Duolingo’s Billionaire Founder Is All In On AI

Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn sees the language learning app at the forefront of the transition to AI-powered education. 

On Tuesday, Duolingo unveiled its first step in that direction: An interactive feature in which users partake in “video calls” with Lily, one of Duolingo’s beloved mascots. It’s a part of the company’s paid subscription tier, called Duolingo Max, and allows people to practice conversing in other languages as if FaceTiming with an AI friend, with dialogue generated by OpenAI’s GPT-4o model. Another new feature is an AI mini-game called Adventures, which puts users in interactive situations to practice their language skills, like ordering a coffee from a cafe or getting their passport checked. 

The new features are the latest wave of tools from a generative AI push the company began last year, when it launched the subscription tier for premium AI features.

Duolingo’s focus on AI has translated into a surge in users and revenue: Almost 104 million people take language lessons on the app each month, up 40% year over year. This past quarter, revenue hit $178.3 million, up 41% from last year. 

The company’s stock, climbing since 2023, hit an all-time high on Monday of $270, vaulting the company to a $11.75 billion market cap and minting von Ahn as a new billionaire. A Forbes analysis of his Duolingo shares, stock options, and assets—he owns roughly 10% of the company—confirms his net worth.

But while business is booming right now, competitors are also investing in AI. Babbel, for example, last year debuted a speech recognition feature that learns a user’s voice to evaluate their pronunciation. Rosetta Stone also added AI-powered language assessment exams, used in enterprise settings.

“Von Ahn sees building an AI tutor as the company’s ultimate moonshot,” says Forbes senior writer Richard Nieva. “The effort comes as companies everywhere try to inject AI into their products, and Duolingo is no different. The CEO sees language learning as a means to lift people out of poverty, noting that, for non-native speakers, learning English instantly broadens a person’s earning potential and opens up a whole new world of jobs.”

Source: Forbes