Anyone lucky enough to call themselves multilingual will tell you the endless rewards and pleasure that can come from learning a new language. However, learning a new language can be a frustrating and time-consuming endeavor that causes many once eager students to give up or just replace the foreign language with a louder version of their own native tongue. As I have come to discover, where there is a problem, there are at least a few startups looking to build a product or service to address it, and learning a language is certainly no exception. So whether you are a global business traveler heading to meet a foreign client or a college graduate packing up for that last minute euro trip, check out these startups to help you learn a new language and blend right in with the locals, or not.
 VerbalizeIt Fans of the hit ABC show SharkTank might be familiar with the translation service VerbalizeIt and its co-founders Kunal Sarda and Ryan Frankel. A graduate of Boulder's 2012 TechStars Class, VerbalizeIt provides users with an app that allows them instant connection to a community of over 5,000+ global translators to instantly help with their language and translation needs. Partnerships with Rosetta Stone and Skype have enabled VerbalizeIt to grow into a full service translation platform providing interpretation, documentation, and video translation. Perfect for world travelers, who need quick and easy help while abroad, this might be an overly expensive way to start learning a language as just 5 minutes of service will cost you $9.99. |  Duolingo Integrating crowdsourcing with online language education, Duolingo has caught on quickly as over 5 million people use the site to learn Spanish, French, German, Portugese, and Italian. With the help of gamification methods, users earn points and lives as they progress along in lessons. Instead of charging its users for the service Duolingo charges organizations that submit material that gets translated by Doulingo's pool of learners. Duolingo's unique business model has attracted funding from big name investors such as Ashton Kutcher and Timothy Ferris. Additionally, it's mobile app has caught on quite well, as it quickly became the #1 education app in the Google Play store only a few weeks after it was released in May. |
 Memrise Visual learners who prefer flashcards should give Memrise a try. Memrise uses "mems" and the science supporting it to help you learn a host of languages (in adittion to other topics on history, geography and science). Lead by a team with impressive backgrounds in both the art and science of memory, Memrise allows users to track their progress against friends and compete via leaderboards. With an interesting mix of fun, science, and community, Memrise and its 6,000+ courses covering over 200+ could be the tool that helps you go from basic to fluent in no time. |  Busuu Marketing itself as the social network for learning languages, Busuu is a Madrid based company that boasts over 30 million users from 200+ countries. Busuu has tools such as dialogue lessons, vocabulary tests, and writing exercises reviewed by native speakers to help you learn 12 different languages. Operating off of a freemium business model, some features are only available to those learners willing to upgrade and pay a subscription fee. Busuu's award winning iOS and Andriod apps have been downloaded over 15 million times. Busuu is looking to expand to corporate users as it is releasing "Business English" courses with plans to add Spanish in the near future. |
Share your experiences with the above companies or let me know if I forgot any other ones in the comments section.
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