Flanguage launches AI English conversation service 'Chatter' for intermediate, advanced learners

Flanguage, an English learning platform, announced Tuesday the launch of Chatter, an AI-powered speaking service that lets learners converse in English about their in-class experiences, with a pilot program targeting intermediate and advanced students now underway.

Chatter is designed to show children images from their metaverse English lessons and prompt them to continue the conversation with an AI partner. The goal is to help learners apply the English they used in class to describe their own experiences and feelings afterward.

Flanguage is a learning platform built on Minecraft-based virtual environments where students explore, create and solve problems alongside native-speaking teachers. The company has added a post-class AI speaking activity to complement its live instruction.

Chatter's AI conversation partner, Tori, responds to what children say and guides the discussion. If a student observed a panda at a virtual zoo during class, for example, Tori displays a related image and asks — in English — how the child felt or what they would want to do on a return visit. The service can also generate images on the spot in response to a child's questions and suggest relevant English expressions.

"When language is stored only as language, it tends to stay at the level of memorization — but when it is connected to experiences and emotions you have seen and felt firsthand, it can grow into your own language," said Jeon Hun-cheol, chief executive of Flanguage. "Our goal is not to make children memorize things to say in English, but to give them stories they want to tell in English."

Flanguage recently hired a chief technology officer who previously worked as an AI developer in Manhattan, New York. The company plans to enhance Flanguage Book — a feature that turns classroom experiences into personalized storybooks — along with its AI language analysis system, and aims to introduce an in-game AI humanoid robot that interacts with children before the end of the year.