The Vergecast · Thursday, September 10, 2026
Howdi Partovi, a key figure behind Code.org, is credited with employing startup growth strategies like audience generation and viral marketing to promote computer science education, notably through the 'Hour of Code' initiative. This approach successfully generated widespread enthusiasm among parents and teachers, making coding a household concept in the US.
“And he used the strategies that, you know, you normally use in startups, like audience generation and viral marketing, but he applied it to education.”
“And so he comes up with the idea for this thing, an hour of code.”
“And Code.org really makes coding a household word in the United States.”