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How Duolingo Gamified Language Learning Into a Billion-Dollar Business
On episode 100 of Startup Stories, Lucas and Luna dive deep into Duolingo's journey from a Carnegie Mellon research project to a publicly traded company worth over $6 billion. They explore how co-founders Luis von Ahn and Severin Hacker cracked the code of user retention by applying game design principles—streaks, leaderboards, and in-app currency—to an activity that most people abandon after a few weeks. The hosts break down the specific metrics that drive Duolingo's growth, including its 2025 user engagement data showing that over 40% of daily active users maintain a streak of at…
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