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KAMI

Press & Media Kit

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Company and story

Kami’s mission statement:
Empowering every student and teacher to engage in the love and joy of learning.

Kami’s vision:
Leading the transformation of education by putting humanity and creativity at the heart of learning.

Kami was founded in 2013 in Aotearoa, New Zealand by four university friends who wanted to make a difference.
Fast forward to today and we are team of 150 Kamileons and a global community of more than 50 million educators and students.

With an office HQ in Auckland, New Zealand and another based in Bristol, UK we also have a remote workforce spread across the world – including the United States, Europe, and South Africa. Follow us on Linkedin.

Quick facts:

  • Kami App, Kami Companion, Kami Coach and Book Creator make up the Kami family of products for better instructional practice.
  • Founded in 2013 in Auckland, New Zealand.
  • Over 50 million users (educators and students) across 180 countries.
  • Used in 92% of US K-12 public schools.
  • Kami app has had over 3B documents added and 50B annotations made.
  • Over 250M books have been created in Book Creator.

Learn more about Kami, and follow the timeline of our journey on the About us page.

Original founders of Kami - Bob Drummond, Jordan Thoms, Alliv Samson, Hengjie Wang

Hengjie Wang & Alliv Samson
In 2013, Hengjie & Alliv co-founded Kami with Jordan Thoms and mentor Bob Drummond out of a university entrepreneurship project, driven by a simple problem: students needed a better way to take notes and collaborate online.

As CEO, Hengjie shapes Kami’s strategic direction, product, and go-to-market. Known for putting educators first, his leadership has been defined by a deep focus on product and customer, building something teachers genuinely need and trust, now reaching classrooms across 180 countries.

As Chief of Staff & Strategy, Alliv drives the strategic priorities and operational clarity that keep Kami moving forward. Starting as COO, her leadership spans operations, brand and marketing, shaping the team’s culture and building the global community that has driven Kami’s growth organically.

In 2025, Alliv and Hengjie co-founded Hiraya Ventures, a family office backing Kiwi founders with global ambition and supporting the causes shaping New Zealand’s future. That same year, they were named EY Entrepreneur of the Year.

Jordan Thoms and Bob Drummond left Kami in 2025.

Why do districts adopt the Kami family of tools?

Districts don’t deploy technology for the sake of technology. They adopt tools that support student learning.

And when you look closely at classrooms where learning is really happening, a pattern appears.

Great classrooms do three things well.

They engage students in the lesson, they support every learner along the way, and they give students meaningful ways to show what they know.

Too often, schools try to solve these needs with a patchwork of disconnected tools. Teachers are often torn between managing systems and focusing on student learning.

The Kami family of tools was built around a different idea: that better instructional practice comes from bringing these capabilities together and keeping them simple.

Kami App

Kami App makes technology work for the lesson, not the other way around. It takes the materials teachers already have: district-provided, curriculum-aligned, classroom-tested, and transforms them into interactive learning experiences with built-in accessibility and real-time engagement for every student.

Kami Companion

Kami Companion makes web-based learning accessible, so more students can participate independently. It gives learners built-in reading, language, and expression supports across online content and curriculum, helping them access the same learning as their peers without needing separate tools or constant teacher intervention.

Book Creator icon

Book Creator gives students a simple way to demonstrate understanding. It allows them to express ideas, reflect on learning, and create work they’re proud to share. At the same time, it also allows teachers to create shareable portfolios of students’ progress.

The Kami Coach icon is a plum coloured swirl with a white star at the end of it, on a pink background

Kami Coach is a math formative assessment tool that helps students keep moving when they get stuck. It offers hints and check-ins grounded in a student’s own work rather than handing over the answer – then gives teachers clear, real-time insight into understanding, misconceptions, and progress.

Each product supports learning on its own. But together, they simplify the classroom tech stack and give districts a more complete way to support instruction.

Because when instruction, support, and student expression come together, learning becomes visible, more accessible, and more meaningful.

Learn more about the Kami family on our Product hub.