What is Edpuzzle? Edpuzzle is a for-profit company that develops an educational technology tool that enables teachers to use publicly available videos, edit them, and imbed interactive activities within videos to create lessons. Teachers can also access analytical data from students engaging with the tool to help students progress in their learning. EdPuzzle is widely used in many schools and is one of the largest crowd-sourced video lesson platforms. For a more detailed overview of how EdPuzzle works, see the video below:
Who is Quim Sabrià? Prior to establishing EdPuzzle, Quim Sabrià taught high school math for a non-profit organization in Barcelona called Empieza por Educar. He attributes this experience, and the challenges of teaching, including a high student absenteeism rate to inspiring the idea for EdPuzzle. Sabrià, along with three of his friends: Jordi Gonzalez, Santi Herrero, and Xavi Vergés co-founded the company. Now based in Silicon Valley, Quim Sabrià serves as CEO of Edpuzzle.
Reflections on the Company & Co-Founder: On their website, Edpuzzle points to a worldwide staff of over two-hundred employees. They also tout that one third of the employees are former educators. This indicates that they value the unique experiences and insights that teachers can bring to the company. Despite being a for-profit company, EdPuzzle does offer a free tier for use with the option of upgrading to a paid subscription to gain additional features. Having used this tool myself, it does feel like teachers have had a hand in its creation. It is very easy to use and it can save a lot of time.
I also find Sabrià’s motivation and story compelling. He seems to have both the ability to invent and run a successful business. Student absenteeism is a major problem for students globally. The challenge of helping students get caught up on material that was covered while they were away is universally felt by teachers. Therefore, I think this is an important issue worth addressing by a venture. Although EdPuzzle is not a perfect solution to the very complex problem of absenteeism, I appreciate how this tool does two things simultaneously. It creates flexibility for learners by enabling them to complete lessons asynchronously, and it also embeds accountability through its tracking tools. Additionally, the fact that this application has broad uses that extend beyond borders, grade levels, and subjects makes it a very useful tool and a good business venture, in my view.
Websites used to inform my research:
Edpuzzle. (n.d.). About us. https://edpuzzle.com/about
HuffPost. (n.d.). Quim Sabrià. https://www.huffpost.com/author/quim-sabria
Teach For All. (n.d.). Empieza Por Educar Alumnus Quim Sabrià launched Edpuzzle to support teachers like him. Teach For All. https://teachforall.org/video/empieza-por-educar-alumnus-quim-sabria-launched-edpuzzle-support-teachers-him
Video references:
EdPuzzle. (2021, November 17). What is EdPuzzle? . YouTube. https://youtu.be/msmWfQqVufc?si=Nw2WZVhETC3hWpsI
Teach For All. (2016, July 5). AI in education: Balancing innovation & responsibility [Video]. YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cDkULOyhVLE
Image was created using generative AI (Google Gemini 2.5 Flash)
Thank you Mark for sharing. After reading so many stories about founders, I’ve noticed they all share one key trait: they’re never satisfied with the status quo. They have a sharp eye for spotting opportunities for change in everyday life. What really stands out to me is their strong conviction—they take what they have, whether it’s resources or skills, and turn ideas into reality. I believe entrepreneurs like these play a vital role in driving social progress. But their creativity can only thrive in a society that is open enough to support and nurture innovation.
Hi Mark,
I agree that Quim Sabrià is a strong role model for entrepreneurs. Rather than trying to solve the chronic absenteeism, which may be rooted in more systemic issues than what’s going on at school, he instead came up with a solution that allows for asynchronous teaching and learning, which would work better for students who are chronically absent. I also find platforms that crowdsource and encourage their user base to generate content for the platform itself to be really clever.
Great job on this profile, Mark.
Yan and Anna already added some great comments so I will add that I love Quim’s personality and that it’s extremely refreshing and inspiring to see someone like him thriving in the role of CEO. His suggestion that every CEO should have to stand up in front of 60 math students on a Friday afternoon is absolutely true. There are so many edtech companies out there making apps for educators but it often seems like educators are left out of the development process. Ensuring that the ultimate decision makers are keenly and intimately familiar with the problems their teams are trying to solve would go a long way to putting better tools in the hands of educators.