Luis von Ahn
Co-founder and CEO of the language-learning website and mobile app, Duolingo
Luis von Ahn is the co-founder and CEO of Duolingo, the world’s most popular language-learning website and mobile app. He is also the co-creator of CAPTCHA, the widely used challenge–response test that differentiates humans from bots, and the creator of reCAPTCHA, a service that protects websites from spam while helping digitize books.
Von Ahn received his bachelor’s degree in mathematics from Duke University in 2000 and earned his Ph.D. in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University in 2005. Shortly after, he joined the faculty of Carnegie Mellon’s School of Computer Science.
In 2011, von Ahn co-founded Duolingo with his graduate student, Severin Hacker, to revolutionize language education by making it accessible to all, regardless of economic background. Duolingo has since grown into a platform with millions of users globally, celebrated for its gamified, engaging approach to learning.
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