In this episode of Riding Unicorns, James and Hector sit down with Adam Turaev, Co-Founder & CEO of Praktika, an AI-powered language learning platform that has grown to $55 million ARR, more than 30 million learners and almost 500,000 paying subscribers since launching in 2024.
Adam shares his journey from growing up in Chechnya, where access to education helped shape his ambitions, to building one of the fastest-growing consumer AI companies. He explains why conversational AI has the potential to make personalised education accessible to millions of people and how Praktika is using AI tutors to help learners build confidence through realistic, judgement-free conversations.
The conversation explores Praktika's rapid growth, including how Adam managed the pressure of scaling with a small team, why he continues to speak directly with customers every week and how the company has built a culture around understanding what learners need.
James and Hector also discuss the economics of consumer AI, how improvements in language models are making personalised tutoring more affordable and why Adam has consistently prioritised product quality to drive retention and long-term growth.
Looking ahead, Adam shares his vision for Praktika to become a personal AI coach that helps people develop the skills they need throughout their lives. From preparing for job interviews to building professional confidence, he believes AI can play an increasingly important role in helping people achieve their goals.
Topics Covered
- Adam's journey from Chechnya to founding Praktika
- Growing to $55 million ARR and 30 million learners since 2024
- Building a global consumer AI business with a team of just 40
- Why conversational AI could transform education
- Creating realistic, judgement-free learning experiences
- Managing rapid growth and making difficult product decisions
- Why Adam still speaks directly with customers every week
- How Praktika involves its entire team in customer feedback
- The impact of improving AI models on product quality and costs
- Prioritising customer outcomes to improve retention and lifetime value
- Building a profitable subscription business in consumer AI
- The future of personalised learning and proactive AI coaching
- Why AI could help people improve their abilities across multiple disciplines
- Adam's Future Unicorn prediction, Status
- His dream dinner party guests: Elon Musk, Sam Altman and Mark Zuckerberg
Adam also explains how Praktika could evolve beyond language learning into a broader platform for personal development, with AI tutors that understand users' goals and proactively help them prepare for important moments in their lives.
A fascinating conversation about consumer AI, education, building products people love and the opportunity to make personalised learning accessible around the world.