Tokyo, 12 May, 2026 – Kahoot!, today announced that it has entered an official partnership with UM English Lab., an educational support platform operated by Universal Music LLC Japan, the Japanese subsidiary of Universal Music Group.

Kahoot! has been strengthening its business foundation in the Japanese market through initiatives such as launching localized versions of its web and mobile platforms for Japan in 2021 and opening a new Tokyo office in Minato-ku in October 2024. With over 100 million total participants in the last 12 months, the platform is also now actively used by over 200,000 teachers nationwide, demonstrating rapid adoption across Japanese classrooms.

As Kahoot! continues to establish itself as a daily learning tool in classrooms across Japan. This new partnership with UM English Lab., launched in Japan in March 2025 by Universal Music Japan, represents a new initiative to further deepen students’ interest in English learning.

A unique language learning initiative

UM English Lab. is a project that provides educators nationwide with free original supplementary teaching materials for English education utilizing Universal Music’s extensive catalog of international music. Through this partnership, these engaging music-based educational materials will now be delivered to Japanese classrooms via Kahoot!’s widely adopted platform as interactive, game-based learning content.

By listening to globally popular songs and answering lyric-based questions on smartphones and tablets through the Kahoot! platform, students can engage in active learning while naturally improving their English proficiency and intercultural understanding in an enjoyable way.

Supporting teachers with curriculum aligned content 

Under Japan’s GIGA School Initiative 2.0, the promotion of ICT in education and reduction of teachers’ lesson-preparation workload have become increasingly important priorities. Kahoot! aims to serve as a powerful tool in supporting teachers’ daily lesson planning.

Through this partnership, ready-to-use Kahoot! content developed utilizing UM English Lab.’s expertise and high-quality international music materials will be made available directly on the platform. This eliminates the need for teachers to create teaching materials from scratch, allowing them to simply select content suited to their lesson objectives and implement it in class. As a result, teachers can significantly reduce preparation time while delivering richer and more engaging learning experiences.

Making learning awesome in Japan

Brent Mori, Growth Director for Japan and Korea at Kahoot! says, “Kahoot!’s mission is to make learning awesome. The Kahoot! Japan team are thrilled to partner UM English Lab to support English study through Universal Music’s world-class international music content.Music is one of the most powerful hooks to capture children’s attention and inspire motivation to learn. By bringing UM English Lab.’s high-quality content onto the Kahoot! platform, we believe Kahoot! can help make classrooms across Japan even more vibrant and interactive. We also believe that providing ready-to-use digital teaching materials will significantly reduce lesson-preparation burdens for Japan’s busy educators.”

Shingo Terashima, Manager, International Marketing Strategy Department at Universal Music Japan says,

“UM English Lab. was launched to support teachers in creating lessons where students can experience contemporary English and diverse cultures through international music, and feel that ‘English is fun.’

By partnering with Kahoot!, a platform already widely embraced in Japanese education, we are excited for our music content to reach students in the form of more participatory, game-based learning experiences.

Through Kahoot!’s platform, we aim to maximize the educational potential of music—from fostering non-cognitive skills such as critical thinking and self-expression to improving the four English language competencies—and deliver a new form of English learning.”

Interactive Kahoot! Content Featuring World-Renowned Artists

A variety of interactive Kahoot! content utilizing songs and music videos from globally recognized artists will be provided, enabling students to intuitively learn grammar, listening, pronunciation, and more.  The UM English Lab Kahoots are available for free at the UM English Lab Kahoot! Profile page here.

About UM English Lab.

UM English Lab. is a platform that provides supplementary English educational materials using songs by international artists. By leveraging lyrics and the cultural backgrounds of songs, the platform promotes not only vocabulary and expression acquisition but also cultural understanding and inquiry-based learning. All materials are provided free of charge and are designed for easy classroom implementation by teachers.

About Kahoot!

Kahoot! is a global learning and engagement platform company with the mission to make learning awesome, empowering children, students, and professionals worldwide to reach their full potential. The platform enables anyone to create, share, and host engaging learning sessions with ease. Since its founding in 2013, Kahoot! has grown into a global leader, with billions of cumulative participants across hundreds of millions of sessions in more than 200 countries and regions worldwide. Kahoot! Group also includes Clever, a leading K-12 identity platform used daily by schools, educators, and students globally.

Headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Kahoot! operates offices across the United States, United Kingdom, France, Finland, Australia, Singapore, Japan, Estonia, Denmark, Spain, Poland, and more.

Media Contacts for Kahoot!: 

press@kahoot.com