Ripping you off Stage 3
Duolingo launched as free language education. Its free tier now runs on energy (2025), which drains with every exercise, while subscribers practise without limits. Streaks and course progress stay inside Duolingo. Its “AI-first” memo (2025) also said it would phase out contractors for work AI can do. Extraction plus lock-in. Stage 3.
- Since
- 2012
- Category
- Learning
- VC-backed
- Yes
- Public
- Since 2021 (NASDAQ: DUOL)
- Website
- duolingo.com
The promise
Its first promise, and how much is kept · Scoring
80% kept
“Learn English, Spanish and German for free”
Why it’s rated 3
The criteria it meets, with sources · Method
- Alignment 0 of 3
- None
- Lock-in 1 of 4
-
- L2 Data, library, or purchases
- Extraction 1 of 7
-
- E1 Pay more for the same Jul 3, 2025
- Decline 0 of 3
- None
Result Two or more extraction criteria, or lock-in plus at least one, so stage 3.
News signals
Sourced reporting, tagged by strategy
Aug 18, 2025
Duolingo’s CEO walks back his “AI-first” memo after backlash over contractors
AI upsellWage arbitrage
Jul 3, 2025
Duolingo replaces hearts with energy, draining with every exercise; subscribers get unlimited
Tier fragmentationDark patterns