Funding Led by General Catalyst|url=http://www.cnbc.com/id/102089516|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141026100023/http://www.cnbc.com/id/102089516|archive-date=2014-10-26|access-date=2017-09-08|website=[[CNBC]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Pofeldt|first=Elaine|date=2015-12-07|title=The rise of billion-dollar European unicorns|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/07/european-venture-capitalists-spawn-unicorns.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160308035952/http://www.cnbc.com/2015/12/07/european-venture-capitalists-spawn-unicorns.html |archive-date=2016-03-08 |access-date=2016-04-18|website=[[CNBC]]}}</ref>

In May 2016, another funding round of $18 million of combined debt and equity was disclosed.<ref>{{Cite web|date=2016-05-25|title=Form D: Notice of Exempt Offering of Securities|url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1675516/000167551616000001/xslFormDX01/primary_doc.xml|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161005124604/https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1675516/000167551616000001/xslFormDX01/primary_doc.xml |archive-date=2016-10-05 |access-date=2016-10-03|publisher=[[U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission]]}}</ref> In June 2016, Brainly acquired the US-based OpenStudy.<ref>{{Cite news|date=2016-06-14|title=Brainly Acquires US Social Learning Platform, OpenStudy|work=[[EdSurge]]|url=https://www.edsurge.com/news/2016-06-14-brainly-acquires-us-social-learning-platform-openstudy|url-status=live|access-date=2017-10-18|archive-url=|archive-date=}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news|date=2016-06-14|title=Social Learning Platform OpenStudy Joins the Brainly Community|work=[[Yahoo! Finance]]|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/social-learning-platform-openstudy-joins-130000652.html|url-status=live|access-date=2016-10-03|archive-url=|archive-date=}}</ref>

In March or April 2017, Zadane.pl changed to Brainly.<ref>{{Cite web|date=|title=Zadane.pl|url=https://zadane.pl/|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170430053215/https://zadane.pl/|archive-date=2017-04-30|access-date=|website=Zadane.pl|language=pl}}</ref>

In October 2017, Brainly raised $14 million in a funding round led by [[Kulczyk Investments]].<ref>{{Cite news|date=2017-10-26|title=EdTech Startup Brainly Closes $14 Million|work=NewsCenter.io|url=https://newscenter.io/2017/10/edtech-startup-brainly-closes-14-million/|url-status=live|access-date=2017-11-02|archive-url=|archive-date=}}</ref>

In January 2018, Brainly announced it had acquired the video education start-up, Bask,<ref>{{cite web|title=Bask|url=http://www.usebask.com/|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190130012240/http://usebask.com/|archive-date=2019-01-30|access-date=2019-01-31|website=Bask}}</ref> to bring video technology to the Brainly platform.<ref>{{cite web|last=O'Hear|first=Steve|date=2018-01-25|title=Brainly acquires Bask to add video to its peer-to-peer learning platform for students|url=http://social.techcrunch.com/2018/01/25/brainly-bask/|url-status=live|website=[[TechCrunch]]}}</ref> 

In July 2019, Brainly raised $30 million in a Series C funding round led by Naspers, with participation from Runa Capital and Manta Ray.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Lunden|first=Ingrid|date=2015-07-19|title=Brainly, a crowdsourced homework helper for students, raises $30M to expand in the US|url=http://social.techcrunch.com/2019/07/25/brainly-a-crowdsourced-homework-helper-for-students-raises-30m-to-expand-in-the-us/|url-status=live|archive-url=|archive-date=|access-date=2019-08-22|website=[[TechCrunch]]}}</ref>

In 2020, the company experienced a significant increase in the number of users, caused by the global [[COVID-19 pandemic]], from 150 million in 2019 to around 350 million in 2020.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=Brainly raises $80M as its platform for crowdsourced homework help balloons to 350M users |url=https://social.techcrunch.com/2020/12/17/brainly-raises-80m-as-its-platform-for-crowdsourced-homework-help-balloons-to-350m-users/ |access-date=2022-03-12 |website=TechCrunch |date=17 December 2020 |language=en-US}}</ref>

In 2020, numerous users on the [[Art of Problem Solving]] website found that Brainly had compromised the integrity of the [[American Mathematics Competitions]] after posting the questions on its website with the correct answers. This led to Brainly updating its honor code.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Brainy Startups |url=https://brainy.pk/qa/ |access-date=2022-07-17 |website=brainy.pk}}</ref>

== Platform ==

=== Overview ===

Brainly provides a platform where students, parents, and teachers help others with homework questions. The website is intended to strengthen student's skills across subjects such as English, mathematics, science, and social studies. The platform is utilises a peer-to-peer system where students can ask questions, and answer them for other students. Ranks are provided to students who provide high-quality answers. Users are asked to provide an explanation and a source for the answers they provide. Questions are categorized by subject, respective of country and school level.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Coleman|first=Alison|date=2014-05-16|title=Global Ed-Tech Disruption From Poland: Crowdsourced Homework|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/alisoncoleman/2014/05/16/global-ed-tech-disruption-from-poland-crowdsourced-homework/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140518230032/http://www.forbes.com:80/sites/alisoncoleman/2014/05/16/global-ed-tech-disruption-from-poland-crowdsourced-homework/ |archive-date=2014-05-18 |access-date=2017-08-25|website=[[Forbes]]}}</ref> Each user is given a fixed amount points upon registration, which are used to ask questions. Users can gain points by answering questions posted by others.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Brainly – Leveraging the wisdom of the crowds to do your homework|url=https://digital.hbs.edu/platform-digit/submission/brainly-leveraging-the-wisdom-of-the-crowds-to-do-your-homework/|access-date=2021-12-28|website=Digital Innovation and Transformation|language=en-US}}</ref> A leaderboard exists for users who have answered the most questions or earned the most points.

Brainly is moderated by both volunteers and staff and uses machine learning algorithms<ref>{{Cite web |date=2016-07-15 |title=How Brainly's social learning model is changing education through community - and algorithms |url=https://diginomica.com/how-brainlys-social-learning-model-is-changing-education-through-community-and-algorithms |access-date=2022-03-12 |website=diginomica.com |language=en}}</ref> to filter its Knowledge Base.<ref>{{Cite web|last=Sawers|first=Paul|date=2019-07-25|title=With 150 million users, Brainly raises $30 million to expand its social learning platform in the U.S.|url=https://venturebeat.com/2019/07/25/with-150-million-users-brainly-raises-30-million-to-expand-its-social-learning-platform-in-the-u-s/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190726143940/https://venturebeat.com/2019/07/25/with-150-million-users-brainly-raises-30-million-to-expand-its-social-learning-platform-in-the-u-s/ |archive-date=2019-07-26 |access-date=2020-09-01|website=[[VentureBeat]]}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|title=Who are Moderators?|url=https://faq.brainly.com/hc/en-us/articles/206214039-Who-are-Moderators-|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180205000728/https://faq.brainly.com/hc/en-us/articles/206214039-Who-are-Moderators- |archive-date=2018-02-05 |access-date=2020-09-01|website=Brainly}}</ref> Moderators are trained users whose answers are excellent in content quality. Moderators are given permissions to respond to users who violate rules, including individuals who [[Plagiarism|plagiarize]], post spam, or post assessment questions.{{Citation needed|date=November 2020}}

==Criticism==
ToS;DR ([[Terms of Service; Didn't Read]]), a project which analyzes terms of services ([[Terms of service|ToS]]) and [[privacy policies]] of websites, ranks Brainly at grade E.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Brainly -- Terms of Service; Didn't Read|url=https://tosdr.org/en/service/1007|access-date=2022-04-01|website=ToS;DR}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Economy of Poland]]
*[https://www.commonsense.org/education/website/brainly-teacher-review/4677612 Common Sense Education]
*[https://tulsaworld.com/community/sandsprings/news/oklahoma-watch-students-find-shortcuts-cheats-as-virtual-schooling-drags-on-in-pandemic/article_dbb77f9e-17a4-11eb-89f3-bb62c860baef.html Oklahoma Watch: Students find shortcuts, cheats as virtual schooling drags on in pandemic]
*[https://borderpolar.com/2021/02/05/brainly-tutoring-or-cheating/ Is Brainly a tutoring solution, or the next level of cheating?]

==References==
{{reflist}}
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{{Online social networking}}

[[Category:Companies based in New York City]]
[[Category:American social networking websites]]
[[Category:Internet properties established in 2009]]
[[Category:Online companies of Poland]]
[[Category:Gamification]]
[[Category:Educational technology companies of the United States]]
[[Category:Subscription services]]
[[Category:Education companies of Poland]]
[[Category:Polish Limited Liability Companies]]
[[Category:Question-and-answer websites]]

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