Duolingo's founder on billionaire life: ‘I guess it's nice not to worry'
Now 46, and worth $1.4 billion (£1 billion), it's fair to say America exceeded his expectations.
Von Ahn is one of the rare entrepreneurs for whom lightning has struck not once, not twice, but three times — most significantly with his hugely successful learn-a-language app, Duolingo.
If you aren't personally doing Duolingo, chances are someone in your family is.
More than 130 million people around the world, from Bill Gates to Khloé Kardashian, are studying one or more of its 40-plus languages. Of those, 47 million use it every day — a scholarly army nearly 50 per cent bigger than it was a year ago.
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The Independent
8 minutes ago
- The Independent
Famed Wanamaker Organ will again be heard by the public in fall art series in Philadelphia
One of the most famous organs in the world, which graces one of Philadelphia 's favorite public spaces, was at risk of going quiet this spring when Macy's closed up shop in the city's storied Wanamaker Building. But countertenor Anthony Roth Costanzo, the avant-garde opera star hired last year to run Opera Philadelphia, is leading an effort to let the public again enjoy the Wanamaker Organ, a National Historic Landmark-designated treasure. The organ boasts more than 28,000 wood and metal pipes hidden behind a soaring wall of gold-leaf pipes that frame the building's seven-story marble atrium. Costanzo, with $1 million in philanthropic funding, is organizing a series of public performances this fall — including opera, ballet, theater and drag — before renovations begin next year on the building's conversion to a retail and residential hub. The first event is set for Sunday, Sept. 7. 'John Wanamaker, when he built this Grand Court, said he wanted it to be the intersection of arts and commerce, and that's why he put the world's largest pipe organ into it,' Costanzo told The Associated Press in an onsite interview Thursday evening. 'This space is operatic,' he said. 'So I thought it was a perfect umbrella to bring in every arts organization I could, and all these different collaborators.' The organ was made for the 1904 World's Fair in St. Louis. Wanamaker, a successful merchant and civic leader, had it moved to his new emporium next to City Hall in 1909 and then hired a crew of 40 pipe makers to enlarge it so the sound filled the vast space. A decade later, famed conductor Leopold Anthony Stokowski performed there with the Philadelphia Orchestra as 15,000 people crowded into the great hall and mezzanines. With the merchandise now gone, the acoustics rival those of the great cathedrals, Costanzo said. 'The organ for the first time is in perfect cathedral acoustic condition, so it will be the best way to hear this instrument in the history of the space, because there's actually nothing in there,' he said. The building's new owner hopes to continue to incorporate art and culture into their plans, which include retail on the lower floors and office and residential space above. The organ adds unique challenges. 'You've got this organ music going in the grand atrium, but meanwhile you've got other uses on these upper floors looking into that space, so you have to figure out how to make that work for everybody,' said Jon McMillan, a senior vice president of TF Cornerstone, the New York-based development firm. Local civic groups, in an announcement Friday, said they hope to raise funds to bring back one of the city's most beloved annual events, a holiday light show that drew generations of families to the store. Costanzo, who continues to perform around the world, believes he can build enthusiasm for the arts by bringing it to the places where people gather, including the Wanamaker Building. And he hopes that, in turn, will help people find a way to connect with each other. 'This space is so deeply embedded in the emotion of Philadelphia,' Costanzo said. "I want them to come to Wanamaker and discover something they've never seen before.'
Reuters
9 minutes ago
- Reuters
Oil prices dip to settle at 3-week low on US and China economic concerns
NEW YORK, July 25 (Reuters) - Oil prices eased on Friday and settled at a three-week low as traders worried about negative economic news from the U.S. and China and signs of growing supply. Losses were limited by optimism U.S. trade deals could boost global economic growth and oil demand in the future. Brent crude futures fell 74 cents, or 1.1%, to settle at $68.44, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 87 cents, or 1.3%, to settle at $65.16. Those were the lowest settlement levels for Brent since July 4 and WTI since June 30. For the week, Brent was down about 1% with WTI down about 3%. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will meet U.S. President Donald Trump on Sunday in Scotland. European Union officials and diplomats said they expected to reach a framework trade deal this weekend. The euro zone economy has remained resilient to the pervasive uncertainty caused by a global trade war, a slew of data showed on Friday, even as European Central Bank policymakers appeared to temper market bets on no more rate cuts. In the U.S., new orders for U.S.-manufactured capital goods unexpectedly fell in June while shipments of those products increased moderately, suggesting business spending on equipment slowed considerably in the second quarter. Trump said he had a good meeting with Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell and got the impression that the head of the U.S. central bank might be ready to lower interest rates. Lower interest rates reduce consumer borrowing costs and can boost economic growth and demand for oil. In China, the world's second-biggest economy, fiscal revenue dipped 0.3% in the first six months from a year earlier, the finance ministry said, maintaining the rate of decline seen between January and May. The U.S. is preparing to allow partners of Venezuela's state-run PDVSA ( starting with U.S. oil major Chevron (CVX.N), opens new tab, to operate with limitations in the sanctioned nation, sources said on Thursday. That could boost Venezuelan oil exports by a little more than 200,000 barrels per day (bpd), news U.S. refiners would welcome, as it would ease tightness in the heavier crude market, ING analysts wrote. Iran said it would continue nuclear talks with European powers after "serious, frank, and detailed" conversations on Friday, the first such face-to-face meeting since Israel and the U.S. bombed Iran last month. Venezuela and Iran are members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC). Any deal that could increase the amount of oil either sanctioned country could export would boost the amount of crude available to global markets. OPEC said the joint ministerial monitoring committee (JMMC) scheduled to convene on Monday does not hold decision-making authority over production levels. Four OPEC+ delegates said an OPEC+ panel is to raise oil output when it meets, noting the producer group is keen to recover market share while summer demand is helping to absorb the extra barrels. OPEC+ includes OPEC and allies like Russia. In Russia, the world's No. 2 crude producer behind the U.S., daily oil exports from its western ports are set to be around 1.77 million bpd in August, down from 1.93 million bpd in July's plan, Reuters calculations based on data from two sources show. In the U.S., energy firms this week cut the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for the 12th time in 13 weeks, energy services firm Baker Hughes said in its closely followed report on Friday.
Daily Mail
9 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
TD Bank is the latest company to mandate in-office work
The pandemic-era WFH experiment is ending for TD Bank staff, with a strict return‑to‑office order rolling out this fall. All employees must work on‑site at least four days a week by early November, with executives leading the charge from October 6, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters. Melanie Burns, the bank's head of HR, told employees that working in person will boost collaboration and decision making. Burns also said coming into the office could improve individuals career prospects. TD Bank joins the likes of JPMorgan Chase and the Bank of Montreal in marshalling its staff back to the office. It emerged this week, for the first time since the pandemic, more than half of Fortune 100 firms now expect employees to show up five days a week. It is a decisive repositioning with only five percent of the same companies demanding a total return to the office just two years ago in 2023. Now 54 percent of companies that make up the Fortune 100 — the biggest companies in America — are fully in-office and 41 percent are flexible. Larger companies are leading the charge, with smaller operations still favoring flexible work, the latest data has revealed. Starbucks has been among the recent household names that have demanded its corporate workers return to its Seattle headquarters for at least four days a week. Google and Amazon have also pushed their employees to come back to in-person work, citing alleged productivity benefits. Other than the biggest companies in the country, most firms are actually maintaining their flexible working policies. Some 51 percent of employees with remote-capable jobs were working hybrid in 2025, down slightly from 52 percent in 2023, according to recent data from Gallup Poll. The story looks similar for those working completely remotely, with 28 percent working exclusively at home now compared to 29 percent in 2023. Experts argue that the biggest companies in America are pushing for workers to return to the office even if they lose talent because they can afford to do so. It comes as separate data from JLL revealed that Gen Z, who have been characterized by many as work shy, are actually the most eager to get back into the office . Those born between 1997 and 2012 attend the office 3.1 days a week, compared to older age groups who show up between 2.5 and 2.7 days a week, a survey from the company found. Many Gen Z employees have only known remote or hybrid work, having entered the workforce during or after the pandemic. Prominent voices such as JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon have warned that homeworking is holding younger workers back . 'The young generation is being damaged by this,' he said in a leaked recording of a private meeting. 'They're being left behind socially, in sharing ideas, and meeting people.'
