Maata
Our story
It started with a busy dad. He wanted his kids to talk to him in his mother tongue. But between work, school runs and bedtime, there was never time to teach them. So he built an app, in his own voice.
New Grandparents far away can send their voice
Your home language, in your family’s voice.
Your child learns the words your family really speaks, and hears them from Abuela, Nani, Lola and Halmeoni, not a stranger.
Coming soon to the App Store Our story
At home, there were two languages. His wife speaks a different one. And the grandparents, aunts and uncles all wanted to help. So everyone got a voice.
Grandma records a word in her kitchen, a world away, and sends it by WhatsApp. It plays in tonight’s lesson.
AmmammaNannaAmmaAbuelaLolaHalmeoniDadiYiayia
Then he realised it wasn’t just his family. Immigrant families everywhere want the same thing: kids who can talk with the people they love.
So he added 27 languages. They aren’t perfect. Every family says things its own way. That’s the point. Fix the words, record them your way, and it becomes your family’s course.
For schools
Teacher packs
A teacher records a topic in their own voice and shares one file with every family in the class.
For schools and teachers →And then, schools. Weekend and heritage-language classes can send practice home, so it sounds just like class.
Still simple. Still private.
- No accountsNothing to sign up for.
- No ads, no trackingNot now, not ever.
- Voices stay homeRecordings live on your phone. They never come to us.
How it works
Record once. They hear you every day.
1
Record a word
Tap the mic next to any word and say it the way your family says it. Anyone in the family can, from anywhere.
2
They hear you in every lesson
Short, playful lessons in your voice: hear it, say it out loud, then compare.
3
They play with it
Pick the meaning, build the phrase, match the pairs. Their buddy cheers every right answer.
4
They use it
Little talks: a phone call with grandma, dinner, bedtime. Your child says their part.
5
Then they dance
Every finished lesson is a little party. Five minutes a day is enough.
Buddies from home
An animal from home, in 3D.
18 buddies from around the world: a camel, a panda, a llama, a festival bull. They walk, turn to look at your child, dance and talk along with your voice.
Words families use
27 languages. Enough to chat with grandparents.
About 230 everyday words and phrases in 31 topics, and 15 little conversations: greetings, family, food, feelings, “I’m hungry”, “where’s my ball?”. Add your family’s own words too, or build a course for a language we don’t have yet.
Spanish Español
Mandarin 中文
Cantonese 廣東話
Tagalog Tagalog
Vietnamese Tiếng Việt
Arabic العربية
Hindi हिन्दी
Korean 한국어
Russian Русский
Portuguese Português
French Français
Urdu اردو
Persian فارسی
Bengali বাংলা
Punjabi ਪੰਜਾਬੀ
Gujarati ગુજરાતી
Telugu తెలుగు
Tamil தமிழ்
Polish Polski
Ukrainian Українська
Japanese 日本語
Italian Italiano
German Deutsch
Greek Ελληνικά
Malayalam മലയാളം
Kannada ಕನ್ನಡ
Marathi मराठी
Pricing
Pay once. No subscription, ever.
Free
$0
- The first topic and its Little talk
- 3 of your own family words
- Recording, sending voices and backups — always free
Family unlock
$24.99 one time
- All 31 topics and 15 Little talks
- Unlimited family words and fixes
- Teacher packs
- Shared with your family through Family Sharing
Questions
Parents ask
Do grandparents need to be in the same house?
No. They install Maata free on their own phone, record, and send their voice to you by WhatsApp, Messages or AirDrop. Tap the file and their voice joins your child’s lessons.
What ages is it for?
Mostly 4 to 10. Younger children listen and repeat; older ones also read the script and build phrases.
Our family says some words differently.
Then fix them — tap any word to change how it’s written, and record it your way. Your version is what your child learns.
Does it work on Android or Chromebook?
iPhone and iPad first. A version for Android phones and Chromebooks is planned — schools can join the list.
Why “Maata”?
Maata means “word” in Telugu, and mātā means “mother” in Hindi and Sanskrit — so the name quietly says mother tongue. It started as an app one dad made so his boys could talk with their grandparents.
Where are our recordings kept?
Only on your device. No accounts, no ads, no tracking, and nothing is sent to us. Read our privacy policy.
Coming soon to the App Store
For iPhone and iPad. Follow along on Instagram for the launch, little videos and new languages.
Follow the launch