AI-Powered
Speech Assessment
Jeff serves as a strategic advisor and institutional connector for CI Labs — an AI speech and presentation assessment platform with minimal direct competition in the K-12 and IELTS preparation space.
CI Labs on LinkedInIf you run an international school, an IELTS preparation center, or an EdTech distribution business — and you are looking for an AI assessment product with a genuine competitive moat — this page is for you.
Jeff spent 16 years at INTO University Partnerships, one of the world's largest international student recruitment networks, working with institutions across the U.S., Europe, The Middle East and Africa, China, Latin America, and beyond. He has been in thousands of classrooms and counseling sessions. He knows what teachers need and what students struggle with — and he evaluates every product he considers with that lens, not a sales lens.
Critically, Jeff is not an outside observer of the AI education space. He is a founding member of VEDX Solutions Inc. — an immersive AI learning consultancy and deployment company operating across corporate, public and private education, and government sectors. That experience gives him a practitioner's understanding of what AI-powered learning tools actually need to do to earn adoption inside institutions — and what separates genuine innovation from marketing.
What CI Labs Does — and Why It Matters
Most AI language tools focus narrowly on pronunciation. CI Labs takes a fundamentally different approach: it evaluates the full communication performance — structure, fluency, coherence, argumentation, and delivery — and returns structured, rubric-based feedback that mirrors what a skilled human assessor would provide.
For teachers, this means hours of manual assessment time returned to them. For students — particularly those preparing for IELTS Speaking, academic debates, or university admissions interviews — it means immediate, actionable feedback on every practice attempt, not just the ones a teacher has time to review.
Jeff has been actively piloting the platform with real students, including IELTS candidates, and is building his assessment of its performance across different accent profiles and institutional contexts before recommending it to partners in his network.
Platform Highlights
- AI-powered holistic scoring of student speeches, presentations, and debates — not just pronunciation
- Structured, rubric-based feedback delivered instantly — saving teachers hours of manual assessment
- Minimal direct competition in the K-12 and higher ed speech assessment space
- Distinct from pronunciation-only tools (ELSA, Speechling) — CI Labs evaluates the full communication performance
- Designed for IELTS Speaking preparation, classroom debate coaching, and academic presentation skills
- Institutional features in development: batch uploads, LMS integration, and multilingual interface
A Defensible Position in a Crowded Market
The EdTech market is crowded, but most AI language tools compete on pronunciation scoring — a narrow, increasingly commoditized capability. CI Labs occupies a distinct position: holistic speech and presentation assessment for academic and professional contexts. This is a meaningfully different product, and Jeff's initial market analysis suggests minimal direct competition in the K-12 and higher education speech assessment space.
The closest analogues — Kira Talent (video admissions assessment) and InitialView (China-to-U.S. admissions) — serve different use cases and buyer profiles. CI Labs' focus on formative assessment, classroom integration, and exam preparation creates a pathway into institutions that those platforms do not address.
Who Should Be Talking to Jeff About This
International Schools
Schools preparing students for English-medium university admissions, debate competitions, and standardized speaking exams including IELTS and TOEFL.
IELTS & Language Preparation Centers
Tutoring centers and language schools seeking a scalable, data-driven tool to supplement human coaching for the IELTS Speaking component.
University Admissions Programs
Institutions exploring AI-assisted assessment of applicant communication skills as part of a holistic admissions or interview process.
EdTech Distributors & Resellers
Companies with existing relationships in the K-12 or higher education market looking for a differentiated, defensible AI product to add to their portfolio.
Jeff's Role: Advisor, Connector, Market Bridge
Jeff is not a reseller. As a founding member of VEDX Solutions Inc. — an immersive AI learning company — he understands the full deployment lifecycle of AI education tools, from product evaluation through institutional adoption. He tests products personally, evaluates their fit for specific institutional contexts, and makes introductions only when he is confident in both the product and the match. His value is the trust he has built with institutions and educators across multiple markets over 30 years.
Evaluation & Piloting
Jeff actively tests CI Labs with real students — including IELTS candidates — before recommending it to any institution. He does not endorse products he hasn't used.
Institutional Introductions
Jeff's network spans international schools, NZ and Australian institutions, and education consultants across multiple markets. He facilitates warm introductions between CI Labs and qualified institutional buyers.
Market Entry Strategy
Jeff advises on positioning, pricing, and go-to-market approach for specific geographies — particularly markets where he has direct relationships and on-the-ground knowledge.
Feedback Loop
Jeff channels real-world user feedback from students and educators back to the CI Labs team, helping shape the product roadmap for international markets.
"I've been helping a Chinese family friend with IELTS speaking prep and will be running CI Labs with a real Part 2 sample this week. I don't recommend products I haven't used — and I don't make introductions I'm not prepared to stand behind."
Interested in CI Labs for Your Institution?
Tell Jeff about your institution, your student profile, and what you're trying to solve. He'll give you an honest assessment of whether CI Labs is the right fit — and introduce you to the team if it is.