Duolingo's "AI-First" Marketing Stunt Backfires
- Cesar Guerrero Isaias
- 4 hours ago
- 2 min read
What’s happening?
Duolingo, one of the most popular language-learning apps, has recently stirred buzz over its new "AI first" policy, which was announced by CEO Luis von Ahn. Duolingo is known for its amazingly innovative promotional team and remembered for its iconic and hilarious videos. With the growing controversy, fans and users alike noticed Duolingo began archiving more and more of their content on social media. Their profiles eventually became empty, with the default profile picture and the bio: "real eyes realize real lies 👁️👁️👁️."
As of May 20th, 2025, Duolingo has updated their social media profiles with a cryptic bio, now reading, "Introduce a little anarchy 👁️👁️👁️." Complementing this new eerie aesthetic, the iconic Duolingo bird profile picture now features a third eye, a serious expression, and dark eye bags. Currently, the only video on their profile is titled "DUOLINGO WAS NEVER FUNNY. WE WERE." This video reveals that Duolingo's human social team is behind the brand's comedic persona while also critiquing "the elite" for resorting to AI tactics. Although the video exposes this insider perspective and the elite’s downfall, this phase of Duolingo’s narrative is part of their famous marketing stunts — like that of Duolingo’s death in early February this year.
Backfiring Marketing Stunt
Although many of Duolingo's marketing stunts are known for their lighthearted and comedic tone, many people took this stunt seriously. Following the news that Duolingo was shifting toward an AI-first approach, many users took the stunt seriously — uninstalling the app, unfollowing its social media accounts, and even canceling their Duolingo Super subscriptions. On the more extreme end, frustrated users took to TikTok to express their disappointment, with some deleting their accounts, which contained years of progress, and ending daily streaks that had surpassed 500 days to boycott and retaliate against the not-so-obvious stunt.
Once Duolingo updated its profile with the third eye imagery and released the "EXPOSING DUOLINGO" comedic sketch, it became clear that the entire situation was part of a larger, satirical marketing stunt rather than a serious shift toward AI. For many users, this realization came far too late — some had already deleted their accounts, losing years of progress and long-standing streaks. While the marketing stunt stayed true to Duolingo's bold and unconventional style, it ultimately left a number of loyal users feeling misled and disillusioned. Cover image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.