AI reading coach startup Ello now lets kids create their own stories

Ello, the AI reading companion that aims to support kids struggling to read, launched a new product on Monday that allows kids to participate in the story-creation process. 

Called “Storytime,” the new AI-powered feature helps kids generate personalized stories by picking from a selection of settings, characters, and plots. For instance, a story about a hamster named Greg who performed in a talent show in outer space.

Kids can select from dozens of prompts, resulting in thousands of combinations. 

Like Ello’s regular reading offering, the AI companion — a bright blue, friendly elephant — listens to the child read aloud and evaluates their speech to correct mispronunciations and missed words. If kids are unsure how to pronounce a certain word, they can tap on the question mark icon for extra help. 

Storytime offers two reading options: one mode where Ello and the reader take turns and another, easier mode for younger readers where Ello does most of the reading.

AI-assisted story creation for kids isn’t a new concept. In 2022, Amazon introduced its own AI tool that generates animated stories for kids based on various themes and locations, such as underwater adventures or enchanted forests. Other startups, like Scarlet Panda and Story Spark, have also joined in on this trend.

However, Ello believes its Storytime offering stands apart due to its proprietary, advanced AI system that adapts to a child’s responses, teaching critical reading skills using phonics-based strategies. The company claims its technology outperforms OpenAI’s Whisper and Google Cloud’s speech API.

In addition, the Storytime experience is tailored to the user’s reading level as well as the weekly lesson. For example, if Ello is helping a first-grader practice their “ch” sound that week, the AI creates a story that strategically includes the words “chair” and “cheer.”

According to Ello, its engineering team implemented safety measures to ensure that the stories are suitable for children. The company spent several months testing the product with teachers, children, and reading specialists. The initial version only permits children to choose from a predetermined set of story options. However, the company envisions a future iteration where children will have even more involvement in the process.

“If a teacher creates an open story with a child, they provide the [building blocks] through interactive dialog. So, I imagine it would look quite similar to that,” Catalin Voss, co-founder and CTO of Ello, told TechCrunch. “Kids prefer some guardrails at some level. It’s the blank paper problem. You ask a five-year-old, ‘What do you want the story to be about?’ And they kind of get overwhelmed.”

In addition to Storytime, the company also launched its iOS app a few months ago, expanding the reach of its AI reading coach to even more users. It was previously limited to tablets, including iPads, Android tablets, and Amazon. 

With over 700,000 books read and tens of thousands of families served, Ello is priced at $14.99/month. Meanwhile, families receiving government assistance can access it for just $2.99/month. Ello also partners with low-income schools to offer the subscription at no additional cost.

Additionally, Ello recently made its library of decodable children’s books online for free.