Benkyo

Gabe and I were classmates in our Foreign Language class for Japanese. We were both struggling. I randomly messaged him one day asking how he studied for it. He told me he built an app. Which was funny, because I had built one too.

We compared notes. His approach and mine were different enough that it made sense to merge them. We both had the same problem and we were both too stubborn to just use Anki, so we built our own thing instead. That shared frustration is basically what became Benkyo.

Benkyo is a spaced repetition language learning app. It uses an SM-2 algorithm with ease-factor tuning, lapse handling, and due-date scheduling. It works offline, syncs to the cloud with conflict resolution, and tracks your progress over time. We built it for Japanese but it works for anything.

It started as two people struggling with the same class and making something out of it. That's still what it is. We use it ourselves. I think that's the part I like most about it.