Sparking Seeds: In Conversation with founder of Athernova POLO

For Shlok Khosla, building hardware with embedded and automated systems has been a 'lifelong' passion. 'Lifelong' is within single quotation marks because he is what you would call a Gen-Z-preneur. A student of Electronics and Instrumentation Engineering at Bengaluru, and of Tezpur-origin, he is the founder of Athernova Technologies Private Limited. He has come up with POLO, an educational AI-powered robot, which he claims to be the first -of-its-kind and the only fully built robot from not just the state of Assam, but India.

To understand what POLO brings to the product landscape, I sent these questions to Shlok and it is published here as it was responded by him.

Let’s talk about POLO. For anyone who does not know, what is the elevator pitch for it?

POLO is an AI-powered educational robot that I have built to bring a new kind of learning experience to life one that’s interactive, engaging, and emotionally intelligent. It can speak, listen, respond, display content visually, and adapt to each student’s learning style. Think of it as a personal tutor, an academic companion, and a smart assistant all inside one robot. POLO isn’t just a product of engineering; it’s a vision to make learning more human, accessible, and fun for kids across all backgrounds.

From the product point-of-view, what is the problem it solves in the real world?

A lot of kids today face a lack of meaningful engagement with what they’re studying. Online videos and apps are one-way, static, and often fail to connect with the learner on a deeper level. There’s also the issue of personalization most tools don’t adapt based on how a student thinks, learns, or struggles.

That’s where POLO comes in. It solves this gap by offering a two-way, emotionally aware learning experience. It remembers previous interactions, understands questions naturally, adapts to the learner’s pace, and offers visual plus verbal explanations. For parents and educators, it provides real-time insights and remote control access making it not just a robot, but a connected learning system. My goal with POLO is to bring the empathy and adaptiveness of a great teacher into a compact, intelligent, robotic form.

What stage is the project currently in? Is there a prototype?

Right now, POLO is in an advanced prototype stage. The software system is up and running with key components like voice command processing, real-time AI responses, visual content display, memory recall, cloud dashboard control, and mobile app integration all functioning properly. I have also finalized the 3D printable hardware design to ensure everything fits correctly within POLO’s body.

The prototype is almost ready for a closed pilot test, and I’m now focusing on refining the final outer body, camera integration, and animated eye display system. Every feature be it the voice identity verification or cloud-based updates has been carefully built by me from scratch, piece by piece.

What is the investment stage it is in?

Currently, POLO is in the pre-seed investment stage. I’m actively looking for early backers who believe in what I’m building and want to support this project’s journey from prototype to full-scale production. The funds I raise will help cover hardware production, pilot deployments, cloud infrastructure, and expanding the learning modules. Up until now, everything has been self-funded and built independently, so this round will be crucial to accelerate growth.

The ‘why you came up with the idea for POLO’ you’ve already covered, but how did you go about from that idea to where you are now?

The journey from idea to execution has been full of challenges, but incredibly rewarding. Once the vision was clear an educational robot that could understand, teach, and evolve with the learner I began working alone on every part of it. I first explored AI models and experimented with voice input/output systems, then slowly layered in cloud-based control systems, a custom dashboard, and memory features.

I spent months iterating on both the hardware and the software. Designing a robot that can speak, listen, blink, and move while also running real-time AI logic took countless nights of research and trial. Every interaction POLO handles today has been hand-coded, tested, and refined by me personally. The goal was to build something that feels alive something students would actually want to talk to and learn with.

What is your expected scale of growth and the assigned timeline for that?

In the first year after funding and launch, I aim to distribute POLO to at least 1,000 students across homes, schools, and educational institutions through pilot programs and direct sales. I want to start with Tier-I and Tier-II cities where educational tools are in demand but still lack interactivity.

In the next 2-3 years, I plan to scale POLO through educational franchises, curriculum partnerships, and international markets that need cost-effective, interactive learning tools. My broader goal is to make POLO accessible to as many children as possible not just as a luxury educational product but as a daily learning companion.

What is the market size like for educational Robots?

The global educational robotics market is already valued in billions and is expected to grow significantly in the coming years. With the explosion of AI in learning, there’s a growing demand for tools that move beyond passive video-based content to more active, conversational, and adaptive experiences.

In India specifically, the edtech boom has opened up a huge opportunity for innovation. There’s rising interest in smart learning companions, especially in hybrid and home-based education setups. That’s where POLO fits in as an affordable, intelligent, and scalable product. The potential is massive, especially because POLO brings together AI, robotics, and emotional interactivity three of the most powerful forces in education today.

Does POLO have the ability to go beyond its present ‘educational robot’ avatar?

Yes, definitely. While POLO is currently focused on education, its architecture is highly modular. Its ability to speak, listen, recognize faces, respond to gestures, and connect to the cloud makes it applicable in many more scenarios.

In the future, POLO can evolve into a companion robot for kids with special needs, a personal assistant for the elderly, or even a customer interaction bot in public spaces. Its voice identity verification system, mobility, and learning capabilities can be tailored for use in therapy, healthcare, or even hospitality. Education is just the beginning I built POLO to be future-ready.

The final design for POLO. (Property of Athernova Technologies Pvt.Ltd.)

Tell me about the AI aspect of POLO. Which Large Language Model (LLM) is running behind it?

POLO’s conversational brain is built around OpenAI’s GPT-based language models, carefully integrated into a pipeline that ensures both accuracy and safety. I’ve wrapped the model with layers that filter responses, format educational answers, and personalize them based on user interactions.

POLO also understands context, meaning it can follow up on a student’s previous questions and remember past conversations. Its local memory module is designed to recognize learning patterns, track what a student finds difficult, and respond in a more helpful way over time. The AI is also voice-sensitive it listens fully, waits if interrupted, and responds naturally like a human would.

What about the data and bandwidth cost associated with POLO’s cloud offerings?

To keep things efficient and affordable, I’ve built POLO with a hybrid approach. Simple tasks like wake-word detection or local responses are handled on-device, while complex processing like conversational AI or real-time updates go through the cloud.

This keeps data usage minimal, around 150MB per day on average for regular users. I’ve also implemented compression and caching strategies to reduce repetitive data calls. For schools or homes with limited bandwidth, I’m working on introducing offline modes with pre-downloaded content modules that still function without internet.

Coming to the hardware aspect of things. What’s the plan? Will you import it and manufacture it within the country?

My plan is to manufacture POLO entirely within India. I’ve designed the hardware to be 3D-printable and optimized for local fabrication. Some specific sensors and components like microphones or certain chips may be imported initially, but the overall goal is full localization.

As soon as funding and scaling begin, I’ll be setting up a small-scale production workflow that ensures quality control and cost-efficiency. I believe that for POLO to make a real difference, it needs to be made in India, for India, and eventually, for the world.

I see Athernova has big plans. Can you tell us a little more about those?

Absolutely. I founded Athernova Technologies Pvt. Ltd. to be much more than just the company behind POLO. While the company is currently in its registration phase, the long-term vision is crystal clear: to innovate at the intersection of AI, robotics, and human utility. Every product, whether it’s hardware or software, will be focused on building technologies that are useful, ethical, and empathetic.

I don’t want Athernova to only create robots I want it to become a hub of innovation where impactful technologies are built for education, healthcare, accessibility, elder care, mental wellness, and real-time human assistance. The aim is to engineer intelligent systems that solve real human problems whether that means robots that help children learn, AI systems that assist the elderly, or tools that empower individuals with disabilities.

Athernova’s role will be to ensure that these technologies are not only advanced and scalable, but also affordable and inclusive. I’m building it with the belief that AI and robotics should never be limited to labs or luxury tech they should reach everyday lives, across all communities.

What is the vision for Athernova?

The vision for Athernova is to build the future of intelligent systems for mankind systems that are helpful, intuitive, and designed to assist people in real-world situations.

While POLO is the first flagship product, Athernova’s future roadmap includes a wide spectrum of innovations. From AI-powered care companions to assistive technology for differently-abled individuals, voice-first home systems, emotional AI for mental wellness, and even AI tools for educators and frontline workers the goal is to build whatever contributes positively to humanity through technology.

I see Athernova as a platform where cutting-edge AI and robotics blend with human-centered design. Everything I create under this banner will be deeply rooted in ethics, utility, and empathy. It’s not just about building smart machines; it’s about designing systems that understand and care and truly improve lives.

What is the current fund requirement for your company?

At the moment, I’m completely bootstrapped and have been working on POLO independently from designing and developing the hardware to building the full AI-powered software ecosystem. Every line of code, system integration, prototype iteration, and feature enhancement has been developed by me alone, without any external financial backing.

As a solo founder, this journey has been as much about careful resource management as it has been about innovation. I’ve prioritized building a strong foundation first ensuring that the

product works, the system is scalable, and the technology is robust before stepping into the fundraising ecosystem.

That said, I do plan to raise funds in the near future, but I intend to do it strategically and responsibly, based entirely on the evolving needs of the project. Whether it’s manufacturing the first batch of POLO units, scaling cloud infrastructure, onboarding early users, or bringing in a small team, I’ll approach funding at each stage to serve a specific purpose.

I believe in lean development and sustainable growth, and my goal is to ensure that any funds raised go directly into enhancing the product, improving user experience, and enabling wider access rather than inflating overheads or chasing scale prematurely. The project will grow in phases, and so will the funding it seeks.

Like all businesses, what are the success metrics for POLO or Athernova in general?

For me, success isn’t just about sales it’s about impact. I measure POLO’s success through:

• How many children actually learn better with it

• How many hours of meaningful engagement it creates

• The improvement in a child’s confidence, curiosity, and clarity

• Feedback from parents and teachers on how POLO changes the learning dynamic

On the business side, I’ll also be tracking adoption numbers, cloud subscription growth, and hardware deployments. But at the end of the day, if POLO can genuinely make learning more human, interactive, and joyful that’s the kind of success I’m building toward.