Duolingo to 'gradually' reduce contractors with AI-first strategy
Duolingo said it is "going to be AI-first," a move that includes the language learning app stopping to use of contractors to do work that AI can handle.
In a post on LinkedIn on April 29, Duolingo shared a screenshot of chief executive officer Luis von Ahn's "all-hands email" announcing the major change in the company.
"Just like how betting on mobile in 2012 made all the difference, we’re making a similar call now. This time the platform shift is AI," the caption read. "What doesn't change: We will remain a company that cares deeply about its employees."
In the email, Von Ahn noted that AI is "already changing how work gets done," and it's "not a question of if or when."
"It's happening now. When there's a shift this big, the worst thing you can do is wait," he said.
He pointed out that AI "isn't just a productivity boost," as it helps "get closer to our mission."
"To teach well, we need to create a massive amount of content, and doing that manually doesn't scale," Von Ahn said. "One of the best decisions we made recently was replacing a slow, manual content creation process with one powered by AI. Without AI, it would take us decades to scale our content to more learners. We owe it to our learners to get them this content ASAP."
The official said AI also helps build features like video calls "that were impossible to build before," as well as teaching even the "best human tutors."
Von Ahn noted that being AI-first means rethinking much of how the company works, and "[m]aking minor tweaks to systems designed for humans won't get us there."
"In many cases, we'll need to start from scratch. We're not going to rebuild everything overnight, and some things—like getting AI to understand our codebase—will take time," he said. "However, we can't wait until the technology is 100%. We'd rather move with urgency and take occasional small hits on quality than move slowly and miss the moment."
Von Ahn detailed Duolingo's AI-first policy, which involves gradually replacing contractors with AI, prioritizing AI skills in hiring, and evaluating AI usage in performance reviews. He also stated that "headcount will only be given if a team cannot automate more of their work."
This initiative extends across most functions within the company, prompting fundamental changes in their operational workflows. Despite this direction, Von Ahn reiterated that Duolingo "will remain a company that cares deeply about its employees."
"This isn't about replacing Duos with AI," he said. "It's about removing bottlenecks so we can do more with the outstanding Duos we already have. We want you to focus on creative work and real problems, not repetitive tasks. We're going to support you with more training, mentorship, and tooling for AI in your functions."
"Change can be scary, but I'm confident this will be a great step for Duolingo," he added. "It will help us better deliver on our mission—and for Duos, it means staying ahead of the curve in using this technology to get things done."
Founded in 2011, Duolingo is a free mobile app that lets users learn over 30 languages "with bite-sized lessons based on science." It has over 110 million monthly active users.
