To understand what teachers and students experience every day, we decided to live it alongside them. This fall, every employee, from engineers to designers to Sal Khan himself, was rostered into Khan Academy Unified—a company-wide initiative that transformed all of us into teachers and students to experience the reimagined Khan Academy firsthand. 

Seeing Khan Academy through teachers’ and students’ eyes

Dozens of us created classes and assigned work. Hundreds more logged in as learners, tackling grammar, biology, and pre-calculus—some for the first time in decades. (Let’s just say a few of us were humbled by algebra.)

“This idea has been a long time dream of Sal’s and mine,” said Vicki Zubovic, Khan Academy’s Chief External Relations Officer. “It’s been transformational for our team. Working through assignments gives me an even deeper empathy for students—learning is hard work! I’m excited that we’re building a more engaging experience that also keeps our eyes on the prize: student learning.”

Preparing for a reimagined Khan Academy for districts

We took on Khan Academy Unified to prepare for what’s next—a reimagined Khan Academy for district partners launching in 2026’s back-to-school season. This new experience was created based on what schools like yours told us they needed most. Over the past year, we’ve been rethinking how our platform motivates students, supports teachers, and gives school and district leaders clearer insight into progress. The goal? A classroom experience that works for everyone—one that’s smarter, smoother, and (we hope!) a lot more fun.

If you’d like to see what the reimagined Khan Academy looks like for our district partners, you can sign up for a first-look webinar on November 10 or request a demo.

For years, motivated students have used Khan Academy to reach big goals. Now, using insight from teachers and powered by smarter AI, we’re building on that legacy to help every student in every classroom feel that same motivation and momentum.

Listening first, then learning alongside classrooms

This work began how it should’ve—by listening. As the reimagined Khan Academy is piloted in districts across the U.S. and within our own company through Khan Academy Unified, feedback from teachers and district leaders will continue to guide every change we make. Our own experience doesn’t replace classroom feedback—it helps us understand it more deeply so we can respond faster.

Many of us had used Khan Academy before—after all, it’s hard to work here and not love what we make. But this time feels different. Instead of choosing what to work on ourselves, we were rostered into classes with assignments. Having a “teacher” guide the experience made it feel more authentic and, honestly, more motivating. Suddenly, we weren’t just exploring the product; we were getting a small taste of what it’s like to live the classroom experience the way you do every day.

Over the last six weeks, our team has clocked more than 70,000 learning minutes and has leveled up on nearly 12,000 skills. 

Khan Academy Unified students have achieved:

70,000 learning minutes and 12,000 skills leveled up

Improving the experience, together

Experiencing Khan Academy this way—complete with assignments, deadlines, and feedback—helped us see the platform through your eyes. It’s not just an experiment in learning; it’s a way to build empathy and make the product better for you, your teachers, your learners, and the millions more around the world who rely on it to help them learn.

After just a few weeks in Khan Academy Unified, our teams have learned a lot, both in the courses themselves and by trying to understand how Khan’s  users experience what we’ve made. For example, employees and teachers in some of our pilot schools wanted more actionable next-steps after our AI teaching assistant highlighted some of the skills that students were struggling with. Within weeks, our product team built a feature that let teachers assign targeted AI tutoring to help students practice those skills.

How it’s changing the way we work

Because of Khan Academy Unified, every Khan Academy department has a new insight on learning, and it’s already changing how we work. Our conversations sound different now—they’re more grounded in how decisions ripple through classrooms. We’re slowing down where it matters, speeding up where it helps, and collaborating in ways that keep teachers and students at the center of learning.

Nearly all of us have been part of a classroom at some point—as students, teachers, or even school and district leaders. But stepping into the experience of a “school district” together brought those perspectives into sharper focus for us. It gave us a renewed appreciation for teachers’ and leaders’ expertise. It also reminded us of what classrooms feel like day to day—and how we can better support the people teaching and learning inside of them.

What it means for your schools