This article first appeared in Digital Edge, The Edge Malaysia Weekly on January 27, 2025 - February 2, 2025

Modern classrooms, while still reliant on traditional blackboards and whiteboards, have seen introductions to new educational technologies, such as projectors and smartboards, but new innovations are transforming the learning experiences for students.

One such innovation is Assemblr EDU, a component of the Assemblr Studio, which lets educators use augmented reality (AR) and 3D technology to help teach students. The Indonesian start-up has been piloting its platform in Malaysia, thanks to investments from Ficus Capital, a shariah-compliant venture capital firm based in Kuala Lumpur.

Assemblr’s co-founder and CEO, Hasbi Asyadiq, who has 12 years of experience in the 3D technology industry, saw the potential of visualisation technology in education. However, he also identified significant technical barriers preventing widespread adoption.

Many teachers lack the skills needed to create immersive technologies. Even those with some 3D modelling expertise face additional challenges such as making the models engaging, integrating subprogramming elements and understanding user interfaces and software development.

Recognising these challenges, Hasbi was inspired to create Assemblr EDU — a user-friendly platform designed to empower teachers with the tools to create lessons enriched with interactive visualisers, making advanced technology more accessible and practical for education.

“We want to simplify hassles on the technical side so users don’t have to understand how to create 3D models, animations and programming because what matters the most to them is their content and projects,” says Hasbi.

“The process of enabling people to create visualisations and immersive interactive content is the core of Assemblr EDU and that’s why AR and 3D are one of its outputs.”

Assemblr EDU is a no-code platform akin to Canva, with drag-and-drop functionality to add 3D models and AR activities but with the purpose of providing an immersive environment for each lesson.

It allows teachers to customise lesson plans based on the needs of their students. The platform has thousands of 3D assets for use but teachers are able to upload their own models where seen fit.

Students are then able to interact with the 3D and AR models during classes, with the 3D models giving them a clearer understanding of certain topics through visuals and the latter for a deeper understanding through kinaesthetic experiences.

Subjects like biology, where students are required to dissect complicated internal diagrams, will then be able to be taught with more dimensions and layers to cultivate a student’s understanding of the subject.

For example, a diagram of an eyeball shown through a 3D model will look at the cross section of the organ in a dynamic way by peeling back the layers instead of looking at a flat 2D diagram.

A holographic AR of the 3D can also be projected for students to be more hands on and engaged with the lesson.

“This also helps save a lot of time in terms of preparing the learning materials, so you don’t have to create slides and look for references here and there. Everything can be aligned with the curriculum,” Hasbi adds.

The price of Assemblr starts from US$2.99 (RM13.46) a month for individual educators, with other plans available for schools.

When Hasbi founded Assemblr EDU, he wanted it to be an inclusive platform for all teachers, with a particular focus on extending accessibility to schools in rural areas and underserved communities.

While technology has been maturing in both Indonesia and in the world, rural communities might still find it difficult to obtain newer devices, leaving them a step behind developed cities. Hasbi highlights that while 98% of Indonesia’s islands are connected to the internet, the issue lies in unstable connection speeds, which Assemblr aims to address by adhering to its principle of accessibility.

“Assemblr does not require you to have a tablet or phone. It can be used with just a laptop and then content can be shared through a projector,” he shares.

“We are also aiming to make Assemblr EDU available on low-spec devices for all users to access its content [even without access to higher-end devices].”

In addition, an offline version of Assemblr is in the works where teachers can download pre-existing files and create lesson content without an internet connection. This version will be compatible with both Windows and Mac systems.

The feedback given from schools in rural communities has been relatively positive as digitalisation in rural areas is of much excitement and motivation for students, Hasbi shares.

Currently, Assemblr EDU is undergoing a pilot run with more than 150 teachers from rural areas in Indonesia, Sabah and Papua Island. So far, the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with teachers expressing enthusiasm about the platform.

As an Indonesian-based company, Assemblr’s largest user base is in Indonesia, with Malaysia accounting for just 3.61% of its users. In 2022, Ficus Capital, Assemblr’s backer, invested US$400,000 to support its expansion in Malaysia.

Ficus Capital recognised Assemblr’s potential, citing its unique functionality and user-friendly interface comparable to Canva. “We want to see how we can help Assemblr to actually utilise [its potential] across Southeast Asia and we see it becoming a bigger [game changer] in the 3D and AR sector,” says Abdullah Hidayat Mohamad, co-founder and managing partner of Ficus Capital.

Assemblr EDU has already found use cases in Malaysia and Ficus Capital will be helping Assemblr expand its Malaysian activities, says Abdullah.

“We have already established a Malaysian entity called Assemblr Studios Sdn Bhd and are duplicating the activities of Assemblr Indonesia. We are getting a bit of traction from educational institutions and are in talks with several interested parties that are looking to work with Assemblr EDU,” he says.

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