Deb Mallin sat at her kitchen table in Minneapolis with two books: Traction by Gino Wickman and The Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki. She wrote down a mission statement, some core values, and a mantra: “Children first.” This was the start of Mighty Doodle.

Mighty Doodle is an AI generated “tutor” for 1st through 4th graders to improve upon their reading, writing, and spelling skills. The app uses AI for voice and handwriting recognition to create individualized lessons for the child, ensuring a personal growth strategy. It launched in the Apple App store in October.

Mallin described the weeks since the program launched “like riding the best rocket ship ever.” Currently, Mighty Doodle is only available on iPad but a phone version, both Apple and Android, is expected to launch in early 2025.

Mighty Doodle was chosen by Apple to receive coaching as part of its entrepreneurship camp, which Mallin said played a critical role in getting the program up and running quickly. She started working on the current version in February, but actually, this launch is the culmination of decades of work by Mallin, a literary specialist and child educator who knows the struggle first hand: her youngest son has dyslexia and grew up in a time before iPad apps. Mallin said she hired tutors for him, well aware that not everyone in need of such help could afford the $75 to $150 per hour cost.  

Mighty Doodle puts tools in front of students and educators for $149 per year, she said.   

“It means an easier life for children like my son and an easier life for families everywhere,” Mallin said. “The countless number of children who have been under resourced for so long, it’s their time to shine mighty bright.” 

Early data shows children spending an average of 110 minutes a week on Mighty Doodle. According to Mallin, children who use Mighty Doodle score two to four times better on national standardized te

“I knew it would work,” Mallin said. “To hear from people who are just first getting the tool I wanted for my own son and bringing them hope for their children, that’s been a gift.” 

An unexpected delight, Mallin added, is seeing the program utilized for groups other than her intended audience, like older kids and adults with autism. Mallin said Mighty Doodle has had conversations about potentially expanding to other age groups in the near future. 

 “We really pride ourselves on teaching all people how they learn,” Mallin said.