FundsUp spoke with Jungle the Bungle, an educational language app for children aged 2 to 8, about their mission to enhance language skills and make an impact in schools and families. The founders shared their insights on building a premium product, the challenges of entrepreneurship, and balancing app development with securing funding. Currently focused on achieving product-market fit in the Netherlands, they are preparing for further growth, including international expansion and collaboration with investors for knowledge and support.
A Dutch version of this article can be read on the website of our partner: Emerce.
How are you doing?
“We’re doing great! Winning the Dutch Game Award is a fantastic confirmation of our app’s potential. We’re also seeing growing interest from parents, schools, and investors, which gives us a lot of confidence. In December, we received approval for the Rabo Innovation Loan, and our angel investor reinvested. Additionally, we’re in discussions with several interested parties for further investments, allowing us to grow even faster.
With our current extra funding, we’ve expanded our marketing strategy with tests across different channels such as Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube. We can immediately see the impact in our growth, with more subscriptions as a result.”
Can you tell us more about your personal backgrounds and how this project started?
Carolina: “I was raised bilingual by my Spanish mother and Dutch father. When my own children were young, I wanted to pass on a second language to them as well. However, I found that most educational materials were quite boring. My experience at Disney, where storytelling and magic are key, inspired me to create a more engaging and interactive concept. It started with multilingual children’s books, and now kids learn through our songs and language app in a fun and easy way.”
Amber: “I met Carolina while working at DPG Media. She told me about her vision for an impactful app that not only teaches languages but also gives back to underprivileged children. That really resonated with me. With money I borrowed from my family, we further developed the concept. Three years ago, we raised nearly €200,000 through crowdfunding and an angel investor to build the app. After nearly two years of development, the language app launched on March 8, 2024.”
What is the idea behind your app?
“Our goal is to help children learn a second language in a playful way, regardless of their native language. Users can choose between English, Spanish, or Dutch. What makes our app unique is its intuitive approach—kids engage with it naturally and pick up a language effortlessly. It’s a unique blend of gaming and learning.
We are currently working on a new feature: an interactive ‘repeat-after-me parrot’ that encourages children not only to listen but also to speak actively. This helps them master the language better and improve their pronunciation. This feature brings language to life! The app is also a great tool for newcomers in the Netherlands. It has been well received by schools for immigrant children who need to learn Dutch. When a school subscribes for its students, kids can also practice at home.”
How do you involve schools in your product?
“Schools get a free trial period, so they can try the app without any commitments. This has been very effective. Additionally, we’re launching a telemarketing campaign at the end of this month to actively reach out to schools. This will help us onboard even more schools since those we’ve spoken with so far are already convinced of our app’s value.”
What makes your app unique?
“Our app combines education, gaming, and entertainment in a way that appeals to both children and parents. We’ve integrated the magic of storytelling and gamification, so kids learn through play without realizing they’re studying a language. Each continent in the app has its own characters, games, and themes. This way, children learn vocabulary in context, which is an effective and fun way to learn a language.”
Can you give an example of how it works? You log in, and then what?
“When you log in, you start in your own treehouse. You can choose your avatar—a panda, leopard, or hippo. From there, you travel with Amigo, one of our characters, to different parts of the world. Each continent has unique characters like Monito the monkey in Central America or Fanti the elephant in Asia. Kids play games linked to language learning, such as expanding their vocabulary with themes like food and drinks. They earn fruit tokens that they can exchange for rewards, such as items in Amigo’s Place. This keeps them motivated.”
What are the future plans for the app?
“We are continuously expanding the app with new features, such as a challenge mode for children who need extra stimulation. Soon, we will also introduce sentences and word groups, so children learn more than just individual words. Ultimately, we want to further internationalize the app and offer more languages, all while staying true to our mission of combining education with fun.
In the short term, we are focusing on the Netherlands as a test market. Our goal is to have at least 25% of primary schools actively using the app within two years. During this phase, we are testing and learning a lot—Which channels work best? How can we refine our product-market fit?
Once we have a strong foundation, we plan to expand internationally, with the U.S. as our first major step. America is a huge market with great potential. However, we are taking a phased approach—first ensuring our fundamentals are solid.”
Do you have the network and knowledge to take that international step?
“This is our first venture, so we are learning a lot. We have a clear vision and understand that the U.S. market differs from ours. That’s why we are not just looking for investments but also partners with experience in international scaling. The right knowledge is just as important as capital.
We’ve already connected with organizations like Dutch Basecamp and other groups that bridge the gap between the Netherlands and abroad. These collaborations can really help us move forward.”
What are the next steps in your plan?
“We’ve just prepared a major update: the ‘Challenge Mode.’ This new feature makes the app more interactive and encourages children to learn even more actively.
Regarding funding, we are exploring different scenarios. We have already raised part of our target amount of €500,000. This gives us the financial space to continue growing, but if we secure additional funding, we can accelerate our growth significantly.”
How can you make an impact on language education?
“Learning a second language has huge benefits for children. It improves their concentration, problem-solving skills, and makes it easier to learn additional languages later on. There is also a strong need for support for newcomers in the Netherlands. Our platform can make a difference for these children by helping them learn Dutch through play.
Additionally, the age range of 2 to 8 years is crucial for language development. Our platform taps into this and provides a playful and effective way to expose children to multiple languages from an early age.”
What advice would you give to other founders?
“Take risks, but stay realistic. Set clear priorities and stay focused. Surround yourself with a strong network—knowledge and support are just as important as funding. And perhaps most importantly: keep communicating, with your team, investors, and customers.
One key lesson we’ve learned is that sometimes you just need to launch, even if the product doesn’t feel 100% perfect. You can always keep improving, but at some point, you need to get it into the market and gather feedback. We’ve learned to prioritize effectively. As founders, you constantly have to make choices—Where can we have the biggest impact? What is best for the company right now? Teamwork has also been a great learning experience. Open communication is essential—you need to speak up and see things from each other’s perspectives.”
Finally, what motivates you the most on this journey?
“Seeing the impact we have on children and schools is our biggest driving force. The fact that even adult testers can’t stop playing shows how fun and effective the app is. We also strongly believe in the importance of parenting and education, and how technology can enhance both. It’s amazing to see our vision come to life.”
More information for investors about Jungle the Bungle can be found here.