Duolingo has reportedly let go of approximately 10 percent of its contractors,Pachinko Angel the educational app company opting to do their work using generative AI instead. This does not bode well.
A Duolingo spokesperson confirmed the job cuts to Bloomberg on Monday, though they stated that no full-time employees were impacted.
"We just no longer need as many people to do the type of work some of these contractors were doing," the spokesperson said. "Part of that could be attributed to AI."
Duolingo further stressed to PC Mag Australia that "these are not layoffs," stating that contractors had simply been "offboarded" after finishing their projects at the end of 2023. Reports of Duolingo's job reductions first arose late last December, when a person claiming to work at the company stated that it had cut a significant number of its contracted translators in favour of AI.
"I worked there for five years," they wrote on the r/Duolingo subreddit. "Our team had four core members and two of us got the boot. The two who remained will just review AI content to make sure it’s acceptable."
Mashable has reached out to Duolingo for comment.
Regardless of the exact terminology used for the cuts, the Duolingo's latest move appears ominous to anyone who's anxious about AI taking their jobs.
Duolingo has already used machine learning for years, having introduced its AI model Birdbrain in 2020 to adjust the difficulty of exercises based on users' strengths and weaknesses. However, up until 2023, "every single exercise chosen by Birdbrain was written, reviewed, edited, and translated by human experts."
This all changed last June, when Duolingo announced it had begun using Language Learning Model (LLM) AI in order to create entire exercises from prompts.
"With a powerful Large Language Model in the hands of Duolingo’s teaching experts, we can generate vast amounts of content for our lessons with the click of a button," the company said in a blog post at the time. "Like any innovative tool, with a good operator, it can bring our in-house teachers convenience, speed, and productivity."
Though Duolingo focused on how AI would allow it to grow smaller courses and noted that the LLM would still need human oversight, these recent job cuts indicate that it may not need quite as many humans as before.
Last March the company also unveiled Duolingo Max, a premium subscription tier for their language learning app that features new tools powered by OpenAI's GPT-4. It currently only supports French and Spanish for English speakers on iOS, however Duolingo does plan to expand to more courses and platforms.
Topics Apps & Software Artificial Intelligence
Previous：Terminal Diagnosis
Next：The Hate Debate
All in the FAM
Hundreds of Amazon employees break company policy to call out its climate practices
Kobe Bryant, 41, and his 13
We totally agree with George W. Bush on Trump's inauguration speech
The Financialized Family
Facial recognition cameras to be rolled out in London amid privacy concerns
In the internet era, public libraries are more vital than ever
Crypto startup Dfinity is proving a point with LinkedUp, an open version of LinkedIn
A Pretty Penny
Kobe Bryant: Alicia Keys sings touching tribute at Grammys
Austerity Blues
'Miss Americana' won't change your mind about Taylor Swift: Review
Everything coming to Netflix in February 2020
A simple reason why you should stay out of floodwaters in Australia: Sharks
Putin’s War Games
This hot new boyband from China is made up entirely of girls
Sonos CEO quickly backtracks on plan to end support for older speakers
Facial recognition cameras to be rolled out in London amid privacy concerns
As the World Churns
This hot new boyband from China is made up entirely of girls
Syrian girl thanks J.K. Rowling for her 'Harry Potter' booksWatch this brilliant fan'Detective Pikachu' scratches a lingering childhood itch'Bruce' is the darkly funny web series taking on Australia's convict pastGirl asked to change her Black Lives Matter shirt has perfect responseJust because you got an Uber doesn't mean the driver strike was a bustSomeone renamed NYC's Trump Tower 'Dump Tower' on Google MapsJust because you got an Uber doesn't mean the driver strike was a bust'Detective Pikachu' is so wholesome I'm lawful good now: ReviewSuper cute baby koala and mother just hanging out, looking like stuffed toysNetflix's 'Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt' will get BandersnatchGoogle I/O 2019 had no foldable phones and it was all Samsung's faultDonald Trump directs his Sunday morning Twitter rant at #Recount2016Obama's final Thanksgiving message is a touching tribute to his daughtersSamsung to announce Galaxy Fold launch date in a few daysGoogle's Live Captions could be revolutionary (one day)Bran is the most relatable character on 'Game of Thrones' Season 8Trump had a surprisingly simple reaction to Fidel Castro's deathHow Selena Gomez turned vulnerability into her greatest strength'Tolkien' is evidence that some people shouldn't get a biopic: Review Plastic bottles are bringing light to the poorest parts of world Trump did say his accusers aren't attractive enough to assault NYT Connections Sports Edition hints and answers for June 13: Tips to solve Connections #262 Watch Donald Trump throw a mini temper tantrum after the debate Trump's 'nasty woman' attack will only make Hillary Clinton stronger Justin Timberlake is now a 'chief flavor officer' People exploded with joy when the final debate was finally over UN urges Bangladesh to scrap coal plant near world's largest mangrove 90% of Apple chargers sold on Amazon could be counterfeit, Apple says in lawsuit Welcome to New York, Taylor Swift exhibit. It's been waiting for you. Australian man found not guilty of murdering his Tinder date Writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie fronts beauty campaign with an empowering message Apple's truly smart Siri is coming next spring, report claims Twitter cuts ties with another social media surveillance company Your next pint of craft beer could come from an energy Bar gives customer the perfect note for leaving their vehicle behind Facebook's livestream had one big advantage over everybody else 4chan, Anonymous working to get Julian Assange working internet Jose Bautista will never out Cara Delevingne is getting her very own documentary
2.3305s , 8216.3046875 kb
Copyright © 2025 Powered by 【Pachinko Angel】,Information Information Network