TLDRs;
- Sam Altman-backed Campus acquires Sizzle AI to boost its AI-driven online education platform.
- Ex-Meta AI chief Jerome Pesenti joins Campus as CTO to lead engineering and AI integration.
- The deal accelerates Campus’s roadmap by up to three years, expanding its real-time learning analytics.
- Acquisition underscores growing competition in AI-powered higher education amid multi-million-dollar university AI pushes.
Campus, a New York-based online two-year college backed by Sam Altman, has acquired Sizzle AI, an education-focused artificial intelligence startup founded by former Meta AI head Jerome Pesenti.
The acquisition marks a significant step in Campus’s mission to merge real-time data insights with online instruction and to become a leader in next-generation AI learning experiences.
Launched in 2023, Sizzle AI built an interactive learning app that attracted over 1.7 million users globally. The company’s focus on personalized, AI-driven tutoring aligns seamlessly with Campus’s live instruction model, which already offers associate degrees in business administration and information technology, with a concentration in applied AI.
Under the acquisition, Pesenti will serve as Campus’s Chief Technology Officer, leading a team of engineers and researchers from MIT, Harvard, and IBM Watson. Their immediate goal: to weave Sizzle’s adaptive learning algorithms into Campus’s online classes, providing students and faculty with continuous feedback loops that track academic progress in real time.
Sizzle AI Deal Accelerates Campus Roadmap
Campus said the acquisition will fast-track its engineering roadmap by two to three years, enabling the startup to integrate advanced AI personalization and analytics features far earlier than expected.
The startup, which has raised over $100 million from investors including Founders Fund, General Catalyst, and Sam Altman, remains tight-lipped about the deal’s financial terms. No figures or equity details were disclosed, a notable omission for a company of Campus’s profile.
The secrecy, however, hasn’t dampened industry curiosity. Education technology observers see the move as part of a larger wave of consolidation, where well-funded startups are scooping up niche AI platforms to accelerate time-to-market for scalable learning tools.
Real-Time Learning Meets Live Instruction
Campus’s approach has always stood out from traditional online universities. Instead of relying on pre-recorded lectures, the college offers live online classes taught by instructors from leading universities such as Stanford and UCLA.
By layering Sizzle AI’s adaptive system atop its human-led model, Campus aims to create a hybrid learning environment that continuously monitors student engagement, identifies weak points, and suggests personalized interventions.
For instructors, the integration promises real-time insight dashboards, tools that could help faculty adjust lessons dynamically, track student comprehension, and identify struggling learners faster than traditional systems.
What remains unclear, however, is how far this personalization will go. Will it simply mimic existing adaptive learning systems, or evolve into a truly AI-driven tutor that reshapes higher education?
Broader Momentum in AI-Powered Learning
Campus’s move comes amid a surge in AI adoption across universities worldwide. In the United States, institutions like the University of Kansas and the University of Maryland are investing heavily in AI literacy and education programs. The latter has allocated $85,000 in seed grants for AI courses as part of a $100 million decade-long AI education initiative.
Meanwhile, the Educational Technology Joint Powers Authority recently issued requests for proposals for AI learning platforms, signaling growing public-sector demand.
For companies like Campus, these shifts represent both opportunity and competition. As universities invest in their own AI ecosystems, private education startups will need to differentiate with speed, innovation, and tangible student outcomes.
