Startup offers free calculators to students

SAN FRANCISCO— Silicon Valley startup Desmos Inc. is going after one of the oldest names in technology, Texas Instruments Inc., in an area not normally associated with cuttingedge innovation: hand-held calculators.

Founded in 2011, Desmos has developed a free graphing calculator program that runs on smartphones and computers, eliminating the need for a separate device.

The downloadable app has won users and the endorsement of the same testing organizations and textbook publishers that approved Texas Instruments products for tests such as the SAT college entrance exam.

Last week, a group called the Smarter Balanced Assessment Consortium gave Desmos its blessing. The organization oversees some standardized testing for middle- and high school students in 15 states, including California, Connecticut and Michigan.

“We think students shouldn’t have to purchase this old technology that predates the Internet,” said Eli Luberoff, the company founder.

Calculators, such as the TI-84, are a staple for most college-bound students in the U.S. They retail for about $100 (U.S.), with fancier models going for more than twice that. According to Desmos, they’re made with old, underpowered technology that’s no match for the capabilities of even a mid-range smartphone.

Their limitations are a good thing, according to Dallas-based Texas Instruments, which debuted its first pocket calculator in 1967. Desmos’s software racks up 300,000 hours of use by students in 146 countries every month, the startup said. While it offers the software free to individuals, it charges organizations, such as publishers that use it, providing revenue.