Person has developed a new mobile app that aims to help students master calculus. The subject is an integral part of any STEM degrees in university, so aspiring students need to have a solid grasp of it. Unfortunately, the reality is that no matter how intelligent one can be, sometimes calculus is just too confusing. Recognizing this issue, Pearson made an innovative app to help students.

According to their studies, Pearson reports that nearly a third of students fail or drop out of calculus in their first semester pursuing a STEM degree. The course is an integral part of any science-based education, so many are forced to take it even if it’s not their forte. Calculus, therefore, can be seen as a barrier to many STEM careers. Without mastering it, even if some degrees won’t use it after university, a student will be discouraged from pursuing their dream job.

Milena Marinova, the senior vice president of artificial intelligence products and solutions at Pearson, assembled together a team, and they researched and developed an app to help students with calculus. The whole ordeal took 10 months, but they believe it was worth it. The fruits of their efforts is Aida, a mobile app that offers real-time feedback to students’ calculus homework.

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The app’s unique selling point is that the AI offers real-time, personalized feedback for their users’ calculus homework. A student can upload a picture of their work or type in their formulas, and Aida will analyze the calculations line by line. At each step they got it wrong, Aida will tell them what’s missing, how they can improve, and what to look out for next time. The app is basically a personal calculus tutor without needing to go to cram school.

The developers plan on keeping it free until the end of the year, so students should capitalize on it. Next year, Pearson plans on introducing a subscription fee of $2.99 a month if the app is successful. With a cheap and easy resource for calculus homework help, many students and their moms can be saved from having to get tutors or enrolling in cram schools. An excellent tutor is at their fingertips, and she has infinite patience for all the mistakes made in crunching the numbers.