Christine Janssen is the Founder of Edstutia, an immersive learning platform blending VR, AI, and experiential education. A former entrepreneurship professor turned visionary leader, Christine stepped away from the comfort of academia to build something bold and future-forward. Humans of Fuzia is featuring her because her journey is a powerful example of courage, resilience, and innovation—values our 5 million–strong global community stands for. Her story inspires women, professionals, and changemakers to embrace big ideas, challenge norms, and pursue impact with purpose. At Fuzia, we believe in He for She and She for She, and Christine’s work embodies the spirit of uplifting others through learning and leadership.
Q: How would you describe yourself to our readers?
A: I would say I’m a nonconformist. I like to carve my own path—even when it’s hard. I have a ton of energy, a lot of fire in my belly, and I’m driven by big, challenging goals. That hunger keeps me moving forward. I’m ambitious, passionate, and I love doing things differently.
Q: Tell us about Edstutia and how it began.
A: Before starting Edstutia, I was an entrepreneurship professor. I believed deeply in solving big problems, and higher education offered many opportunities for improvement—especially around learning experiences and integrating emerging technology.
I was introduced to virtual reality before the pandemic, and the moment I put on a VR headset, it blew my mind. I received some university funding to experiment with my students—creating simulations, gathering feedback, and studying the impact. This early exploration became the seed for Edstutia.
During the COVID lockdown, I started building the company while still working full-time as faculty. For a year and a half, I was balancing both roles until I realized that to truly make the impact I envisioned, I had to go all in. I left my stable job and committed fully to Edstutia.
We built an entire virtual campus with different environments designed for real learning—boardrooms for negotiations, amphitheaters for presentations, and more. Over time, we focused heavily on creating meaningful content because VR without purpose is just another space to “hang out.” Today, we’ve integrated AI into our platform to enhance interactive learning even further. It’s no longer VR or AI—it’s VR and AI. And that’s the most exciting part.
Q: Who is your target audience?
A: We’re completely industry agnostic. Our expertise is in business, leadership, and soft skills—and every company, regardless of size or industry, needs these. That’s our lane. We don’t try to be everything to everyone. Instead, we stay focused on where we create the most value.
Q: How do people usually discover Edstutia?
A: LinkedIn is a major platform for us because that’s where our professional audience lives. But beyond that, we actively engage with organizations and associations in the VR, HR, and learning development ecosystems. Conferences, webinars, pilot programs, and thought leadership—these give us direct access to the right people.
Still, there’s a big mindset shift required. Whether in academia or corporate environments, people tend to resist new technology. They need education, reassurance, and help understanding why change matters. A lot of what we do is classic change management—helping people see the value of immersive learning, just as we’re seeing today with AI.
Q: What is the biggest challenge you’ve faced?
A: Without question—the lag in tech adoption. You can lead people to the water, but you can’t make them drink. Many still prefer to “stick with what works” rather than explore emerging technology. And in the last year, as AI exploded, budgets and attention shifted almost entirely toward AI. We had to adapt quickly—integrating AI into our VR platform not because it was trendy, but because it expanded what learning could be.
But yes, the biggest hurdle remains getting people comfortable with change and new technology.
Q: Any short-term goals for the next few months?
A: There’s a lot happening! We’re expanding our AI capabilities—moving from one-to-one interactions to one-to-many and many-to-many interactions with AI-driven avatars. It’s complex but incredibly exciting. We’re also exploring new financial models for AI processing and how to package these services for clients.
Personally, I’m taking an MIT certificate course in applied AI and data science. I’m not becoming a coder, but I want to understand the technology deeply so I can make smarter decisions for Edstutia. Between now and January, it’s full steam ahead.
Q: What message would you like to share with women entrepreneurs and professionals?
A: Entrepreneurship can be tough. You sacrifice time, money, and comfort. But if you believe in what you’re building—if you have data, expertise, and a real value proposition—go for it. Do your homework. Build something that truly helps someone. Surround yourself with advisors and supporters because you can’t do it alone.
We only get one life. I don’t want to look back and think “coulda, shoulda, woulda.” You can lose money and make more. But you can never get time back. Don’t be afraid to take the chance.
As Christine reminds us, “The highs are high and the lows can be low—but if you’re creating real value, go for it. We only get one chance in this life.”
Connect with Christine Janssen:
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinejanssenphd/
Want to be featured?
If you’d like to be featured in the Humans of Fuzia series, email us at fuziatalent@fuzia.com.
