The EdTech startup, founded by Vítor Clara, Francisco Redondo, Margarida Nunes and André Azeredo Rodrigues, four students at Instituto Superior Técnico, Universidade de Lisboa, has already received three awards – two of which are international. The company, part of the Junior Enterprises at Técnico (JUNITEC), has developed Dyscovery, an artificial intelligence-based app designed to support children with dyslexia in learning to read and write, providing complementary support for students, teachers and families.
According to data from the Portuguese Dyslexia Association, it is estimated that this neurobiological condition affects around 120,000 children in Portugal. Dyscovery gives children with dyslexia the opportunity to practise reading through a guided exercise (much like ‘reading karaoke’), before providing feedback on their performance and suggesting corrections and tips for both reading and writing.
The platform was developed by Vítor Clara (Master’s Programme in Energy Engineering and Management), Francisco Redondo (Master’s Programme in Computer Science and Engineering), Margarida Nunes (Master’s Programme in Biomedical Engineering) and André Rodrigues (Undergraduate Programme in Aerospace Engineering).
As part of the MIT €100K Portugal Entrepreneurship Competition, an international competition promoted by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dyscovery received the People’s Choice Award, selected through a public vote among approximately 10 finalist startups. In this edition of the competition, Técnico was also represented by the FlashGuard startup.
At Hult Prize 2026, an annual global competition that challenges university teams to develop startups with social impact, Dyscovery won the Portuguese national round. This achievement secures the team’s place in the international stage of the competition, culminating in a final where the top teams compete for $1 million in funding.
At the national level, EdTech won first place in the Social Innovation category at ARRISCA C, a business ideas competition promoted by the University of Coimbra.
The project is now in its second experimental phase, with pilot initiatives in five schools across the Lisbon, Coimbra, and Leiria regions, involving over 100 students actively participating in the trials.
In the media: “Adeus, dislexia: eles criaram uma app que é um companheiro de leitura personalizado” (Público)
