Duolingo Diversifies Beyond Language Learning — Now Offers Chess Instruction

Duolingo is expanding its focus from solely language education to include a fascinating new area: chess instruction.

The well-known learning platform is launching a cutting-edge chess course, which is currently in beta for iOS users. As reported by The Verge, the course is set to roll out more broadly to iOS users in the next four to six weeks. Crafted to be interactive and stimulating, the course includes mini-games and puzzles that teach the basics of chess. As students advance, they’ll even have the opportunity to compete in matches against Duolingo’s whimsical owl mascot, Oscar.

Duolingo aims with this new initiative to make chess accessible to all. “Chess is something that anyone from any age group can pick up,” said Edwin Bodge, a senior product manager at Duolingo, in an interview with CNET. “However, it also requires the 10,000-hour theory to truly master. We believed it would align perfectly with the Duolingo format.”

This pivot into chess education comes in the wake of Duolingo’s recent foray into music, including a collaboration with Sony Music to incorporate popular songs into its music curriculum.

So, if you’ve ever aspired to become a chess expert, now could be the ideal moment to download or check out Duolingo again.