I’ve mentioned this in Q&As and numerous meetings, but I want to make it official: Duolingo is becoming AI-first. AI is already transforming how work is done. The question is no longer if or when—it’s happening now. When faced with a major shift like this, the worst approach is to wait. Back in 2012, we bet on mobile. While many focused on mobile companion apps for websites, we chose to build mobile-first because we recognized it as the future. That decision earned us the 2013 iPhone App of the Year and sparked organic, word-of-mouth growth. Betting on mobile was a game changer. Now, we’re making a similar call with AI as the platform shift. AI isn’t merely about boosting productivity; it brings us closer to our mission. To teach effectively, we must create vast amounts of content, and doing this manually isn’t scalable. One of our best recent moves was replacing a slow, manual content creation process with an AI-powered one. Without AI, scaling content for more learners would take decades.

Our learners deserve this content as soon as possible. AI also enables us to develop features like Video Call, which were once impossible. For the first time, teaching that rivals the best human tutors is within reach. Being AI-first means rethinking much of our work. Minor tweaks to human-centric systems won’t suffice; in many cases, we’ll need to start from scratch. We won’t rebuild everything overnight, and some challenges—like getting AI to fully understand our codebase—will take time. But we can’t wait for perfect technology. We’d rather move urgently, accepting occasional small quality hits than move slowly and miss the opportunity. To guide this shift, we’ll introduce some constructive constraints: - Gradually stop using contractors for tasks AI can handle - Incorporate AI use as a factor in hiring decisions - Include AI use in performance evaluations - Approve headcount only when automation can’t cover more work - Launch specific initiatives in most functions to fundamentally change how they operate That said, Duolingo will remain deeply committed to its employees. This isn’t about replacing Duos with AI; it’s about removing bottlenecks so we can achieve more with the talented Duos already here. We want you focused on creative work and real challenges, not repetitive tasks. We’ll support you with more training, mentorship, and AI tools tailored to your role. Change can be daunting, but I’m confident this is a great step for Duolingo. It will help us better fulfill our mission—and for Duos, it means staying ahead in leveraging this technology to get things done. —Luis