The world of technology has gifted humanity with innumerable talented geniuses.
One of them is the famous Luis Von Ahn or Dr. Luis Alfonso von Ahn Arellano PhD, who is the Co-Founder, Pres, CEO & Director at Duolingo.
In this guide, we have shared all about Luis Von Ahn and his net worth.
Who Is Luis Von Ahn?
Luis Von Ahn was born in Guatemala City but went on to earn immense wealth due to his inventions and investments.
The man is known not only for Duolingo but also for the invention of CAPTCHA and ReCAPTCHA, the mechanisms that help users get past spam filters.
Luis Von Ahn’s Net Worth
Luis von Ahn’s net worth is around $1 billion. He has achieved this impressive position due to the success of his venture Duolingo and the sale of reCAPTCHA to Google.
Luis von Ahn Ventures
Von Ahn does make money from Duolingo but that is not his only source of power.
He also has businesses, heavily invests in the tech industry, and earns money from speaking engagements, academic jobs and books.
He is also known for his influential works in computer science. All these add a boost to his income.
Luis von Ahn devised the CAPTCHA system in 2000 while he was studying at Duke University.
Later in 2007, he developed the reCAPTCHA with his colleagues from Carnegie Mellon.
Luis Von Ahn & Duolingo
Duolingo has contributed the most to Von Ahn’s wealth. He works hard to keep Duolingo updated and also adds some unique new products that keep learners hooked.
Duolingo was created by him in 2011 with his PhD student, Severin Hacker.
Currently, Duolingo has more than 500 million users, making it one of the most popular language-learning apps.
Von Ahn Investments
Luis Von Ahn also works as a consulting professor in the CS department at Carnegie Mellon University, Pennsylvania.
He also runs other businesses and has founded several enterprises such as Mailhide, an anti-spam company, and Games With a Purpose (GWAP) the company creates games to solve challenging problems.
He is also known to invest in the tech industry.
Vohn adds to his finances by teaching and managing the Human-Computer Interaction Institute at Carnegie Mellon University.
He also earns through speaking engagements and academic jobs. Vohn has also written books in computer science that help in adding to his fortune.
Von Ahn Awards
Von Ahn received the MacArthur Fellowship (Genius Grant) in 2006 for his pioneering work in computer science.
He also won the ACM Prize in Computing and the Vannevar Bush Faculty Fellowship. Besides this, he has won accolades for his contribution to computer science.
Von Ahn is also known for his philanthropic work and founded ILVA, a charitable organisation, in 2021. ILVA helps for the upliftment of Guatemalan women and girls.
Personal Life
Von Ahn was born on August 19, 1979 and has two younger siblings who are IT professionals.
At the age of 18, he joined Duke University and graduated with a BS in Mathematics in 2000.
He soon earned his doctorate in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University in 2005. Von Ahn is married to Severin Hacke.
The couple are parents to two children.
We do hope you found this guide informative and helpful.
