Duolingo’s CEO, Luis von Ahn, got some heat earlier this year when he announced the company would be shifting to an “AI-first” approach. In a recent interview, though, he admitted the backlash may have been less about the idea itself and more about how he explained it.
“Inside Duolingo, this wasn’t a big deal,” he told The New York Times. “But outside, as a public company, people assumed it was just about making more money—or worse, replacing humans. That was never the goal.”
Von Ahn was quick to stress that Duolingo hasn’t let go of any full-time employees and doesn’t plan to. Yes, the company has cut back on contractors at times, but he noted that’s always been the case—contractor numbers naturally go up and down depending on what’s needed.
And despite the criticism, Duolingo doesn’t seem to be hurting. In fact, von Ahn is more optimistic than ever about AI. So much so that the team now spends every Friday morning testing out new ways to use it.
They even gave the weekly ritual a name: “f-r-A-I-days.” Von Ahn joked, “It’s a terrible acronym—I don’t even know how to say it.”
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