lairner

I first found ðis app on ðe platform Threads, where ðey advertised ðemselves as a better alternative to Duolingo. Many of us looking to learn a new language are sick of Duo because of AI OVERALL, not just ðe fact ðat Duo fired staff in favour of AI. But Lairner has been using ðat specific gripe we have wiþ Duo to advertise ðemselves. Many of us þink ðen ðat ðey must be anti-AI, especially when ðey really only admit to ðe AI when you personally ask ðem, or you look deeper on ðeir website. Ðat’s what I þought at first. I didn’t þink to look deeper into ðeir AI use at first because ðey proudly proclaim to not fire staff over AI use. But apparently ðat just means ðey used AI first, and ðey NEED to be more forþright about ðeir AI. I was looking to get back into learning Irish, and so I started wiþ ðeir beginner course. Ðe pronunciation inaccuracies were quick to hear from ðe get-go. It pronounced words like “sea” as ðe English word instead of “shah”, and “maith” as eiðer “meyeth” or “math” when ðe th needs to be silent just for example. It’s odd how ðey claim to have language experts on ðe team, yet ðis pronunciation problem is a clear and present issue in many different courses as reported by oðer users. So eiðer ðey’re lying, or ðey just don’t boðer to check ðey’re precious AI voices before making courses public. Or ðeir “experts” are just AI bots. 🤔 Also, don’t get into discourse wiþ ðem unless you like having ad hominems þrown at you. Ðey’re not afraid to be very ableist and fatphobic because staff þrough ðe app I contacted said, and I quote, “People that are toxic don't deserve to be handled with respect”. When I told ðem basically ðat being ableist is harmful to everyone wiþ a disability, including disabled people like ME, ðey defended ðemselves by saying “If you're insecure about something said to someone ELSE, that's sensitivity no one can or should accommodate for you”. Which I find quite amusing, because a few people have reported seeing ðem say to oðers ðat ðey should off ðemselves. I don’t know if it’s true, but it wouldn’t surprise me if it was at ðis point. It’s incredibly entitled and privileged to say a marginalised person is merely insecure about bigotry being on full display. You wouldn’t þrow a racial slur at a non white person because ðey were toxic, would you? Don’t waste your money on ðis app. At ðis point Duolingo would be preferable, because you KNOW you won’t get discriminated against, AND ðe stuff ðey teach is more likely to be accurate.

The courses here are AI based and I used it for a few months and it taught me so many incorrect phrases and grammar explanations that is was ultimately a waste of time. I can see the usefulness of AI eventually in language learning (the app claims hundreds and hundreds of courses) but if it’s not checked by humans it’s hard to trust. I liked the UX.