Catching up with Shreyash Seth from IIT Bombay at the office turned into a grounded discussion around product, growth, and where Edzy is headed. He dropped by to understand the product more closely, and the conversation stayed practical from the start. There was no need to frame context excessively. The discussion moved quickly into what exists, what is being tested, and what could be tightened. From an SEO lens this aligns with product management conversations, edtech growth, and startup product strategy, but in the moment it felt like a focused working session rather than a formal meeting.
A large part of the conversation revolved around gamification and how it can be used without becoming a distraction. The emphasis stayed on intent rather than mechanics. Gamification, when done well, reinforces behavior rather than masking weak value. We talked about where it adds clarity and where it risks adding noise. That distinction is often blurred in early products, especially in education. The exchange was useful because it did not assume novelty as value. It treated engagement as something to be earned through structure and feedback, not through surface-level incentives.
Product growth came up naturally as an extension of this. The focus was less on acquisition tactics and more on retention signals. What keeps users returning, what creates habit, and what quietly fails without obvious metrics attached. These questions matter more early on, when scale can hide problems rather than solve them. The conversation stayed anchored in product reality, not dashboards alone. That alignment made the insights actionable rather than aspirational.
What made the interaction smoother was the shared familiarity of coming from the same college. Being from IIT Bombay lowered the barrier to directness. There was an unspoken understanding of how conversations are framed, how disagreement is handled, and how quickly one can move past surface explanations. That familiarity does not guarantee alignment, but it reduces friction. It allows time to be spent on substance rather than calibration. These shared reference points often make introductions more efficient and discussions more honest.
Writing this down is a way of acknowledging the value of such exchanges. They do not produce immediate outcomes, but they sharpen thinking. Having someone with product and growth experience step into the workspace and engage critically helps stress-test assumptions. The familiarity helped, but the value came from the clarity of thought brought into the room. It was a good use of time, and it leaves the product conversation slightly more focused than it was before.