// startup autopsy

EdTechDR

Dominican Republic's edtech for private schools that already had LMS contracts

distributionSlow Death

Years-long decline before final shutdown · Fatal mistake: Dominican Republic edtech competed against Duolingo, Khan Academy, and MINERD (Ministry of Education) digital programs; 90% smartphone penetration but 60% of devices low-end; private K-12 schools used pre-existing LMS contracts

Founded	2019
Closed	2022
Country	Dominican Republic
Sector	Edtech

// the model, blind

Evaluating only EdTechDR’s profile at its peak — without knowing the outcome — the model ranked Competition as the #1 likely cause. Documented cause: Distribution.

Key Events Timeline

2019

FOUNDING

2021

CRISIS

2022

SHUTDOWN

Full Analysis

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Documented cause

EdTechDR built LMS for Dominican schools. MINERD covered public sector. Private schools had existing contracts. 200-hour migration cost blocked switching.

Lesson

“Dominican Republic edtech must either target the informal adult education market (1.5M adults without secondary completion) or build migration tools that reduce switching cost to under 20 hours.”

Failure anatomy

Collapse type

Slow Death

🐌 LOW

Hype cycle

None

Moat type

Technology

Fatal mistake

Dominican Republic edtech competed against Duolingo, Khan Academy, and MINERD (Ministry of Education) digital programs; 90% smartphone penetration but 60% of devices low-end; private K-12 schools used pre-existing LMS contracts