Three years ago, Duolingo stopped calling itself a language learning company and rebranded as a mobile learning platform.

Last week, during its earnings call (which I’ll cover in a future article), Duolingo took another step in that direction by acquiring NextBeat, a London-based music gaming startup.

The press release said: “The acquisition of NextBeat’s team brings twenty-three world-class experts in areas such as game design, user retention and monetization, sound design, and music licensing.”

The price wasn’t disclosed, and no other publications bothered to dig it up. But it was hiding in plain sight in Duolingo’s Form 10-Q:

“During July 2025, the Company completed the acquisition of the team behind NextBeat through the purchase of Music Learning Services Limited (MLS), a UK-based entity. Total consideration was $34,500, which included cash of $33,100 and contingent consideration of $1,400 that will be paid after one year of continued service of certain of the acquired employees.”

These figures are in thousands, as is standard in SEC filings. So Duolingo actually paid $34.5 million — $33.1 million in cash now and $1.4 million later if certain employees stay for a year.

NextBeat made two popular music games: Beatstar, where you tap your screen to the beat of popular songs, and Country Star, the same concept with country music.

The studio had split from Supercell-owned Space Ape Games earlier this year, led by co-founder Simon Hade. He was raising money for a new music learning app when Duolingo acquired the company instead.

Bob Meese, Duolingo’s Chief Business Officer, called the deal “a strategic bet on talent,” confirming this was about hiring the team, not buying their games. A small group stayed behind to keep Beatstar and Country Star running, so Duolingo didn’t get those titles.