Latest news with #VonAhn
India Today
a day ago
- Business
- India Today
Duolingo CEO says AI won't cost full-time jobs, just make each worker do a lot more
Earlier this year in April, Duolingo co-founder and CEO Luis von Ahn announced that the company would be transitioning to an 'AI-first' operational model. He explained that Duolingo would gradually reduce its reliance on contractors for manual work and instead make greater use of AI. However, the announcement quickly sparked fears that artificial intelligence could wipe out full-time jobs at the company. Months later, von Ahn is now dismissing the idea of AI replacing humans, saying that the plan is not about layoffs but about using technology to boost in a recent interview with The New York Times, von Ahn admitted that his April memo announcing Duolingo's pivot towards AI had been misunderstood outside the company. The memo had outlined a policy of hiring only when managers could prove that a role could not be automated, and a gradual reduction in contract staff for work 'that AI can handle,'. Many, however, according to him interpreted this as a signal of wider job cuts.'This was on me. I did not give enough context,' von Ahn said. 'We've never laid off any full-time employees. We don't plan to.' He stressed that the changes linked to Duolingo's AI shift mainly affect contractors, whose numbers have always fluctuated according to demand. Von Ahn also underlined that AI is not replacing staff at Duolingo but reshaping the way they work. 'What will probably happen is that one person will be able to accomplish more, rather than having fewer people,' he explained. He added that tasks which once took years can now be completed in weeks with the help of large language Pittsburgh-based company, which went public in 2021, currently employs more than 1,000 people and reported 130 million monthly active users at the end of June. Despite the shift towards AI, von Ahn says Duolingo's headcount remains steady, with new hires and nearly 50 summer interns still joining the notes that Duolingo has made use of automation since its launch in 2011. But the arrival of advanced language models in the past two years has accelerated those efforts. These models can simulate conversations in ways that are particularly useful for learners, according to von Ahn. To ensure employees adapt to the shift, he revealed that Duolingo has introduced 'F-r-A-I-days'which are weekly sessions where Duolingo encourages its staff to experiment with AI tools and explore how they might make their work more efficient. Von Ahn said the aim of the new strategy is to help its employees view AI as an ally rather than a threat.- Ends
Time of India
2 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Duolingo CEO on the AI memo that created outrage: Some people assume that it's…
Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn acknowledged he failed to provide adequate context when announcing the language-learning company's pivot to become "AI-first" earlier this year, sparking widespread user backlash and subscription cancellation threats. In a recent interview with The New York Times, von Ahn took responsibility for the confusion, saying the memo was misinterpreted as a cost-cutting measure rather than a strategic enhancement. Company maintains no layoff policy despite AI integration push Von Ahn emphasised that Duolingo has "never laid off any full-time employees" and doesn't plan to, despite implementing AI across operations. The $15 billion company, which serves 130 million monthly users, uses contractors for temporary tasks whose numbers fluctuate based on operational needs rather than AI replacement strategies. The controversial April memo outlined "constructive constraints" including reducing contractors for AI-manageable work and requiring teams to prove AI couldn't handle tasks before new hires. This triggered fierce criticism from users who threatened to cancel subscriptions, with comments like "AI first means people last" flooding social media. AI transforms workflow without eliminating jobs, exec says Von Ahn explained that AI enables productivity gains rather than workforce reduction. "What will probably happen is that one person will be able to accomplish more, rather than having fewer people," he told The New York Times. The company has implemented "f-r-A-I-days" - weekly Friday morning sessions where teams experiment with AI efficiency improvements. The CEO defended Duolingo's transparency about AI integration, noting that while other tech companies pursue similar strategies, "we were open about it." He attributed the backlash to public misconceptions about corporate AI adoption being primarily profit-driven rather than innovation-focused. Founded in 2011, Duolingo has embraced AI since launch but accelerated integration following recent large language model breakthroughs. The platform now offers AI-powered conversation practice, addressing user reluctance to practice with humans. Despite the controversy, the company reported over 20% user growth year-over-year, suggesting the outcry hasn't significantly impacted business performance.
Business Insider
07-08-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
Duolingo stock is surging after announcing it's making a lot more money from AI during earnings
Duolingo may be one of the Q2 earnings season's unexpected winners. The language learning platform reported its Q2 results on Wednesday, revealing significant revenue growth and record profitability, sending Duolingo stock soaring. Subscription revenue increased 46% and overall revenue rose by 41%. Duolingo also reported record net income and raised its full-year guidance, signaling high confidence in its future prospects. DUOL stock rose 30% in the first few hours of trading on Thursday, following the company's strong earnings report. The company also seems to be benefiting from its continued artificial intelligence integration. More specifically, the company's leaders have made clear that they have been able to integrate AI tools and features into more of their offerings at a lower cost than anticipated. This includes the conversational AI feature available in Max, Duolingo's top-tier subscription service. "We expanded gross margin by 130 basis points to 72.4% from Q1 to Q2, due to lower-than-expected AI costs and strength in our ads business," said CEO Luis von Ahn in his letter to shareholders. Von Ahn added that gross margin did fall 100 basis points year-over-year due to the higher AI costs that came with the Max expansion. It was less than the 300 basis points they had initially predicted. "We now expect FY 2025 gross margin to decline about 100 basis points year over year, which is an improvement from the guidance we provided last quarter," he noted, attributing this to lower AI costs and ad business strength. This comes just a few months after Duolingo came under fire when von Ahn announced plans to shift toward an AI-first business model, comments that he walked back shortly thereafter. As Duolingo stock has surged, it has caught the attention of retail traders, who seem optimistic about its growth prospects. Data from Stocktwits shows that retail sentiment towards it is "highly bullish" and that message volume is extremely high. Meanwhile, Duolingo stock is gaining traction on popular retail investor forums such as r/WallStreetbets. According to ApeWisdom, mentions of DUOL have surged 1,200% during the past 24 hours.
Miami Herald
11-07-2025
- Business
- Miami Herald
The AI revolution is leaving Latin America behind. Can the region catch up?
A new study has left me wondering whether Latin American leaders are wasting their time on trivialities instead of tackling the region's biggest threat — its catastrophic lag in artificial intelligence (AI). Latin America makes up 6.3% of the world economy but accounts for only 1.6% of global investment in AI, according to the study commissioned by the United Nations Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC). It's the region investing the least in AI. While the United States spends $78 billion a year, Asia $61 billion, Europe $22 billion and the Middle East and Africa combined $3.6 billion, Latin America invests only $2.6 billion a year in AI, the study says. Even worse, AI investments fell in Brazil, Argentina, Colombia and Peru between 2019 and 2023, the study says. Brazil currently leads the region's AI spending with $1.1 billion, followed by Mexico ($660 million), Chile ($163 million), Argentina ($146 million), Colombia ($136 million) and Peru ($77 million.) Despite these sobering numbers, there's relatively little public debate in the region about its AI challenges. I follow Latin America's news daily and rarely see presidents warning about the dangers of remaining passive amid the greatest technological revolution in centuries. Recently, several top tech entrepreneurs told me that Latin America is so far behind in AI that it should focus on its competitive advantages: food, other commodities, energy and tourism. Countries should stick to traditional exports and add value to them, they argued. Luis Von Ahn, the Guatemalan-born billionaire who founded the CAPTCHA online security test and the 500 million-user Duolingo language platform, told me he doesn't know of a single large language model developed in Latin America — not even a more modest version of ChatGPT, Gemini, Perplexity or China's DeepSeek. 'Everything is being done in the United States and China, and a bit in Europe,' he said. Even more worrisome, some Latin American countries are investing in call centers and customer support firms, industries doomed to be replaced by AI, he warned. 'That's a huge waste of time. Call centers are likely to vanish within five years,' he told me. When I asked him what Latin American countries should do, Von Ahn recommended developing AI applications to make key industries like agriculture and tourism more efficient. 'Even with the smartest AI, tourism will survive and humans will keep eating avocados,' Von Ahn told me. 'That's where I'd focus, not on outsourcing.' Raúl Katz, co-author of the new ECLAC study and director of business strategy research at Columbia University's Institute for Tele-Information, told me that — whether in traditional or new industries — countries have no choice but to invest in AI adoption. 'If Latin American companies don't ramp up AI use in billing, logistics, distribution and supply chain processes, they'll fall even further behind and so will their countries' economies,' Katz warned. The region's biggest problem is that more than 95% of its companies are small or medium-sized firms, which lack the money or skilled staff to adopt AI and boost productivity. Building data centers matters, but 'the main obstacle isn't infrastructure — it's companies' capacity to adopt new technologies,' he said. The solution, he added, is to invest in tech institutes across each country to help small businesses adopt AI, like Germany and Japan do, and to boost college graduation rates. While 52% of Americans over 25 have a college degree, only 22% of Brazilians and Mexicans do, according to ECLAC. Asked about Von Ahn's suggestion to focus on food and tourism, Katz said that AI adoption is essential even there. 'To add value to your agricultural exports, you'll need AI,' he said. 'There are many ways in which you can increase your yields in agriculture using AI to measure the soil's humidity and estimate how much fertilizer or seeds you will need.' In short, Latin America's choice isn't between commodities or technology. It's about adopting AI to boost productivity across all industries. If Latin America keeps sleepwalking through the AI revolution, it will face massive job losses, slower economic growth and a new wave of migration. Either the region puts AI at the top of its agenda, or its future will look grimmer than its present. Don't miss the 'Oppenheimer Presenta' TV show on Sundays at 9 pm E.T. on CNN en Español. Blog:
NDTV
27-05-2025
- Business
- NDTV
After Backlash, Duolingo CEO Backtracks On AI Push: "Don't See It Replacing..."
Duolingo CEO Luis von Ahn has seemingly backtracked on his comments about artificial intelligence (AI) gradually replacing the contract workers at his company after facing extreme backlash. Mr Von Ahn said the language-learning platform will continue to hire human workers and support the existing employees. As per the Duolingo boss, his previous statement had not gone down well, which prompted him to follow it up internally with the employees and issue another clarifying statement. "To be clear: I do not see AI as replacing what our employees do (we are in fact continuing to hire at the same speed as before)," Mr Von Ahn wrote in a LinkedIn post. "I see it as a tool to accelerate what we do, at the same or better level of quality. And the sooner we learn how to use it, and use it responsibly, the better off we will be in the long run." Mr Von Ahn said he did not exactly know "what's going to happen with AI", but added that it was fundamentally going to change how humans work. "No one is expected to navigate this shift alone. We're developing workshops and advisory councils, and carving out dedicated experimentation time to help all our teams learn and adapt." What did Duolingo CEO claim? In an all-hands memo, Mr Von Ahn announced that Duolingo will be pivoting to an "AI-first" approach to scale its business. He justified the switch in approach, stating the company had taken a similar call in 2012 by betting big on mobile. "I've said this in Q&As and many meetings, but I want to make it official: Duolingo is going to be Al-first. Al is already changing how work gets done. It's not a question of if or when. It's happening now," he said. Apart from not using contractors anymore, Mr Von Ahn said Duolingo will use AI to evaluate performance reviews. Additionally, headcounts will only be given if a team cannot automate more of their work. "AI isn't just a productivity boost. It helps us get closer to our mission. To teach well, we need to create a massive amount of content, and doing that manually doesn't scale." As his post went viral, social media users slammed him for greed and taking away real jobs.
