DUOLINGO
Duolingo fired up the AI talk and then went quiet
Duolingo has been keeping things quieter online after CEO Luis von Ahn’s April memo on making the company “AI-first” stirred up a backlash.
In the memo, he said AI fluency would influence hiring and promotions, and that contractors wouldn’t be hired for tasks AI can manage.
He stressed this didn’t mean cutting full-time staff, but the message sparked concerns on TikTok, Reddit, and X about jobs and the quality of the app.
Since then, Duolingo has dialled back its trademark edgy posts to avoid further negativity.
Von Ahn admitted this improved user sentiment, but likely slowed growth.
The company had expected daily active users to rise 40–45% year on year, but landed at the lower end of that range, 40%, for Q2.
He said the dip was mostly in the US and Canada.
Financially, the company is still thriving. Q2 revenue rose 41% to $252.3 million, while profits hit a record $44.8 million, up 84% from last year.
TL;DR
Duolingo scaled back social media after criticism of its AI-first strategy.
User growth slowed slightly, hitting the lower end of forecasts.
Revenue and profits surged, with stock more than doubling in a year.
Edgy owl grounded
Duolingo’s stock jumped nearly 19% after hours on Wednesday and has more than doubled in the past year.
Von Ahn said the viral Duo posts will return in the coming weeks, though the team is being cautious about pushing too far.
Duo’s unhinged tweets were the only reason I opened X, bring them back pls.