The 'Copied by Apple' Club: Samsung Roasts Apple's iPhone Duo and Pulls Duolingo Into the Fold

Celeste Mello • Writer and Editor

Sep 11, 2026 11:30 AM EDT

Apple finally made a foldable iPhone, and Samsung had plenty of things to say. So they did what any longtime rival with internet access would do. Roast them in public.

Samsung dismissed the big Apple announcement as "reheating our leftovers." It wasn't a subtle reaction, but they actually had a point. Besides, subtlety would have wasted a perfectly good launch-day joke. Since Samsung has been selling foldable phones for years, Apple's presentation was always going to invite comparisons. Samsung, of course, saw a list of features it already knew very well, but it noticed the name… iPhone Duo… They had to do something with it. They welcomed Duolingo to the "copied by Apple" club. The Apple-Samsung rivalry had a third participant now, and Duolingo didn't need much encouragement. They smartly compared the two Duos: "iPhone Duo: $1999. Duo on your phone: free." The green owl wins this round.

Both brands, Samsung and Duolingo, took advantage of the moment and made their move to present their products and reach bigger audiences. Brand accounts jumping into trending conversations can sometimes feel forced, but this exchange had perfect timing. They had to get some mileage out of it, and they sure got what they wanted. Look at us, we're all talking about them.

Jokes are always the best way to reach people. Timely jokes are the best ones, and both brands had reasons to tease Apple. Samsung's reason was that Apple arrived late to the foldable phone market and made it sound like it was new. Duolingo had a mascot whose name Apple used on its newest product. The jokes were inevitable.

Apple will be fine. Apple fans will still preorder the iPhone Duo and praise its design, with or without Samsung's jokes. Samsung users will point to years of Galaxy Fold devices, but those phones won't ever catch Apple fans' attention. Meanwhile, Duolingo users remember that their streak is in danger. The main takeaway is that the iPhone Duo also unfolded one of the funniest and most unexpected brand alliances of the year. If we could call it a brand alliance, though. Both brands joined forces to tease Apple, but they teased each other too.