Oslo, Norway, May 15, 2019 – Kahoot!, the global learning platform, today announced its acquisition of Poio, the acclaimed learn-to-read app for all children. In record time, Poio has created a unique community in Scandinavia, helping more than 100,000 children to learn to read through play. In June, Kahoot! and Poio will launch the English edition of Poio, and make it available to Kahoot!’s hundreds of millions of users world-wide.
Through the acquisition, Poio will become part of the Kahoot! learning experience, next to the DragonBox family of math apps and school curriculum.
“We’re impressed by how Poio has already helped more than 100,000 children in Scandinavia to learn how to read in an awesome way,” said Åsmund Furuseth, CEO and co-founder of Kahoot!. “In June, we are together launching Poio to our international community of millions of users, empowering kids everywhere to play, learn and find joy in reading.”
In June, we are together launching Poio to our international community of millions of users, empowering kids everywhere to play, learn and find joy in reading.
In 2012, teacher Daniel Senn began researching for what would become Poio, now the most popular learn-to-read app in Scandinavia. The aim of Poio is to help all children learn how to read through the natural process of play. This empowers children to teach themselves how to read, and be in charge of their own learning.
“There is only one goal for Poio, and that is to help as many children as possible to crack the reading code through play,” said Daniel Senn, CEO and founder of Poio. “By teaming up with Kahoot!, we will be able to launch Poio in more languages and with new functionality, bringing the joy of reading to millions of children around the world.”
Father, teacher, and tech expert Daniel Senn quit his job to dedicate all his time to create a better way for children to learn to read through gamification. For Daniel, Poio began as a personal journey as his son was born with a severe hearing problem. Knowing that his son would require extensive assistance to master reading, Daniel and his wife soon realized that the journey to reading mastery had to be fun and enjoyable. And so, Poio was born at the kitchen table of the Senn family.
The goal of the game is to help a troll, named Poio, learn how to read the storybook he has stolen from a group of letter bugs, called Readlings. These characters introduce letters, words and a story in a coherent fantasy world that unravels scene-by-scene. Poio boosts children’s self-esteem, empowering them to master reading at their own pace through play, with positive feedback and exploration as the core experience.
Kahoot! is on a mission to make learning awesome, building the world’s leading learning community by connecting teachers, students, parents and organizations with premium content. Last year, Kahoot! launched the Ignite accelerator program, and the addition of Poio is an important milestone towards building a collection of learning experiences that create value for learners all over the world.
“Mastering reading and math is fundamental for all children to succeed in life. Together with Poio learn-to-read app and Dragonbox math apps, we will make the best learning experiences available for Kahoot!’s hundreds of millions of users around the world, inside and outside the classroom.”, said Eilert Hanoa, Chairman of Kahoot!.
Kahoot!, Poio and DragonBox will present more information at the Kahoot! Company Update in Oslo on June 12, 2019.
For more information, please contact: press@kahoot.com
- Kahoot!, Sean D’Arcy, SVP Head of Marketing: +47 984 05 188 | sean@kahoot.com (Norway)
- Kahoot!, Falguni Bhuta, Head of Communications: +1 (408) 712-3286 | falguni@kahoot.com (International)
- Poio, Daniel Senn: +47 92669010 | daniel@poio.com
About Kahoot!
Kahoot! is a game-based learning platform that makes it easy to create, share and play fun learning games or trivia quizzes in minutes. Kahoot! is used in a variety of settings – in K-12 and university classrooms, corporate offices, social settings, and major sporting and cultural events. Kahoot! is embraced by teachers, loved by students, valued by organizations and harnessed by publishers. In 2018, Kahoot! had over one billion participating players in more than 200 countries. Kahoot! is on a mission to make learning awesome and build the leading learning community in the world that connects its users to premium content. Launched in 2013, the company is headquartered in Norway with offices in the US and the UK. Let’s play!
www.kahoot.com
About Poio
Poio is a game-based learning-to-read app, helping children crack the reading code through play. Founded in 2016, Poio has today helped more than 100,000 children to learn to read. Poio has so far been launched in Norway and Sweden, quickly becoming the #1 learn-to-read app in Scandinavia. In June 2019, Poio will be launched globally through a British English version. The company is headquartered in Oslo, Norway.
www.poio.com