How do I install the Duo Voice skill?

Run npx skillmds@latest add hktitan/duo-voice in your terminal (requires Node.js), paste this page's agent-chat prompt into Claude, Cursor, or any MCP-connected agent, or download the SKILL.md file and copy it into your agent's skills directory.

Is Duo Voice safe to use?

This skill has not completed SkillMD's automated safety review yet. SkillMD never runs a skill's scripts for you; review the SKILL.md before installing.

Which AI agents work with Duo Voice?

This skill is tagged as working with Claude Code, Claude.ai, OpenAI Codex. SKILL.md is an open format, so most agents that read a skills directory can load it too.

Is Duo Voice free to use?

Yes. Installing skills from SkillMD is free. This skill is licensed under MIT.

Who published Duo Voice?

HKTITAN (@hktitan) published this skill. Their other Agent Skills are listed on their SkillMD profile.

Duo Voice by hktitan — Agent Skill

Name: Duo Voice
Author: HKTITAN

Duo Voice

Write product copy in the Duolingo voice — "wholesome but unhinged," character-driven, screenshot-worthy. Covers push notifications, error states, onboarding, empty states, celebrations, and the now-famous threat-copy that turned a green owl into a meme. Use when the user is writing any user-facing string — notifications, microcopy, errors, marketing — and wants it to feel like a person, not a product. Source the Duolingo Handbook (Make It Fun) and observed blog/marketing patterns.

HKTITAN Updated Sep 17, 2026

File contents

Duolingo Voice — Map of Content

Duolingo's brand voice is the most copyable competitive advantage in modern consumer software: the rules are public, the examples are everywhere, and the upside is enormous (free distribution from screenshots). The handbook describes it as "wholesome but unhinged" — the friction between those two words is the whole job.

This skill is structured as a graph: scan the descriptions below, follow only the [[wikilinks]] you need.

Foundation

[[references/wholesome-unhinged]] — the two-word brand brief and how to operationalize it.
[[references/character-archetypes]] — Duo, Lily, Zari, Eddy and what each one is allowed to say.
[[references/screenshot-bait]] — copy written so users want to share it; the cheapest growth channel.

Surfaces (one node per copy surface)

[[references/push-notification-copy]] — the highest-leverage surface; the "Duo is watching you" template and what makes it work.
[[references/error-copy]] — wrong answers, network failures, validation errors as moments of brand instead of friction.
[[references/onboarding-copy]] — the first three screens that decide retention; how Duolingo makes them feel like meeting a person.
[[references/empty-states]] — the loneliest screens; how to fill them with character.
[[references/celebration-copy]] — what to say when something good happens, without sounding corporate.
[[references/threat-copy]] — the deliberately-funny menace that turned an owl into a meme.

Globalization

[[references/localization-voice]] — keeping unhinged consistent across 40+ languages where the joke doesn't always translate.

Sibling skills

[[../duo-retention/SKILL]] — the highest-leverage voice surface (push notifications) is a retention tool; designs interlock.
[[../duo-gamification/SKILL]] — celebrations and threats are voice + gamification at the same time.
[[../duo-growth/SKILL]] — voice is growth: the social TikTok voice and the in-app voice are the same character.

Sources

Duolingo Handbook (2025), Principle #5: Make It Fun
@duolingo on TikTok / Instagram / Twitter — observed brand voice
blog.duolingo.com — voice and marketing posts

---name: duo-voicedescription: Write product copy in the Duolingo voice — "wholesome but unhinged," character-driven, screenshot-worthy. Covers push notifications, error states, onboarding, empty states, celebrations, and the now-famous threat-copy that turned a green owl into a meme. Use when the user is writing any user-facing string — notifications, microcopy, errors, marketing — and wants it to feel like a person, not a product. Source the Duolingo Handbook (Make It Fun) and observed blog/marketing patterns.license: MIT---# Duolingo Voice — Map of ContentDuolingo's brand voice is the most copyable competitive advantage in modern consumer software: the rules are public, the examples are everywhere, and the upside is enormous (free distribution from screenshots). The handbook describes it as *"wholesome but unhinged"* — the friction between those two words is the whole job.This skill is structured as a **graph**: scan the descriptions below, follow only the `[[wikilinks]]` you need.## Foundation- [[references/wholesome-unhinged]] — the two-word brand brief and how to operationalize it.- [[references/character-archetypes]] — Duo, Lily, Zari, Eddy and what each one is allowed to say.- [[references/screenshot-bait]] — copy written so users *want* to share it; the cheapest growth channel.## Surfaces (one node per copy surface)- [[references/push-notification-copy]] — the highest-leverage surface; the "Duo is watching you" template and what makes it work.- [[references/error-copy]] — wrong answers, network failures, validation errors as moments of brand instead of friction.- [[references/onboarding-copy]] — the first three screens that decide retention; how Duolingo makes them feel like meeting a person.- [[references/empty-states]] — the loneliest screens; how to fill them with character.- [[references/celebration-copy]] — what to say when something good happens, without sounding corporate.- [[references/threat-copy]] — the deliberately-funny menace that turned an owl into a meme.## Globalization- [[references/localization-voice]] — keeping unhinged consistent across 40+ languages where the joke doesn't always translate.## Sibling skills- [[../duo-retention/SKILL]] — the highest-leverage voice surface (push notifications) is a retention tool; designs interlock.- [[../duo-gamification/SKILL]] — celebrations and threats are voice + gamification at the same time.- [[../duo-growth/SKILL]] — voice *is* growth: the social TikTok voice and the in-app voice are the same character.## Sources- Duolingo Handbook (2025), Principle #5: *Make It Fun*- @duolingo on TikTok / Instagram / Twitter — observed brand voice- blog.duolingo.com — voice and marketing posts

Frequently asked questions