Duolingo's owl passes on, investigations ongoing

Duo, formally known as "The Duolingo owl", has passed on. In an Instagram post on Tuesday (12 February), the online language learning app shared the puzzling news with the public. 

"Authorities are currently investigating his cause of death and we are cooperating fully," the statement read, with Duolingo cheekily insinuating that their mascot most likely died while waiting for users to complete their lessons. 

Duolingo also asked the public to refrain from sharing why they hate Duo in the comments, noting that the mascot had many enemies.

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It added, "If you feel inclined to share, please also include your credit card number so we can automatically sign you up for Duolingo Max in his memory." Duolingo Max is the app's premium service, offering users AI-powered learning experiences, personalised practices and ad-free usage. 

Known for its love for pop sensation Dua Lipa, the statement concluded stating, "We appreciate you respecting Lipa's privacy at this time." Additionally, Duolingo has changed its profile picture on its Instagram and TikTok accounts to an image of a deceased Duo. 

Duolingo also shared the announcement of its mascot's death on TikTok, with a humorous video showing popular characters Lily and Zari carrying Duo's coffin out of the company's building. 

Lilly and Zari then place the open casket in the back of a pickup truck with red flower petals over the deceased bird. The truck drives away with Duo lying motionlessly in its coffin while Good Lookin plays in the background, a popular love song by Dixon Dallas. 

Many Duolingo users mourned the loss of the iconic mascot, with some rushing to complete their language lessons on the app. 

MARKETING-INTERACTIVE has reached out to Duolingo for more information. 

Duolingo is widely known for its quirky social media presence. Earlier this year, as TikTok's potential ban in the United States (US) eerily loomed over everyone's heads, Duolingo decided to poke harmless fun to seemingly lighten up the mood. 

In an X post on 14 January, five days before the marked date of TikTok's potential ban, Duolingo sarcastically said, "oh so now you're learning mandarin". The X account was seemingly addressing TikTok users who have flocked to Chinese app RedNote, a social networking platform and one of TikTok's competitor. 

Many X users also jumped in on the fun, with some sharing humorous screenshots of their "favourite new apps" on their mobile phones, including RedNote, Duolingo and Google Translate. To help users transition seamlessly to the predominantly Chinese-speaking app, Duolingo also release a humorous educational video translating popular and trendy phrases from English to Mandarin. 

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