It didn’t start with a business idea. It started with everyday life.
Mathias and I are both fathers. Our wives are both teachers. That means school isn’t an abstract topic for us. It’s the conversation at dinner, it’s the homework that doesn’t get finished, it’s the everyday reality that comes home with us.
In our families, the kids love reading. That’s exactly why we see so clearly how much a great reading experience can achieve. But also how hard it is for many other children to find that access. They’re neither less smart nor lazier than previous generations. They’re simply growing up in a world that has fundamentally changed.
Digital Devices Aren’t a Distraction, They Are Reality
Kids today grow up with tablets, smartphones, and interactive experiences. Their attention is sought from all sides, every single day. Books used to compete with the silence of an afternoon. Now they compete with an entire world of stimuli. This isn’t a criticism of books, quite the opposite, we love books. It’s an honest assessment of the world in which reading is supposed to happen.
At the same time, through our wives’ eyes, we see what’s happening in classrooms. Many children struggle with reading, for very different reasons. Some can’t connect with the texts, some lose focus quickly, and it’s especially apparent with children who didn’t grow up with German as their first language. Children who struggle daily with the language, with the texts, with the feeling of not being able to keep up. As different as these children are, one thing unites them. Reading should be an experience, not an obstacle.
The Idea Was Always There. Now the Technology Is Too
Mathias and I observed these problems for years. The idea of rethinking reading was always there. What was missing was the technology to truly make it happen.
Then came the rapid advances in artificial intelligence. Suddenly it was possible to make texts adaptive, to personalize content experiences, to make reading interactive. And to do so in a way that creates real value without losing what matters most. Understanding, immersion, the experience itself.
We saw the gap. And we decided to close it.
How MichMatz ReadMe Makes Reading an Experience
That’s how MichMatz ReadMe was born. A tool that doesn’t replace reading but enriches it. That meets children where they are. That supports teachers and educators. That makes reading come alive for everyone, whether they still hesitate or already love it. And that shows, from schoolchildren to adults, that reading can be an experience.
We believe that technology can transform education by complementing existing approaches, not replacing them.
That is our why. That is MichMatz.
Michael Schulz and Mathias Würthle, Founders of MichMatz GmbH