Duolingo's Luis von Ahn redefines language learning through AI

Luis von Ahn is the cofounder and CEO of Duolingo, a popular language-learning app with more than 31 million monthly active users. The public company has a market cap of over $9 billion. Von Ahn led the development of "Birdbrain", a machine learning model that estimates a user's language proficiency and then personalizes exercises. In 2023, Duolingo launched a new "Max" tier for its language-learning users. It uses GPT-4 functions to enhance the app's "explain my answer" and "roleplay" programs. This year, Duolingo launched a Video Call feature where learners can practice talking in real time with an AI character. Von Ahn is a former computer science professor at Carnegie Mellon University and the co-inventor of CAPTCHAs, the way to determine if a computer user is human. He has talked about how using AI has grown Duolingo subscribers, as users help improve the company's product. Duolingo plans to expand its offerings in math and music.

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