I’m going to tell you about my (very slight 🙈) Duolingo obsession. It’s also why I’m a believer in digitally-led behaviour change, and why their story matters for other consumer apps innovating in climate & health 💊 🌱
For those of you who have been living under a 🪨 , Duolingo is one of the most successful apps globally, with >30m Daily Active Users, close to 100m Monthly Active Users, and run-rate revenues of close to $700m as of Q1 2024.
It’s latest Q1 shareholder report (in comments) prompted me to reflect on my own journey with the app over the last year. I’m a proud owner of a 297 day streak 🔥 , have sat in the diamond league for 37 weeks 💎 , and converted 5+ users in the last six months 🗣️ . Not that I’m counting.
1️⃣ I was brought up in a bilingual family, but we lived in a country where none of us spoke the local language. Now, I’m (semi!) conversational in four languages and learning my fifth thanks to my wonderful partner. Their family speaks the hardest language yet (German) 🇬🇧 🇫🇷 🇩🇪
2️⃣ My extended family doesn’t speak English or German, and his parents don’t speak English or French. This makes family interactions even more awkward than they should be 😬
3️⃣ We’ve taken to Duolingo and upgraded to the family plan over the course of 6 months, with a LOT of enthusiasm (see WhatsApp screenshots)
4️⃣ The offline community flywheel & social media content keeps us pretty engaged, to the point where I’m very seriously considering hosting a doing 365 day party with their latest party kit (➡️ https://lnkd.in/e2G-WSwy)
5️⃣ It’s easy to forget that digital tools have genuine impact on peoples lives. I’m definitely not fluent yet, but am a lot better than I would’ve been without Duo given the constraints of physical language learning.
At Eka Ventures, we’ve backed a number of app businesses like Paired and Runna who are creating new consumer categories, like Duo. Paired is innovating on healthy relationship management, and offers a fun and interactive way to improve your relationship with daily questions, quizzes, games and relationship advice. Runna is re-defining fun & enjoyable fitness for all, and is now the #1 rated personalized training plan for running. Duolingo points to the true depth & scale that app businesses can reach over time.
We are true believers in digital tools to create virality, enjoyment, and community. We love models which apply these generalist tools to the some hardest problems of our society, including sustainable consumption & consumer health.
If you’re building or investing in the space, feel free to reach out 👋
Or if you want another Duolingo challenger, I’m game!