Between Classrooms and AI: What happens when a 17-year old rethinks school

Most school internships leave little behind. This one sparked its own AI project and one question that remains: What if young people were allowed to start shaping school themselves, earlier on?

Jan (PANTA) and Arian in the Hamburg PANTA Office

Arian Zawar, student, intern, tinkerer, spent two weeks using our Hamburg office as a launchpad for a journey into the world of artificial intelligence.

He joined discussions with international teams on new product ideas, attended meetings with partners from research and industry, and gained insight into real client projects. But most of all, he did one thing: he started his own project.

The idea: an app that helps students manage their learning more effectively. Of course with AI. It’s designed to explain homework, support vocabulary training, plan study times, and generate clear progress reports for teachers and parents. Not science fiction, but a concrete concept that Arian has already turned into early prototypes using tools like Lovable and Cursor. His pitch deck is ready, initial workflows have been modeled, and he now has a solid understanding of how an MVP works.

At PANTA, we believe young people shouldn’t just be prepared for the future. We must actively empower them. That includes creating real spaces to experiment, especially at the intersection of AI, education, and society. In conversation, Arian shares what drives him, what he’s learned, and how he imagines the school of tomorrow.

What was the most exciting part of your internship at PANTA? What did you learn about AI, startups, or product development?

“The most exciting part was being able to actually build something myself. I wasn’t just observing. I got to work with real tools and developed my own mini-product. It was amazing to see how a simple prompt or a piece of text could turn into something really useful. I also learned how startups think - fast, creatively, and always with a focus on the user.”

How did you come up with the idea to develop an AI-based app for students?

“I noticed that a lot of students, including myself, often feel overwhelmed with homework, planning, and learning in general. That made me wonder: why isn’t there an app that combines everything into one solution, powered by AI, that adapts to you and actually helps, like a coach? That’s how I got the idea for "Studingo" - an app that supports students every day with planning, studying, and practicing."

What exactly should your app be able to do, and who is it for?

“The app is called Studingo. It’s meant to help students learn in a personalized way. You can generate a study plan, get help with homework using AI, automatically create study notes, or practice vocabulary. The app adapts to each student based on their strengths, how well they already know a topic, or when their next test is. The target group is students from around grade 5 onward. Especially from middle school, where things tend to get stressful.”

What tools or methods did you use to bring your idea to life?

“I worked with Lovable, a platform that lets you build your own mini AI apps without having to code everything yourself. I used Canva to design my pitch deck, and I refined my ideas with ChatGPT. I also used real workflow thinking. Asking questions like: what happens after a click? What does the user need right now?This mindset helped me design the app from a user-centered perspective."

What surprised or challenged you during the development process?

“I was surprised how much you can achieve with little technical knowledge if you have good ideas. But it wasn’t always easy. It was tough to decide which features really matter. What do you start with? At first, you want to include everything. I learned that simplicity and focus on the user are key. Less is more, and the user is always the priority.”

If you could imagine the school of the future, what role would AI play in it?

“In the school of the future, AI wouldn’t replace anyone. It would support. It would help every student learn at their own pace. Today, many students fall behind because the system moves too fast for them. The tool explains, asks questions, adapts, and motivates. Teachers, in turn, could focus more on the students themselves, on social skills and emotional support, because AI would take care of corrections and organizational tasks. School would become more personalized, more fair and maybe a little more relaxed.”