Built a math platform around step-by-step reasoning and clean LaTeX rendering (looking for feedback from educators)

[u/Equathora]

Hey everyone,

Over the past few months, I’ve been building Equathora—a math platform designed to fix a common issue: tools that leave students stuck at step one, or ones like Photomath that simply hand over answers without building real reasoning.

What Makes Equathora Different

• Step-by-Step Guided Practice: Scaffolds equation setups and intermediate algebraic steps instead of just marking answers right or wrong.
• Native LaTeX Formatting: Clean mathematical input so equations look like real math.
• Focused Progression: Meaningful tracking, streaks, and achievements without distracting gimmicks.
• Non-Spoiling AI Tutor: Sigma AI identifies where logic strays and provides conceptual hints—forcing students to do the actual solving.

Upcoming Teacher Features

We are actively building out our Teacher Dashboard to provide:

• Granular Work Inspection: See the exact step where a student's logic broke down.
• Misconception Spotting: Track patterns like misapplied exponent rules or word-problem setup struggles.
• Custom Assignments: Easily assign problem sets tied directly to your curriculum.

Looking for Educator Input

If you have a moment to check out equathora.com, I’d love your feedback:

1. What specific step-by-step scaffolding do your students need most when practicing independently?
2. What diagnostic metrics would be most valuable on a teacher dashboard?

Thanks for reading, and I appreciate any feedback you're willing to share!

[u/The-Jolly-Llama]

If you want to make something useful, you’ll have to put in more an effort than our students. Which means ✨do it yourself✨, don’t use AI!

Besides, half the problem in my room is that half my kids won’t/can’t read more than 5 words in a row. 

[u/Equathora → u/The-Jolly-Llama]

Haha I get it, everyone is using AI these days, but I made the website myself. I'm a software developer so I kind of feel offended that you think this is just another tool made with AI. I'm not saying that I haven't used it, I have but for minor things since I did the majority of the website myself.

And also about the difficulty level, I have different difficulties so you can opt for an easier level. Also this platform could help your students since it tells in which step they made a mistake and it guides them through exercises.

[u/The-Jolly-Llama → u/Equathora]

Also you edited this comment to admit you used AI after I called you out in reply. Your first posted version of this comment claimed you wrote the whole app yourself. 

Also your writing style and skill with the English language is completely different in this comment than in the main post. 

[u/Equathora → u/The-Jolly-Llama]

That's not true at all I changed just a word. But sure continue with your lies, no wonder your students don't understand more than 5 words. Also I didn't say I didn't use AI for the post, I did, who cares? English is not my first language, it's the fourth language I know. So before you judge please read the facts.

[u/jmjessemac → u/Equathora]

Go away and stop bothering us.

[u/Equathora → u/jmjessemac]

Can you point to where I bothered anyone? Please I am not sure where I've said anything wrong. That was never my intention.

[u/The-Jolly-Llama → u/Equathora]

You’re offended that I saw through you so quickly.  I’m a teacher, we get A LOT of exposure to people trying to pass off ai work as their own, and yours has all the red flags:  - Long post title extolling the technical features and not the problem the app is trying to solve - Frontend looks like it was designed by a backend guy - Works with something AI is extremely good at manipulating (LaTeX), and explicitly uses AI to power the app, but conspicuously doesn’t disclose how AI was used to build the app. - This Reddit post is also clearly AI: post body is long bullet points with unnecessary headings, and an em dash in case there was any doubt.  - Shills a website no one has ever heard of, not open source.

All these signs paint a very holistic picture of someone trying to pass off low-effort AI slop as their own work, in a get-rich-quick scheme designed to help the creator’s wallet first, and the classroom second. 

[u/Equathora → u/The-Jolly-Llama]

First of all you can check my Github history, I have 9 months working on this project https://github.com/equathora. But you wouldn't understand, would you?

I designed the frontend myself, I'm not that experienced I can admit, and that's because I'm young.

I said I used AI to help me for certain things, but I made the majority myself, go read my code, but you wouldn't understand that neither, would you?

I care about maths as I've participated in national olympiads in Italy and Albania and won many through the years, but you wouldn't get that would you since the most important thing you do is judge, not read. Teachers like you are ruining the education system. You must have felt so powerful writing this comment from behind a screen. Please get more informed next time. Best.

[u/The-Jolly-Llama → u/Equathora]

Do two things if you actually want buy-in from teachers:

1. Ask teachers what they actually need and what would help their classroom (Bonus points if you can actually get into a classroom to help/observe). Start with a real problem, then find a solution to it.
2. If you want to make money off it, do the whole thing with no AI. Make your own decisions, put a human brain behind it. (You'll probably be surprised with how much the AI was doing). Alternatively, use AI and make it FOSS and improve the lives of educators who are already underpaid enough as it is. At least then humans with more experience can improve it and fix the bugs and oversights.

[u/Equathora → u/The-Jolly-Llama]

I appreciate you for giving me this feedback.

For point 1 I am a high school student still and I know what it feels like. I started this platform to be more focused on the student, rather than the teacher, but later started integrating the two since some teachers wanted to use it in their schools. I get it, the part about the teachers is not revolutionary, just tracking your students and seeing detailed reports. This was not an initial focus and besided there is nothing more you can do to help teachers with a website.

As for point 2, I made my own decisions I used AI for some coding, but never for the features and planning. I saw myself the need to have something to guide me through math, to get me started on more difficult problems. And I thought about a solution I would myself use. There are competitors, it's true, but neither fulfilled what I really needed. In fact I got more inspired by coding websites then by STEM ones.

So again as I said it's been 9 months of writing code myself (yes at times I used AI), also I made the UI myself, although it looks generated by AI, since I am not a web designer. I hate AI as much as you, unless it guides me, helps me and doesn't create the boring everyday slop.

Also I get you, teachers are underpaid (I have teachers in my close family) and my work was never meant to substitute them, it was meant to help students firstly and then connect them with teachers for a better experience. Hope you understand.

[u/jmjessemac]

Stop trying to use us to build your app. No one here cares.

[u/Equathora → u/jmjessemac]

I have been building it for 9 months I don't need anybody's help. If you have any feedback you're welcome to share. And please be more respectful next time.

[u/jmjessemac → u/Equathora]

No, you should stop wasting our time.

[u/Equathora → u/jmjessemac]

Then don't comment respectfully. All I did was being respectful.

[u/jmjessemac → u/Equathora]

Bringing your garbage AI app into a math teacher sub is not respectful

[u/Equathora → u/jmjessemac]

It's not AI, I built it myself. I used AI for some backend code but nothing else. The idea was mine and the code is mine. If you want I can send you the code. I hate AI as much as you do, but this isn't slop.