How Breni, a Nigerian Edtech startup, gained 3,000+ users in 20+ countries with zero ad spend 

If Nigerian tech had a rulebook, Breni didn’t get the memo.

In just three months, the AI-powered learning platform has attracted over 3,000 users across 20+ countries from Nepal (its largest user base) to Russia, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, the UAE, South Africa, Canada, the US, and the UK. Nearly 90% of its users are outside Nigeria, and the startup claims it earned ₦200,000 ($137) in revenue in its first 37 days 

This is happening at a time when Africa’s edtech sector is experiencing both momentum and turbulence. The Nigerian edtech market is now valued at $400 million, up 48% from 2024, and the broader African edtech ecosystem is expected to hit $4.1 billion by 2025. Yet, the continent has seen major shakeups like Edukoya, once celebrated for raising Africa’s largest edtech pre-seed round, shut down in February 2025, and uLesson halved subscription prices in 2024.

But Breni, founded by Abubakar Sadiq Umar and Bilal Abdullahi, has chosen this exact moment to bet on a sector many consider too fragile, too risky, or too early.

And somehow, the risk is paying off.

In this exclusive interview, the co-founder shares the journey behind Breni, why they call themselves “the nobody brothers,” and how they plan to build Nigeria’s first EdTech unicorn.

Q:  If Breni’s journey so far were a movie, what would the title be and why?
 

If Breni’s journey were a movie, I’m thinking “Reverse-Engineering Education.” But that sounds too technical. When it comes to tech, if you’re from the northern part of Nigeria, you’re basically underrepresented. So you can call it “The Nobody Brothers.”

Why? Because even though I’ve been in the tech space for a while and I’m known in the northern part of Nigeria, our ambition has always been global. Our mindset is different. Many startups in the north play it locally; they don’t have that global mindset.

We always wanted to build something global. A product that could be on New York Times Square, a product that top tech companies in the world would want. Not just Nigeria or Africa. Globally.

So “Nobody Brothers” feels right because we literally came out of nowhere. It’s rare to see founders from the north featured on big tech platforms. We came from a place where nobody really knew us, and suddenly we’re here making waves. Even our user base — 80% are from places like the UK, US, Belarus, Nepal, Russia, China. A few months ago nobody knew us. Now, because of our traction, we’re becoming known. 

So it’s like: the nobody brothers disrupting edtech.

Q: You built an app in Northern Nigeria that’s growing faster in Asia than at home. When did it first hit you that Breni was becoming global?

From the start, we’ve always known we were building a global product. We want everyone to have access to the same quality of education regardless of financial background. If you attend an elite school and someone else goes to a low-cost school, the quality is completely different. With Brainy, everyone can access the same quality.

We have a premium tier, but even if you can’t pay, you can learn for free and just see ads. If ads irritate you, you subscribe. That’s how we make money. But the core is removing that geographic and financial restriction.

A venture firm called Next Capital wrote about us and called us the “Duolingo for Everyday Learning.” But unlike Duolingo, we’re not restricted to languages. You can learn anything in any language. We are making learning fun and global.

We are confident we are building the first edtech unicorn from Nigeria. Every unicorn here is fintech. Edtech has none. We want to be the first.

 Q: Why did you bet on education when most founders your age are chasing fintech or AI tools that raise millions faster?

Fintech has impact, but nothing is more satisfying than changing people’s lives through education. Our education system didn’t work for my co-founder or me. There are millions like us. We built Brainy to be inclusive—understanding every learner and personalising courses to their personality and learning style.

We never thought of going back to fintech. Fintech is tough. The licensing alone is a lot. I’ve been part of the founding team for multiple fintechs; I know what it takes. Yes, money flows more in fintech, but that’s not enough reason to leave education.

Q: What did the first 90 days look like from the first line of code to your first thousand users?

We launched Brainy on August 24. We haven’t reached 90 days yet. But one thing we’re lucky to have is complementary skills. I know the tech side deeply, but I focus on business. My co-founder is brilliant technically. Everything we do is smooth with no friction. We have our own project management tool, we send each other updates constantly, and the work just flows.

We’ve been featured on TechPoint, Daily Trust, TechParley, Condia, and over 10 news platforms. Even DW reached out. Everything has happened organically because we’re solving a real problem.

When people started using Brainy in Nepal, it felt like validation. And funny enough, we are only on Android. The iOS app drops soon. Research shows 80% of mobile app spending comes from iOS users, and we get requests every day asking for the iOS version. We haven’t even started marketing.

Q: How did you attract users in so many countries without marketing spend?

We got users from Product Hunt, from our social media, and mostly from word of mouth. If you find an app useful, you tell someone. That’s how it spreads.

People use Brainy to prepare for Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA) exams and to learn with their PDFs and everything. Someone in the US even called me angrily because our server maintenance made him lose his streak—he had been active daily for 30 days. He also showed me his Duolingo streak of 365 days. People really care about streaks and leaderboards. That psychology works.

We also have Brainy Schools, where teachers can manage students, assign courses, and monitor leaderboards. Everything is gamified, fun, and personalised.

If TechPoint writes about us, five other newspapers pick it up. That’s word of mouth. People spread it because they find it useful. The hardest thing isn’t getting someone to download your app. It’s getting them to use it every single day.

We have paid subscribers. None of them removes their cards. When the subscription renews, they stay. Our pricing is based on location: Nigeria pays less, and the US pays more. When we started, it was ₦999 ($0.69) monthly. With the cost of LLM APIs, we increased it to ₦2,999 ($2.07). US users pay between $7 and $9. UAE users pay $4.99. It depends on the region.

We also have a family plan. A parent from the UK subscribed for his children because he didn’t want them spending all their time on TikTok.

Q: What was the toughest moment in building Breni so far?

The toughest moment so far? Apple. We were supposed to be on iOS last month, but the back-and-forth with Apple was crazy. Cards, verification, requirements, and weeks of going in circles. We finally resolved it.

We’ve not raised a dollar; everything so far has been from our pockets. But now we’re in conversation with five VC firms and some angel investors, such as Ventures Platform, Resilience17, Askia Investments, NEMEX, and LevelUp Inc. We’re grateful. Getting a VC interested already means a lot to us.

Q: How much are you hoping to raise and what’s the very first thing you’d fix or scale?

We’re raising $500,000. The first thing we’ll do is strengthen our technology infrastructure, hire world-class talent, scale marketing globally, and form strategic partnerships. We already have traction. Brainy is a money-making machine that also makes an impact.

Q:  In three years, when people mention Breni, what do you want that name to mean?

In three years, when people mention Brainy, I want the name to mean impact. A household name. A social learning platform where you can add friends, compete, learn anything, and enjoy the process. Learning should be fun, exciting, and personalised, not boring like the old system.

Q: What’s your competitive edge

Our unique edge? Brainy works for everyone—kids, students, adults, and professionals. No restrictions on language. No restrictions on what you can learn. Unlike most edtech apps that simply digitize classroom lectures, we’re building personalized, AI-generated learning. A tailor-made suit for every learner.