The big EdTech story: It’s still Google, YouTube, not AI Premium

BaSE 2025 reveals widespread EdTech use among students and teachers, but highlights limited structured adoption and AI literacy.

Across ten States, 63% of children from surveyed households and 87% of teachers are current users of EdTech, according to the Bharat Survey for EdTech (BaSE) 2025, released this February by the non-profit organisation Central Square Foundation (CSF). However, only 6% of children and 45% of teachers use specialised EdTech applications, with the majority relying on general-online platforms such as YouTube, WhatsApp and Google.

While about half of EdTech-using children and a majority (over 80%) of EdTech-using teachers report being aware of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI), many still misunderstand the technology, with a significant share mistaking GenAI for a search engine.

The survey collected data from 12,500 children and 2,500 teachers between July 2025 and January 2026 across Gujarat, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Odisha, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Uttarakhand and Uttar Pradesh.

EdTech largely functions as a supplement to formal schooling. The top use cases for children from Classes 1 to 12 in both government and private schools include practice and doubt solving, followed by test preparation and self-learning of new languages or skills. Subject-wise, children most commonly use EdTech for Mathematics, followed by English and Science/Environmental Studies. While YouTube, WhatsApp and Google dominate the digital learning space for children, only 6% of EdTech-using children report using specialised applications such as ePathshala, G-Shala, DIKSHA or Duolingo.

Speaking on the gap in adoption of specialised EdTech applications, Gouri Gupta, Senior Project Director, EdTech at CSF, referred to the earlier BaSE 2023 report and noted that specialised EdTech applications accounted for just 1% of users at the time. In the latest survey, that figure has risen to 6%. “Over the last two years, there has been growth, but it is not yet as significant,” she said. Ms. Gupta added that “there has to be a structured programme and a governance layer to ensure that EdTech tools are downloaded, that users engage with them, and that there is retention. At present, this is happening only at a small scale in India. As EdTech becomes more integrated and institutionalised within government systems, we expect to see a shift.”

Meanwhile, 87% of teachers use EdTech. While specialised EdTech usage among teachers is relatively higher, with 45% reporting use of at least one application DIKSHA, followed by NISHTHA and E-pathshala, online platforms such as YouTube, Google and WhatsApp continue to dominate overall EdTech usage. Among teachers, EdTech is primarily used for communication with students, parents and colleagues, followed by lesson preparation and delivery, self-learning and upskilling, administrative tasks, and creating and conducting assessments. However, Ms. Gupta added that adoption of specialised EdTech applications among teachers as a positive sign.