![]() Lower levels of energy among remaining makers also suggests a fair few STEM toys, of years past, failed to turn into the sticky home-learning machines parents had been promised. If kids are exposed to toy-like connected gizmos and learning apps at school they’re unlikely to be so excited about having similar stuff at home. This toymaker-to-edtech-supplier pipeline suggests the category’s boldest marketing claims, which hinged on the notion of teaching something hard (STEM) through play, were onto something. (The growing list of startup pivots to edtech includes the likes of imagi Labs, Osmo, Ozobot, MakeBlock, pi-top, robo wunderkind, Sphero/littleBits and Wonder Workshop, to name a few.) Which means there’s less effort and attention on home users as product builders fix on the (serious) business of serving curriculum-aligned content and interfaces for schools. But the main direction of travel is pivots to the formal education market. ![]() Since our last dive into this techie toy box, a number have winked out of existence entirely - or look as if they’re about to judging by mothballing of remaining efforts around existing (old) products. The focus of remaining players has shifted too. And products alone won’t cast an unbreakable spell. What’s left is a broad sense that kid-friendly kit is just a piece of a larger learning puzzle. ![]() The hype that started about a decade ago, powering a wave of startups to launch creative and experimental products - pitching parents on dedicated connected hardware and apps to help unlock their kids’ future tech career progression - has faded to something a bit less flashy and ambitious. ![]() There’s no doubt the STEM toys category has lost a bit of its magic. ![]()
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