Why is Duolingo Crushing It While Other Language Apps are Dying!?

The $7.7 billion owl that turned guilt into gold.

Duolingo

You know that feeling when you miss a Duolingo lesson?

• That moment of dread.
• That pang of guilt.
• That fear of an angry owl hunting you down.

Now imagine that owl is worth $7.7 billion.

While most language apps are begging for scraps, Duolingo’s feathered frenemy is building an empire. One guilt trip at a time.

I should know. I fell for it hook, line, and sinker. 800 days of Spanish streaks later, I’m still not sure if I’m learning Spanish or just feeding an algorithm.

But here’s the thing: Duolingo isn’t just winning. It’s rewriting the rules of ed-tech success faster than you can say “Hola.”

So, how is this owl-obsessed app crushing it while others are crying in Google Translate?

Let’s dive in.

The numbers don’t lie

Duolingo isn’t playing around:

• 34 million daily active users
• $500 million annual revenue
• $7.7 billion valuation
• 8 million paying subscribers