Japan's Largest Programming Contest for Elementary School Students, "Tech Kids Grand Prix 2026" Supported by Cygames, Opens for Applications

CA Tech Kids Inc. (Read: CA Tech Kids, Headquarters: Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, President and CEO: Tomohiro Ueno), a company engaged in programming education for children, and TV Asahi Corporation (Headquarters: Minato-ku, Tokyo, President and CEO: Shin Nishi, hereinafter referred to as TV Asahi) are pleased to announce that applications for the programming contest "Tech Kids Grand Prix 2026" (Read: Tech Kids Grand Prix Two Thousand Twenty-Six), which will determine the No. 1 elementary school programmer in Japan, have opened today, July 1, 2026 (Wed).

"Tech Kids Grand Prix" is a programming contest for all elementary school students who will lead the future era. First held in 2018, the 2025 competition last year received 11,554 applications from across the country, and it continues to grow as Japan's largest programming contest for elementary school students. (※1)

Applications for the 2026 competition, the 9th edition, will be accepted from July 1 (Wed) to September 30 (Wed). Following area preliminaries and rounds 1-4 of judging, the main final competition will be held in Shibuya, Tokyo, in February 2027.

◎ Full-Scale Support for Participants

"Tech Kids Grand Prix" aims to "discover," "nurture," and "enlighten" the creators of the next generation. By discovering outstanding works and talents of children nationwide and widely disseminating their challenges and achievements, we have conveyed the possibilities of creating with technology.

For the 2026 competition, we will be more actively engaged in "nurturing" to provide participants with opportunities to deepen their learning through the contest and feel their growth during the creation process. We will provide full-scale learning and production support for those who are new to programming or wish to improve their entries.

As a first step, we will release development materials for beginners (a total of 4 types, including "Typing Game" and "Rhythm Game," newly added this year). Participants can learn the basics of programming and the workflow of creating a project through these materials.

Furthermore, free online workshops utilizing these development materials will be held for two days, July 25 (Sat) and July 26 (Sun), for students in 4th grade and above. Under the guidance of instructors, we will provide an opportunity for even those new to programming to try their hand at creating a project.

For details on how to view the materials and apply for the online workshops, please check the "APPLY Challenge the Contest" page on the official contest website.

◎ Click here for the "APPLY Challenge the Contest" page https://techkidsschool.jp/grandprix/apply/

◎ Revision of Application Items in Consideration of the Generative AI Era

This contest has so far emphasized three aspects in its judging:

* VISION (Dreams to pursue and worldviews to realize) * PRODUCT (Creative ideas that realize dreams and the works embodying them) * PRESENTATION (Attitude towards communicating one's vision and product to society)

In recent years, the spread of generative AI has greatly expanded the ways in which children can bring their ideas to life. On the other hand, with the completion of works alone, it is becoming increasingly difficult to see the participant's own thoughts and purpose behind the creation, as well as the background and process.

In the 2026 competition, taking this situation into account, we will partially revise the application items to better understand the applicant's own awareness of issues and desired worldview conveyed in the "VISION," as well as the ingenuity and trial-and-error in the production process.

Specifically, we will revise the content to allow for more detailed entries on aspects that convey the participant's unique perspectives and ingenuity, such as "the trigger for creating the work" and "parts focused on during production." Additionally, if generative AI is used, the roles played by the applicant and the generative AI will be confirmed.

Judging will be conducted not only on the completion of the work itself but also on the participant's own ideas, problem-solving attitude, and how technologies, including generative AI, are utilized.

"Tech Kids Grand Prix 2026" looks forward to receiving applications from elementary school students across Japan with works embodying their free ideas.

"Tech Kids Grand Prix 2026" Event Overview

Name

Tech Kids Grand Prix 2026 Supported by Cygames

(Tech Kids Grand Prix Two Thousand Twenty-Six)

Content

Programming contest for elementary school students

Eligibility

Elementary school students residing or attending school in Japan, or holding Japanese nationality. (Date of Birth: April 2, 2014 - April 1, 2020)

Works to be Submitted

Applications and game works developed using computer programming.

(Works requiring special hardware such as robots or electronic crafts are not permitted)

Language

No specification

Awards

Grand Prize, Sponsor Company Awards, etc.

Prize Money

Total of 1,000,000 yen

Details

Please see the HP

https://techkidsschool.jp/grandprix/

Organizer

CA Tech Kids Inc. / TV Asahi Corporation

Sponsor

Cygames, Inc. (As of July 2026)

Endorsed by

Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology / Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry / Digital Agency / Hokkaido Prefectural Board of Education / Aomori Prefectural Board of Education / Iwate Prefectural Board of Education / Miyagi Prefectural Board of Education / Akita Prefectural Board of Education / Yamagata Prefectural Board of Education / Fukushima Prefectural Board of Education / Ibaraki Prefectural Board of Education / Tochigi Prefectural Board of Education / Gunma Prefectural Board of Education / Chiba Prefectural Board of Education / Tokyo Metropolitan Board of Education / Niigata Prefectural Board of Education / Toyama Prefectural Board of Education / Fukui Prefectural Board of Education / Yamanashi Prefectural Board of Education / Nagano Prefectural Board of Education / Shizuoka Prefectural Board of Education / Aichi Prefectural Board of Education / Mie Prefectural Board of Education / Shiga Prefectural Board of Education / Kyoto Prefectural Board of Education / Osaka Prefectural Board of Education / Hyogo Prefectural Board of Education / Nara Prefectural Board of Education / Wakayama Prefectural Board of Education / Tottori Prefectural Board of Education / Shimane Prefectural Board of Education / Okayama Prefectural Board of Education / Hiroshima Prefectural Board of Education / Yamaguchi Prefectural Board of Education / Kagawa Prefectural Board of Education / Kochi Prefectural Board of Education / Ehime Prefectural Board of Education / Fukuoka Prefectural Board of Education / Oita Prefectural Board of Education / Kumamoto Prefectural Board of Education / Nagasaki Prefectural Board of Education / Miyazaki Prefectural Board of Education / Kagoshima Prefectural Board of Education / Okinawa Prefectural Board of Education (As of July 2026)

Operational Cooperation

Yamagata TV Inc. / Hiroshima Home TV Co., Ltd. / Setouchi Broadcasting Co., Ltd. / Asahi Broadcasting Kumamoto Co., Ltd. / Nagasaki Culture Broadcasting Co., Ltd. / TV Asahi Corporation (Kagoshima Broadcasting) (As of July 2026)

About CA Tech Kids

Since its establishment in 2013, our company has operated "Tech Kids School," a programming school for elementary school students, as a directly managed school. We systematically offer courses to learn from the basics of programming to advanced programming techniques, and we produce students who release iPhone apps and winners of various programming contests every year. In addition, we are engaged in multifaceted initiatives such as holding "Tech Kids Grand Prix," which determines Japan's No. 1 elementary school programmer, collaborating with various companies and organizations, and supporting programming education in local areas and public education.

In 2019, we established Cureo Inc. as a joint venture with Sprix Co., Ltd., which develops and provides individual instruction services, and launched the operation of "QUREO Programming Classrooms" https://qureo.jp/, which provides unique teaching materials to cram school operators nationwide. Currently, we have over 3,000 classrooms in 47 prefectures, boasting the largest scale of programming classrooms for elementary school students in Japan. (※2) We provide advanced programming education nationwide for children who are new to programming.

(※1) Based on our research of information on each contest's website regarding programming contests for elementary school students (targeting software programming such as app and game development) (As of May 2026)

(※2) Based on our research of the number of programming classrooms published on the comparison site "Koetecho" or each company's website for elementary school programming classroom providers (including software programming focused on app and game development, and robot programming) (As of December 2024)

Company Profile

Company Name: CA Tech Kids Inc. https://techkidsschool.jp/company/

Location: Shibuya Scramble Square, 2-24-12 Shibuya, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo Representative: Tomohiro Ueno, President and CEO Business Activities: Programming education business for elementary school students

For inquiries regarding this matter or for media, please contact:

CA Tech Kids Inc.

Tel: 03-5489-8639 / E-mail: info@ca-techkids.com