Duolingo confirms the death of Duo the owl and the Internet goes crazy, what happened?

It looks like Duolingo, the language learning platform, is rebranding, and the ironic owl mascot will be slaughtered. The company posted to social media that the world-famous owl, Duo Keyshauna Renee Lingo, died after living for more than 3,000 years.

“In lieu of flowers, please do a Duolingo lesson,” reads the tribute.

Earlier, the company posted another death announcement alleging that foul play may have been a factor in Duo’s passing and that authorities were on the case. The company added that their beloved mascot “probably died waiting for you to do your lesson.” As a part of the elaborate marketing scheme the social media post also called on users with a personal beef with Duo to avoid sharing hate comments. However, those who were so compelled were encouraged to “include your credit card number so we can automatically sign you up for Duilingo Max in his memory.”

Responses from the platform’s users, for many of whom Duo was a daily companion (or source of frustration), have been mixed but lively. Nevertheless, the company is showing, once again, that its social media team knows how to attract attention online. One comedy account on X reshared the app’s post with a photo of President Donald Trump announcing the death of the bird.

Many other posts focus on the shock of the news, considering their connection to Duo in night life following the news of his death.

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