Out With Duolingo’s Owl Mascot and In With AI YouTube Shorts

Feb 14

Emerging Tech Roundup — February 14, 2025

The Quantious team’s top picks for timely trending news in the tech world.

This week in tech: Workday launches a platform for enterprises to manage all of their AI agents in one place, Duolingo’s cute owl mascot is dead, Apple launches wide-ranging health study, Adobe launches subscriptions for Firefly AI, Apple to soon introduce its 'newest member of the family' on February 19, Baidu to make its AI assistant ERNIE Bot free to use starting on April 1, and YouTube to soon let you put AI-generated video clips in Shorts.

Workday Launches a Platform for Enterprises to Manage All of Their AI Agents in One Place

(Tech Crunch, February 11)

Workday has launched the “Workday Agent System of Record”, a platform designed to help enterprises manage AI agents across their organization — whether developed by Workday or third parties. The system provides visibility into agent tasks, access controls, performance impact, and costs, allowing companies to enable or disable specific AI capabilities. CEO Carl Eschenbach emphasized that as AI agents become integral to workflows, businesses need a unified management platform to maintain control and ease concerns about security and data access.

Duolingo’s Cute Owl Mascot is Dead. It is an Ex-Owl

(CNN, February 12)

Duolingo has "killed off" its beloved green owl mascot, Duo, in a dramatic and tongue-in-cheek corporate rebrand. Announcing the change on social media, the company joked about his "death" being linked to users skipping lessons and humorously warned against posting complaints unless accompanied by credit card details for a premium subscription. The move follows the trend of high-profile rebrands, such as Twitter's transition to X, and marks a bold shift for the language-learning app known for its playful and sometimes aggressive reminders.

Apple Launches Wide-Ranging Health Study to Help Develop Future Features

(The Verge, February 12)

Apple has launched the Apple Health Study, a broad research initiative using data from iPhones, Apple Watches, and AirPods to explore new connections between physical and mental health. Unlike past studies with specific focuses, this research aims to inform future product features — following successes like the AirPods hearing test feature, derived from previous health studies. Conducted with Brigham and Women’s Hospital, the five-year virtual study will collect user data and survey responses while ensuring participants maintain control over their shared information.

Adobe Launches Subscriptions for Firefly AI

(Tech Crunch, February 12)

Adobe is expanding its Firefly AI models into a standalone subscription service, offering AI-powered image, vector, and video generation. The Firefly Standard plan costs $9.99/month for unlimited AI images and vectors plus 2,000 credits for video generation, while the Pro plan at $29.99/month allows for 70 AI videos per month. A Premium tier is also in development, and users can integrate Firefly with Creative Cloud apps for seamless AI-assisted creation.

Apple Will Introduce its 'Newest Member of the Family' on February 19

(Engadget, February 13)

Apple is gearing up for a new product reveal on February 19, with CEO Tim Cook teasing the announcement on social media using the #AppleLaunch hashtag. Speculation points to the AirTag 2, expected to feature longer range, a tamper-resistant speaker, and Apple Vision Pro integration, alongside the possible unveiling of a new iPhone SE. Additionally, reports suggest an M4-powered MacBook Air could arrive in the coming weeks, signaling a busy launch period for Apple.

Baidu is Making its AI Assistant ERNIE Bot Free to Use Starting on April 1

(Engadget, February 13)

Baidu is making its AI chatbot ERNIE Bot free to use starting April 1 — citing reduced costs and tech improvements — and will offer refunds to some users. Alongside this, the company plans to launch a free advanced search function with upgraded reasoning capabilities. The move comes as Baidu faces stiff competition from rivals like ByteDance’s Doubao and DeepSeek, which have gained stronger user adoption in China’s AI market.

YouTube is Going to Let You Put AI-Generated Video Clips in Shorts

(The Verge, February 13)

YouTube is expanding its “Dream Screen” feature by integrating Google’s Veo 2 AI model, allowing creators to generate standalone AI video clips for Shorts. Previously limited to virtual green screen backgrounds, Dream Screen now enables users to create custom AI-generated videos by entering text prompts and selecting styles, effects, and video length. This update enhances YouTube's AI-driven tools, giving creators more flexibility in short-form content production.