Duolingo bets big on India, as Indians learn Korean, High Valyrian, French

Duolingo, the world’s largest language-learning platform, is witnessing huge traction in India as people learn various languages such as English, Hindi, French, Korean and even High Valyrian, the fictional language created for the hit TV show Game of Thrones.
 

India is now the US edtech firm’s fifth largest market by daily active users (DAUs) and the second fastest-growing among its top 10 markets in 2022.
 

“We're so excited about the potential of the Indian market,” said Bob Meese, chief business officer, Duolingo, in an interview.  “There's so much growth opportunity for Duolingo and others in this market.”
 

India is a huge hub for language learning. By 2025, Duolingo expects the language learning market here will reach $1.7 billion by spending. The country is also the largest market behind China in education app downloads.
 

Meese didn’t reveal the number of users Duolingo has in India. The Nasdaq-listed company has over 60 million users globally and more than 16 million daily active users. It offers over 100 courses across 40 distinct languages, from Spanish, French, German and Japanese, to High Valyrian and Klingon, the constructed language spoken by a fictional alien race called the Klingons, in the Star Trek universe.
 

English, Hindi, and French topped the list of the most popular languages that Indians studied in 2022, according to the Duolingo India Report Card. Though India claims to have the largest population of English speakers globally outside of the United States, at 129 million English speakers across all 29 states, less than 10 per cent of the total population speaks English. In other words, about 90 per cent of the population is in need of English learning resources. It’s no surprise then, that English is the top language of choice for Indians to learn on Duolingo.

Many faces of Duo

 

In 2021, Korean was ranked fifth among the most popular languages to study. But in 2022 it was the fastest-growing language in the country and has now surpassed Spanish for fourth place. Among those states where Korean ranks third include Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, and West Bengal. Some of the states where French instead is in third place include Delhi, Gujarat, Karnataka, Punjab, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh
 

Meese said the popularity of K-culture (Korean culture) with younger audiences in India is one of the key drivers for the rapid growth of learners on Duolingo choosing Korean as their language of choice.  “This includes Korean popular music and Korean dramas which is really driving that interest,” said Meese. “When Squid Game show was released, we saw a clear connection between the popularity of that show and the usage of Duolingo to learn Korean.”
 

Overall, Duolingo users in India spend about 13 minutes each day on the app. When it comes to learning languages, the most serious state is Madhya Pradesh (where Korean is at number 3), followed by Tamil Nadu (where French is at number 3).
 

Hindi is also one of the fastest-growing languages in India. Its high ranking indicates the value of the language for learners around the country. This year Hindi surged up the ranking to become the third fastest-growing language in India. Its incredible growth in India contributed to Hindi surpassing Portuguese in the global top 10 list of most studied languages on Duolingo, where Hindi now ranks number 10 – with 8.4 million learners worldwide.
 

In 2022, school, brain training, and work remained the number 1, 2, and 3 top motivations for new learners in India. School is the primary reason more than a third (34 per cent) of Indians study languages. This demonstrates how important free, accessible tools are for supporting Indian learners outside the classroom.
 

Learners in India are younger than the global average, with over 75 per cent of learners under 30. College-aged learners and people in their 20s are especially well-represented among Duolingo's Indian learners.
 

The surge in the middle-income class has fueled the popularity of studying abroad. The Indian overseas education market is projected to hit $100 billion by 2025, as more than 2 million Indian students intend to pursue higher education overseas. This is another opportunity that Duolingo is tapping in the country.
 

For instance, most of the world, and certainly India’s population struggle with access to testing. Traditional, in-person test centres cannot effectively service this demand. They lack resilience in the face of conflict, natural disasters, and public health crises like the recent Covid-19 lockdowns. In 2016, the firm launched Duolingo English Test (DET). It is currently accepted by over 4,200 higher education programs worldwide as proof of English proficiency. DET can be taken anywhere there's an internet connection. This way Duolingo is able to serve test takers in far more cities than those with testing centres.
 

“This is another example of how we've used technology to break down barriers,” said Meese, a former director, Global Head of Games BD for Google Play.
 

India is the largest market for the DET, with people taking the test from over 1,200 cities and towns over the last year. DET tests taken from India grew nearly 80 per cent year-over-year in 2022. DET’s largest test-taker cities mirror the study-abroad market in India. Here Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Punjab, Maharashtra, and Gujarat lead the pack.
 

Access to smartphones is also helping children to learn especially in rural areas. In February,  the company also launched 'Duolingo ABC' in India. This is an app designed to help children between the age groups of 3-8 years to learn how to read and write in English. Developed by learning scientists, Duolingo ABC is a free-to-use app for kids that includes over 700 bite-sized lessons, teaching the alphabet, phonics, and sight words in a fun gamified manner. 
 

Duolingo is making efforts to use artificial intelligence to fuel its expansion. The firm recently said that it plans to integrate artificial intelligence (AI) into its apps. It is rolling out Duolingo Max, a higher-tier subscription that employs cutting-edge technology to create a more conversational experience for users. 
 

“We are really excited about the use of AI in our products to help us teach even more effectively,” said Meese.