this post was submitted on 26 May 2025
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  • Following backlash to statements that Duolingo will be AI-first, threatening jobs in the process, CEO Luis von Ahn has tried to walk back his statement.
  • Unfortunately, the CEO doesn’t walk back any of the key points he originally outlined, choosing instead to try, and fail to placate the maddening crowd.
  • Unfortunately the PR team may soon be replaced by AI as this latest statement has done anything but instil confidence in the firm’s users.
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[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 32 points 5 days ago (5 children)

I'm a long time user of Duolingo and you earn plenty to give yourself the occasional streak freeze if you can't go two days without doing a lesson. It's not really as predatory as it sounds. It's nothing like pay to win type games.

Fuck Duolingo for the AI shit though, don't mistake me for a Duolingo simp thinking their blameless. It's just that the monetization is not as predatory as it sounds.

I have so many could probably keep a streak foing indefinitely without ever doing a lesson, but I'd need to log in every couple days to repurchase the streak freeze.

[–] AlecSadler@sh.itjust.works 5 points 5 days ago

Ah, okay, thanks for the info! I've never used Duolingo so I genuinely don't know.

[–] Empricorn@feddit.nl 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

"Freezing" your streak is just silly, even if they offer it for free. Is this just for online clout, so you can brag (falsely) to others how long you haven't broken a streak?

If an alcoholic goes 10 years without drinking, then has a beer, the streak is broken. Doesn't mean you can't recover and improve, but it is what it is. It's dishonest to pretend it didn't happen, especially if you're comparing yourself to others...

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev -2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (1 children)

Really comparing missing a day of a language learning app to alcoholism recovery?

Your streak doesn't go up on days you use a freeze.

[–] Empricorn@feddit.nl 3 points 5 days ago (1 children)

No? It was a comparison of the streak, not the subject of the streak. That was just an example. My point remains. Unless you can literally stop time, the streak died. It's okay that it did, but why pretend it didn't?

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev -1 points 5 days ago

If you can't see why someone might have a different criteria for a streak in days without alcohol as a recovering addict and days in usage of a learning application I can't help you.

[–] finitebanjo@lemmy.world 1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (2 children)

I think it should be added that people who pay premium get infinite lives, everyone else gets 1 life every 6-ish hours with a maximum of 5, meaning they can answer wrong at most 5 times and fail a lesson, forcing them to do a recap practice lesson to earn a heart and then retry the lesson with only 1 heart or they're just done for the day.

It's kind of pay to win.

[–] J52@lemmy.nz 4 points 5 days ago

I have so many bonus points, I just get 5 new hearts. I find the lack of grammer in the free version holding me back (possibly by design, so I'll finally pay for something). I think it's time to leave for me too (I didn't enjoy the gaming side and won't tolerate AI integration, even if it's free).

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 2 points 5 days ago (1 children)

To win what? The lessons are not competitive.

[–] finitebanjo@lemmy.world 0 points 5 days ago (1 children)
  1. There actually is a weekly leaderboard bracket where you compete with about 30 to 50 other people.

  2. Completing a lesson is winning, losing all your lives is losing.

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 3 points 5 days ago (2 children)

A completely optional, side objective that has no bearing on anything else? You can completely ignore the leader board and still progress. It's not competitive.

[–] zaphod@sopuli.xyz 2 points 5 days ago

You can set your profile to private to completely disable the leaderboard stuff.

[–] finitebanjo@lemmy.world -1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago) (2 children)

Yeah of course, winning or losing a game has no bearing on anything. It's still winning or losing.

The main objective is to complete lessons. You have to pay to do that or wait for energy to replenish.

[–] zaphod@sopuli.xyz -1 points 5 days ago* (last edited 5 days ago)

The main objective is not to complete lessons, but to learn. If you use up all your hearts because you make too many mistakes you're obviously not learning. At that point Duolingo completely fails though, instead of telling you to go back and practice, it asks if you want to buy hearts with in-game currency or switch to the paid super max hyper ultra AI whatever it's now called for unlimited hearts. Unlimited hearts doesn't give you shit though, it allows you to bruteforce your way through the lessons to get XP to rank up in the completely optional leaderboards, it doesn't help you learn. It's only pay to win if you see it as a game and not as a language learning app.

[–] JackbyDev@programming.dev 0 points 5 days ago

No, you don't. It's only when you lose hearts. You get to make 5 mistakes. You can use gems to replenish them or they replenish over time. After playing for a while you earn plenty of gems to restore your hearts mid lesson every now and then. You can watch an ad to replenish your hearts between lessons, but not during. If you're not making mistakes then you can keep going. It's not that difficult to not make mistakes either, a lot of times they flat out give you the answer by tapping on words.

There are plenty of things to shit on Duolingo as a company. Calling the app pay to win really isn't one.