Joyz
Joyz is a Tokyo-based EdTech company that develops TerraTalk, an AI-powered cloud application for English conversation practice featuring proprietary phoneme-level pronunciation evaluation. It serves K-12 schools, cram schools, universities, boards of education, and corporate training clients across Japan, with 800+ institutional deployments and 128 municipalities, plus global consumer reach through iOS and Android apps.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded2014
- HeadquartersTokyo, Japan
- Headcount11–50
- GTM typeB2B and B2C
- OfferingSoftware
What Joyz does
Joyz Inc. (ジョイズ株式会社) is a Tokyo-based EdTech company founded in October 2014 by Yoshiyuki Kakihara that builds AI-powered English conversation learning technology under the TerraTalk brand. The company's core product is a cloud-based application combining voice-based chatbot conversations with a proprietary phoneme-level pronunciation and speaking evaluation engine, an AI weakness identification system, and content spanning 100+ scenarios from exam preparation to business English. Joyz serves individual learners via iOS and Android apps under a freemium model (premium at ¥1,950/month) and institutional customers including K-12 schools, cram schools, universities, prefectural boards of education, and corporate training departments through subscription licensing. The company also operates two B2B/developer channels: TerraTalk Connect, a platform enabling publishers such as Kirihara Shoten to digitize existing textbooks into AI conversation learning content, and LINGOS, a usage-based cloud API exposing TerraTalk's pronunciation analysis, chatbot conversation, and speaking evaluation engines to third-party e-learning platforms.
The technology stack is built in Python, C++, Swift, Java, and JavaScript on Django and Backbone.js, deployed on Heroku and AWS, with a dedicated joint research partnership with the University of Tokyo's Arakawa/Koyama Lab on speech synthesis for foreign language training. Joyz has accumulated approximately 800,000 cumulative users across 136 countries via the consumer app and reports adoption by 128 Japanese municipalities and 800+ institutions as of the most recent disclosed milestones. The company is venture-backed with approximately ¥350 million (~$2.3M USD) raised across a 2015 seed round from Incubate Fund and a December 2017 round from a syndicate including YJ Capital, SMBC Venture Capital, Mizuho Capital, Venture Lab Investment, and Incubate Fund. No subsequent funding rounds have been disclosed through 2024, and the company operates with a headcount in the 11-50 range from headquarters in Minato-ku, Tokyo and a regional office in Osaka.
Revenue mechanics span five streams: consumer subscription (¥1,950/month premium tier), institutional B2B subscription licensing with volume and school-entity discounts, TerraTalk Connect platform licensing for publisher partners, LINGOS API usage-based fees, and inbound tourism and consulting services for local governments. The go-to-market combines direct institutional sales, app-store-based consumer acquisition, education trade show presence (EDIX), and free online seminars featuring education board officials sharing implementation case studies. Notable deployments include Shoin Middle/High School (600 students, reported ~10% improvement in external English exam pass rates), Nittaidai Kashiwa High School (1,100 students, 1.9x Eiken pass rate increase), Osaka University, and Chiba Prefecture Board of Education (120-teacher training program).
Joyz firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Joyz
- Legal name
- ジョイズ株式会社
- Website
- https://joyz.co.jp
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 2014
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 11–50 employees
- Short description
- Joyz is a Tokyo-based EdTech company that develops TerraTalk, an AI-powered cloud application for English conversation practice featuring proprietary phoneme-level pronunciation evaluation. It serves K-12 schools, cram schools, universities, boards of education, and corporate training clients across Japan, with 800+ institutional deployments and 128 municipalities, plus global consumer reach through iOS and Android apps.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Joyz industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Language Learning Software
- NAICS
- Language Schools (611630), Business Schools and Computer and Management Training (6114)
- SIC
- Services-Computer Programming Services (7371)
- akta.pro primary industry
- AI-Powered Language Tutors, Chatbots & Speaking Practice Tools (EDAFAOAC)
- akta.pro secondary industries
- Online Language Learning Platforms (Self-Paced) (EDAMAFAC), Accent Reduction, Pronunciation & Fluency Coaching (EDAMAFAJ), General Language Tutoring (Conversation & Fluency) (EDANACAA), Conversational NLP & Dialogue Management (chatbots, agents) (HDAAADAF)
Keywords
Where Joyz is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Tokyo
- HQ country
- Japan
- HQ region
- Asia
Offices2 records
Markets served
Joyz business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B and B2C
- Offering type
- Software
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- TerraTalk Individual Subscription: Consumer subscription model offering AI English conversation practice through mobile apps. Free tier available; premium paid tier provides full course access.
- TerraTalk Institutional/B2B Licensing: Monthly subscription licensing for schools, cram schools, and corporate training departments. Volume discounts and school-entity discounts available. Includes admin dashboard for tracking student progress.
- TerraTalk Connect Platform Licensing: Platform licensing for publishers and educational content companies to digitize existing textbooks into AI-powered English learning materials. Joint development model with content partners like Kirihara Shoten.
- LINGOS API Services: Usage-based API pricing for embedding TerraTalk's AI English technology into third-party applications. Pay-per-use model allowing small PoC to full-scale deployment.
- Inbound Support Services: Consulting, content provision, workshop delivery, and lectures for local governments and businesses seeking inbound tourism English training.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Freemium | Monthly | Individual Consumer Plan - Free tier with premium upgrade |
| Subscription | Monthly | Institutional/Enterprise Plan |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels5 records
Joyz product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Joyz develops and operates TerraTalk, a cloud-based AI English conversation learning application featuring a proprietary pronunciation and speech analysis engine that evaluates speaking performance at the phoneme level. The platform serves both individual learners via mobile apps and educational institutions (schools, cram schools, universities, corporate training) via institutional licensing, with supplementary products including TerraTalk Connect (textbook digitization platform) and LINGOS (API service).
Product overview
Joyz operates TerraTalk as a unified AI English learning ecosystem with two main customer-facing products: TerraTalk for Educators (a cloud application serving schools and educational institutions from elementary school through professional training) and TerraTalk for private tutoring and English conversation schools. Supporting these, TerraTalk Connect is a B2B platform enabling publishers and educational companies to digitize existing textbooks into AI-powered English learning content. LINGOS provides the underlying cloud-based API service that makes Joyz's AI capabilities (pronunciation analysis, conversation engines, chatbots) available to other companies on a usage-based model. The core TerraTalk product serves individual learners directly as well as through institutional deployments.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- TerraTalk (テラトーク): AI-powered English conversation learning cloud application for educational institutions and individuals, offering speaking-focused four-skill exercises with pronunciation and speech analysis engines.
- LINGOS (リンゴース)
- TerraTalk Connect (テラトークコネクト)
Products and services
- TerraTalk for Educators AI-powered cloud English learning application for educational institutions from elementary school to professional training. Features voice-based chatbot conversations, proprietary pronunciation and speech analysis engine, speaking-centered 4-skill exercises, and exam preparation tools including mock interview practice.
- TerraTalk Connect AI English conversation learning platform enabling publishers and educational companies to digitize existing textbooks and materials into AI-powered English learning content with speaking practice capabilities.
- LINGOS API Cloud-based API service for education and e-learning companies providing pronunciation and grammar analysis engines, chatbot conversation lesson functionality, and other AI capabilities developed through TerraTalk, available on a usage-based pricing model.
- TerraTalk 塾・英会話教室向けサービス (Private Tutoring and English Conversation Schools) TerraTalk service targeting private tutoring schools and English conversation schools, offering AI-powered speaking practice and English proficiency tools for after-school learning centers.
Quantifiable outcome
- Shoin Middle/High School: 10% improvement in external English exam pass rates after TerraTalk implementation for 600 students
- +4 more outcomes
Companies that use Joyz
Customer profileNamed customers10 records
Segments4 records
Ideal customer profiles5 records
Joyz technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed Yes
API detail
- Has API
- Yes
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability8 records
Feature6 records
Joyz partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
Five partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.
- 株式会社湘南ゼミナール (Shonan Seminar)coreFirst CEFR-compliant elementary school AI English textbook developed jointly. Shonan Seminar implemented the course for their elementary school students as part of exam preparation curriculum, marking first deployment of CEFR-aligned AI content in Japanese cram school market.
- 株式会社桐原書店 (Kirihara Shoten)coreJoint development of AI-powered English learning content integrated with Kirihara Shoten's 'FACTBOOK' English grammar textbook series. First in Japan to digitize existing textbook content into AI conversation learning materials. Course planned for April 2019 release.
- 東京大学 猿渡・小山研究室 (University of Tokyo - Arakawa/Koyama Lab)coreJoint research partnership with University of Tokyo's Graduate School of Information Science and Technology. Combining Joyz's learning data and NLP expertise with Professor Takamichi's speech synthesis research to develop effective foreign language training methods focused on pronunciation and intonation.
- トライオン株式会社 (Tryon Co., Ltd.)minorCollaboration to develop AI-powered analysis engine for optimizing English learning. Combined TerraTalk's AI conversation technology with Tryon's 'TORAIZ' one-year English mastery program's expertise to create personalized learning evaluation and monitoring capabilities.
- 株式会社ステージライン (Stage Line)minorJoint development of enterprise training program combining Stage Line's business English curriculum with TerraTalk's AI conversation technology. Target customers include major manufacturers with overseas expansion needs.
Scale indicators9 records
Recent moves7 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Joyz competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Engoo: Online English conversation service very popular in Japan offering unlimited lessons with native speakers; competes with TerraTalk for the same Japanese learner segment seeking speaking practice, with a different (human-tutor) delivery model.
- NativeCamp: Japan-based online English conversation platform with unlimited lesson subscriptions; directly competes with TerraTalk's consumer speaking practice offering, though it relies on human tutors rather than AI.
- RareJob: Online English tutoring service listed in Japan, focused on practical English conversation with Filipino instructors; comparable to Joyz on target customer (Japanese English learners) and outcome (speaking fluency).
- Bizmates: Business English conversation platform targeting Japanese working professionals; overlaps with Joyz's corporate training and business English use cases, though delivered via human instructors.
- Speak: AI-powered English speaking practice app (Korean-founded, expanding globally); highly comparable to TerraTalk in its core AI-conversation-and-pronunciation-feedback model, with stronger venture funding and global brand.
Emerging players
- Elsa Speak: AI-driven English pronunciation app with phoneme-level feedback and accent analysis; overlaps with TerraTalk's core technology proposition and could be an emerging competitor in the Japanese market.
- Cake: Short-clip based English learning mobile app popular in Japan and Korea; comparable in targeting Japanese consumers for practical English, but uses video content rather than AI conversational practice.
- Speechace: Speech recognition and pronunciation scoring API for language learning; directly comparable to Joyz's LINGOS API offering, providing third-party developers access to pronunciation evaluation technology.
Broad incumbents
- Duolingo: Global language learning platform with AI features and a Japanese offering; a broad incumbent with much larger user base and capital, but lacking TerraTalk's deep Japanese EFL-specific phoneme tuning and institutional B2B depth.
- ECC (ECC外语教育): One of Japan's largest language school chains offering English conversation courses to individuals and corporate clients; represents a broad incumbent that could adopt or compete with AI-driven alternatives like TerraTalk.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks6 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Joyz social profiles
Digital presenceJoyz financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Joyz leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Joyz funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds3 records
Investors5 records
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Joyz M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Joyz
What does Joyz do?
Joyz develops and operates TerraTalk, a cloud-based AI English conversation learning application featuring a proprietary pronunciation and speech analysis engine that evaluates speaking performance at the phoneme level. The platform serves both individual learners via mobile apps and educational institutions (schools, cram schools, universities, corporate training) via institutional licensing, with supplementary products including TerraTalk Connect (textbook digitization platform) and LINGOS (API service).
Is Joyz a public or private company?
Joyz is a private company. It is classified as venture growth investor backed and is currently operating.
When was Joyz founded?
Joyz was founded in 2014. It employs 11 to 50 people.
Where is Joyz based?
Joyz is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, in the Asia region.
How does Joyz make money?
Five revenue lines are on record. TerraTalk Individual Subscription is the primary driver. The others are terraTalk Institutional/B2B Licensing, terraTalk Connect Platform Licensing, LINGOS API Services and inbound Support Services.
Who are Joyz's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Engoo, NativeCamp, RareJob, Bizmates and Speak. Emerging players are Elsa Speak, Cake and Speechace. Broad incumbents are Duolingo and ECC (ECC外语教育).
Does Joyz have an API?
Yes. LINGOS is a cloud-based API service for education and e-Learning companies, providing pronunciation and grammar analysis engines, chatbot conversation lesson functionality, and other AI capabilities developed through TerraTalk, on a usage-based pricing model. It enables companies to embed AI English learning features into their own applications without building from scratch.
What industry is Joyz in?
Joyz's product category is Language Learning Software. Its primary akta.pro industry code is EDAFAOAC, AI-Powered Language Tutors, Chatbots & Speaking Practice Tools, with a secondary code of EDAMAFAC, Online Language Learning Platforms (Self-Paced). Its NAICS code is 611630 and its SIC code is 7371.