Loreto Kirribilli is a leading K–12 Catholic girls’ school on Sydney’s North Shore, serving over 3,000 students, staff, and families.
Known for academic excellence and innovation, Loreto Kirribilli partnered with Seisma and Microsoft to launch Billi - an AI powered assistant designed to simplify access to school information and deliver personalised, curriculum aligned learning support.
Built on Microsoft Azure and Copilot technologies, Billi has transformed how the community engages with learning, streamlining operations and enhancing equity in education.
The Roadblocks to Smarter Learning
Loreto’s leadership saw the potential of generative AI early on. As Director of Technology and Innovation at Loretto Kirribilli, Jonathon Mascorella explains:
“We wanted to explore what technologies we could bring on board to enhance the student experience - so we decided that we would implement Billi, which is really an extension of our learning management system.”
However, implementing AI in a school setting came with some challenges:
- Fragmented Access: Key information like timetables, curriculum documents, and policies were buried across systems.
- Safe, Personalised Learning: Loreto needed an AI tutor that could generate curriculum-aligned content while maintaining strict privacy and compliance.
- Technical Constraints: Limited APIs required custom scraping and integration to securely access and deliver data.
Jonathon adds: “There was some fine tuning to make sure we were only scraping the information that we specifically wanted to get out of the system. Consultation with content owners was really important to ensure we were maintaining privacy and security.”
The solution also had to be intuitive for all students, regardless of technical skill:
“We wanted students who didn’t have the same technical capabilities to still get the most out of the tools.” Jonathon continued.
Billi in Action: The AI Solution
Seisma delivered a two-pronged AI solution built on Microsoft Azure and Copilot technologies, tackling both information access and personalised learning.
Information Anywhere Bot
This centralised AI assistant allows students, staff, and parents to query school systems in natural language. Whether asking, “What time is Year 10 sport on Friday?” or “Where can I find the Year 7 curriculum?”, users get instant responses directing them to the information required.
- Data Integration: Connects to structured and unstructured data, including calendars, school information, and policies.
- Search Intelligence: Powered by Azure AI Search and Azure OpenAI, delivering context aware results.
- Security: Sensitive data is protected via Azure Key Vault, ensuring only authorised access.
AI Tutor Assistant
This personalised learning companion aligns with school values and regulatory standards.
- Curriculum-Aligned Learning: Uses Azure OpenAI to generate practice tests, quizzes, and study guides from approved content.
- Document Understanding: Azure Document Intelligence interprets past papers and assignments to tailor learning pathways.
- Performance Feedback: Students receive insights into strengths and areas for improvement.
- Safe AI Environment: Built-in guardrails ensure content is appropriate, accurate, and curriculum aligned.
- Data Privacy: Student data is securely stored using Azure Storage with strict access controls.
Matt Clarkin, Seisma’s Microsoft Practice Sales Director, explains:
“The system doesn’t just generate practice questions - it analyses past papers and student responses to identify strengths and areas for development, then builds tailored learning pathways aligned to regulatory standards.”
The Results Speak for Themselves
Since launch, Billi has delivered measurable benefits:
- Streamlined Access: Reduced front desk queries and increased parent self-service. “We’ve seen fewer phone calls and more feedback about what parents want Billi to do,” says Jonathon.
- Equitable Learning Support: The HSC tutor provides safe, personalised support for students of all technical abilities.
- Security and Scalability: Built on Azure, Billi offers robust privacy and flexible integration. “Students are testing boundaries- and the AI is sticking to the guardrails,” Jonathon notes.
On the broader significance or Ai in education:
"AI is here to stay, and students are going to use it - in learning, work or life. Schools need to integrate these tools thoughtfully, preserving the value of our own intellectual contribution," says Jonathon.
Collaboration in Action
The success of Billi was powered by the collaboration between Loreto, Seisma and Microsoft:
- Loreto: Provided educational expertise, defined learning goals and guided curriculum alignment.
- Seisma: Delivered technical development, cloud integration and AI expertise.
- Microsoft: Supplied Copilot and Azure infrastructure, offering secure guardrails and scalable deployment.
Jonathon explains:
"Using Azure meant that we could leverage the customisability and flexibility of the framework in the background to ensure that students had a really clean interface and the capability to deploy a web app that would give them the best experience possible."
Matt adds: "Working closely with Loreto, we identified high-impact use cases and built a solution that could scale and evolve over time. Schools need solutions that are easy to deploy, cost-effective, and secure. Microsoft provides the infrastructure and guardrails to manage sensitive student data while enabling AI-driven learning, and our role was to make sure it all came together smoothly for students and staff."
Billi: A Blueprint for Smarter Learning
Billi proves how AI can drive real educational outcomes in independent schools -without the need for large IT teams. It has transformed how students, staff, and parents interact with school systems, making information easier to access and learning more personalised.
With strong advocacy from Loreto and seamless collaboration between Microsoft and Seisma, the project sets a benchmark for scalable, secure, and curriculum aligned AI in education.
Matt notes: “Schools don’t always have full IT teams. We designed the rollout to be simple and cost effective, so even schools with limited resources could deploy advanced AI tools without disruption.”
Billi is not just a solution for Loreto - it’s a blueprint for how schools can embrace AI to enhance learning, streamline operations, and stay competitive in a rapidly evolving education landscape.
As Jonathon explained:
"Sometimes it’s about developing smaller proof-of-concept projects that get you across the line into a production environment. You test, prove it works, see there’s uptake, and then take the next small step. You don’t need to develop the biggest product from the outset"
Billi demonstrates what’s possible when schools combine innovation, technology, and strong partnerships- creating a smarter, safer and more personalised learning experience for all students.