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Cambly (YC W14) Offers On-Demand Access To Language Tutors

27 points| namenotrequired | 12 years ago |techcrunch.com

8 comments

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[+] trey_swann|12 years ago|reply
Nice work Cambly! The app is very simple and well designed. Plus, I love your logo.

Immersion is clearly the way to go when learning a new language. I learned more French trying to haggle with the waiter for more ice in Biarritz, than I ever did in Madame Lefebvre’s class.

I like that Cambly pairs me with a friendly native speaker rather than a professional teacher. And, I’m a big fan of the on-demand marketplace idea.

Questions for Cambly:

1) Users are required to download a separate app for each language. As you add more languages a user may be learning French and Spanish simultaneously. Are there plans to merge everything into one app so that I can toggle between two different languages?

2) Do you find that users are selecting tutors based on attractiveness?

[+] neoveller|12 years ago|reply
How does this differ from Verbling (YC S11)?
[+] MWil|12 years ago|reply
Wasn't this on Shark Tank?
[+] papaver|12 years ago|reply
any one know how this differs from livemocha.com?
[+] gamblor956|12 years ago|reply
LiveMocha isn't in YC and won't have to pivot in a few months due to a poorly thought-out business model.
[+] rrieublanc|12 years ago|reply
Yes, in that LiveMocha is free and Cambly charges you $20. Don't get me wrong, the concept is great, the design is awesome, but language exchange (tandems) is not foreign language teaching. There are other online services out there such as Iboux [1] that charges less than $20 for a private class with an actual professional teacher with an actual syllabus.

[1] http://www.iboux.com