Duolingo has launched 148 new language courses in what the company is calling its largest expansion to date—an aggressive move made possible by its recent shift to an AI-centered development model. This more than doubles the platform’s course offerings and arrives just days after Duolingo announced it would prioritize AI over human contractors for many content-creation tasks, a decision that’s sparked both excitement and concern among users and educators alike.
The company has defended the strategy as a practical evolution. According to CEO Luis von Ahn, Duolingo’s original 100 courses took more than a decade to develop. With the help of generative AI and internal automation tools, the company now claims it can build the same number of courses in a fraction of the time. This shift allows Duolingo to scale its content globally while maintaining what it says are consistent quality standards.
In practice, AI is being used to generate and validate instructional material, while human educators and designers step in where nuanced oversight is needed. A new “shared content” framework enables a base curriculum—like beginner Spanish—to be adapted across dozens of different native language interfaces quickly. For users, this means that core languages such as Spanish, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, and Mandarin are now accessible from any of the app’s 28 interface languages, a leap that dramatically broadens Duolingo’s global reach.
The new courses primarily target beginner levels (CEFR A1 to A2), and they include familiar features like interactive stories and DuoRadio for listening comprehension. More advanced lessons are planned for future updates, according to the company.
While this AI-powered expansion may enhance accessibility and speed, it also raises questions about quality and the diminishing role of human educators in language design. Critics worry that automated translations and course structures may lack the cultural sensitivity and linguistic depth that human contributors once provided. Nonetheless, Duolingo insists that its AI tools are not a replacement for quality control but rather a way to allow its experts to focus their efforts more strategically.
The update follows a series of AI-driven feature rollouts over the past year, including a real-time conversation tool within the Duolingo Max subscription. That feature, launched in January, uses AI to simulate one-on-one speaking practice through video calls—an example of how the company is integrating automation into core aspects of the language learning experience.
By using AI to dramatically lower the barrier to course development, Duolingo is attempting to position itself as the most comprehensive and accessible language learning platform on the market. Whether the speed of this expansion can match the quality expectations of its user base remains to be seen.
