Is an AI tutor better than BYJU'S?
For a child who keeps getting stuck on specific questions, an interactive AI tutor is often more useful than another video, because it can respond to what that child actually said. For a child who needs a clear path through the syllabus and learns well from visuals, a structured video course (many of which are now free) may suit better. Plenty of families combine the two.
Whatever you choose, the lesson of the last few years is the same: pay monthly, avoid loans and long prepaid packages, and judge the tool by what your child can explain afterwards.
Key takeaways
- •Video courses and AI tutors solve different problems: structure and visual explanation versus answering your child's own questions.
- •BYJU'S lessons had real strengths; most of the public criticism concerned sales practices, long prepaid packages and company finances.
- •AI tutors are interactive and available any time, but they can be wrong and need adult oversight.
- •Whatever you choose, avoid loans and multi-year prepayments for education apps.
- •Free resources such as Khan Academy and DIKSHA can cover much of what paid video courses offer.
What happened to BYJU'S?
BYJU'S, founded by Byju Raveendran in 2011, grew into one of the world's most highly valued education technology companies and bought several other firms, including Aakash Educational Services, WhiteHat Jr and Toppr. For many Indian families it was the first name that came to mind for online learning.
From around 2022 the company faced delayed financial results, disputes with investors and overseas lenders, and widely reported complaints from parents about pressure selling of expensive packages, some financed through loans. India's child-rights body, the NCPCR, publicly summoned the company over its sales practices in late 2022. In 2024 insolvency proceedings were started against the parent company, Think and Learn Pvt. Ltd., and these have since been contested in the courts.
We are not in a position to say how the legal process will end, and the situation may have changed since this article was updated. If you are considering any BYJU'S product, check the latest official information first.
What did BYJU'S do well?
A fair comparison has to start with what worked. Many parents and students valued:
- Well-produced animated lessons that made abstract concepts easier to picture
- Close coverage of the NCERT syllabus across many classes
- Structured courses with a clear order of topics and practice tests
- Downloadable content, useful where internet access is patchy
- A recognisable brand that introduced many families to digital learning
The main weakness of any recorded-video model, BYJU'S included, is that the lesson cannot notice when a particular child has stopped following. A child can watch for an hour and feel productive without having understood much. That is a limitation of the format, not of the teachers who made the videos.
How is an AI tutor different?
An AI tutor is built on a large language model, the same kind of technology behind tools like ChatGPT. Instead of playing a fixed lesson, it responds to what the child types or says. A well-designed tutor asks what the child already knows, spots where their reasoning goes wrong and tries a different example when the first one fails.
The trade-offs are real. AI can produce answers that sound right but are wrong, so a good tutor should be grounded in the textbook and should encourage children to check. Most AI tutors do not have a polished video library or a fixed course plan. And a tutor that simply hands over answers can make homework faster without making the child any wiser.
Kyloen, which publishes this blog, is one such tutor. It follows the NCERT syllabus, guides children with questions rather than giving homework answers, and sends parents a weekly summary. It is free during beta (planned at ₹499/month after launch) with no contract. It does not have video lessons, and it is a young product still improving, so we suggest pairing it with a free video resource if your child likes to learn visually.
Video course vs AI tutor: side by side
| Feature | BYJU'S-style video course | Typical AI tutor |
|---|---|---|
| Core format | Recorded video lessons and tests | Two-way conversation |
| Responds to your child's exact doubt | Limited | Yes |
| Polished visual explanations | Strong | Usually text-based; weaker |
| Fixed course structure | Strong | Varies; often lighter |
| Risk of factual errors | Low (expert-produced content) | Possible; AI can be confidently wrong |
| Pace | Same lesson for every student | Adjusts to the child's answers |
| Parent visibility | Usage and test scores | Varies by product; some offer summaries |
| How it was sold | Often high-value prepaid packages | Usually monthly or free trials; check terms |
Features vary between products. For a product-level comparison, see Kyloen vs BYJU'S.
How should you choose for your child?
- Watch how your child studies for a week. Do they get lost in the order of topics (needs structure) or get stuck on specific doubts (needs interaction)?
- Try the free options first: Khan Academy or DIKSHA for video explanations, and a free trial of any interactive tool.
- Test any AI tutor yourself with a question from your child's textbook. Does it ask your child to think, or simply give the answer?
- Check the terms: monthly billing, a clear refund policy, no loan, and a privacy policy that explains how your child's data is used.
- Review after a month. Can your child explain what they learned? If not, change the tool or the routine.
Some children will be better served by neither. If your child is far behind, has a possible learning difficulty, or is anxious about school, a teacher, a qualified tutor or a paediatrician should be the first conversation. Apps work best as support for children who are basically coping.
If you decide an interactive tool is worth trying, our guide to CBSE AI tutoring explains what good tutoring looks like class by class, and our pricing page sets out exactly what Kyloen will cost after the beta.