I'm experiencing technical issues whilst using the conversational AI. What can I do?

Our popular conversational AI combines numerous emerging technologies from external providers. These occasionally have outages or errors. Under each possible issue below, we've explained simple solutions that have usually worked for other learners, such as ensuring you're on the latest iOS if you use a device from Apple, or switching from the website to the new mobile app.

If the solutions below do not work for you, or if you have a different issue, please do get in touch with our team via email or via the Help button in the bottom right. We want to make sure you have a great experience with Langua, and your feedback is valued.

Please click on an issue below to see info and solutions:



I am not receiving a response / I am seeing an error message after I reply

Very occasionally, one of our many technology providers will have some instability or a full outage. Try changing the 'AI model' in the Chat Settings. Note this is hidden under Advanced Settings if you're on the mobile app.

The 'V2' model was created by a different company to 'V1', so switching can help if there is an outage with V1. We may also switch you automatically if we detect an issue.

Sometimes, the original error prevents the conversation from continuing even after you switch model and refresh the page. In this case, you'll need to start a new conversation via 'Speak' in the menu (or clicking back).

If you're experiencing the issue on multiple days, please do send our support team a message so we can investigate. We know how frustrating it is when this issue occurs, and are hoping the AI providers improve the stability of their tech.

Occasionally, the issue can be fixed by clearing your Cookies. See the instructions at the bottom of this article for how to do this in a few clicks.

Note that whilst the average response time is only a few seconds, if the AI is preparing an unusually long reply (for example answering a grammar question), it may take 10+ seconds.


I cannot hear the audio properly

The volume can progressively go lower on very long messages, however this is rare and does not normally occur on standard length replies (2-4 sentences). The voice tech company we use is working on fixing that.

We occasionally hear that on certain iPad and iPhone models, the volume is continuously very low when Langua is used via the web browser. This seems to be related to something in the browser conflicting with the autoplayed voice technology we integrate into the conversational AI. If you are experiencing this issue whilst using our website, we strongly recommend using our mobile app instead. Please see here for more info on the mobile apps.

Below, you can also see solutions that have sometimes worked for others:

1) check that you have the latest iOS. Feel free to contact us with your device info if you do not know how to update the OS. It is usually found in the Settings section on your device.

2) ensure the volume is maximised on your device. We've noticed that certain devices (usually not Apple ones) will increase the call volume rather than media volume, in which case you have to click the 3 vertically aligned dots on the screen to get to the media volume.

3) try clearing your cookies/cache for LanguaTalk - see here for how to do this.

4) The volume can also vary by voice, so you may want to try changing the voice before you start the chat via 'change conversation settings' at the bottom (before you start a conversation).

Note that changing from Safari to another browser does not make a difference because Apple restricts other browsers to use Apple's specific technology (Chrome on Apple is not the real deal).

If you're using earphones via bluetooth, this will not work on Apple devices if you are using Langua via the web browser. The solution here is to use the mobile app, as the issue is related to how Apple devices process the audio on web browsers.



I cannot record what I say.

This can happen when using Langua via our website as internet browsers will sometimes remove microphone access, particularly on Apple devices. So we strongly recommend using our mobile app instead. Please see here for more info on the mobile apps.

Some Apple devices work with our recording tech, whilst others do not. We've heard from users that it works for them on Chrome & Brave browsers, but not on Safari.

If you're already using the mobile app and are seeing a recording error, please 1) go to 'Microphone' or similar in your phone or tablet settings and make sure Langua is enabled for permission to access your mic. 2) if that doesn't work, try removing and reinstalling the app.

If you prefer to use Langua on your laptop, please continue reading:

Normally your browser will show a notification asking you to enable your microphone when you first access the AI chat. Very occasionally, the browser may not do this, in which case you will see 'Enable microphone access' at the bottom of the screen in the chat.

If clicking this does not trigger the option to enable your mic, you might be told that you need to unblock it at the browser level. This varies by device. Please see below for instructions. Note that occasionally we see that the 'blocked' message is triggered by the browser by mistake. You can try refreshing the page as this is sometimes all that's needed. We've seen this happen in incognito mode.

  • Chrome & Firefox (laptops): you should see a mic icon or an icon like the one below, just to the left of the website URL. Click this and you should see either 'Microphone' or 'Permissions', allowing you to unblock the microphone access. For Chrome, you can also see instructions from Google.

  • If you're using an Android phone, click the icon that looks like the image above, just to the left of the website (URL) at the top of the page in the chat on Langua. You'll see Permissions and from there you can enable the microphone. You can also access this by clicking the three vertical dots in the top right, then the (i) symbol at the very top. If you do not see Permissions and are using Chrome, you can also see instructions from Google.
  • For Apple devices, please check that you have the latest OS (Operating System, sometimes called iOS). Updating to the latest one has worked for other learners as Apple does not maintain the older OS well for audio, and this can cause issues, particularly on iPhones. Feel free to contact us with your device info if you do not know how to update the OS. If you have the latest OS, then see below:
  • Apple will disable your microphone unless you enable it each time you go on Langua. To check that your mic is on, go to Settings > Safari, then Microphone (sometimes found under 'Websites'). Next to 'LanguaTalk', you'll see whether the mic is allowed or not. Change it to Allow (this should prevent you from being asked every time). If it's already on Allow, change to Deny, then switch back to Allow. If this does not fix it, try opening LanguaTalk in a new tab. If this doesn't work, see steps for clearing your cookies/cache at the bottom of this page.
    • On Apple Macs, it's also possible that your microphone is 'muted' rather than blocked. You can fix that by going to Sound Settings and increasing the input volume for the mic.
    • If you're specifically using an iPhone or iPad, it should also be possible to see the mic icon next to 'LanguaTalk' on the tab that has the chat open. You can disable and enable by clicking on the mic icon.

If your microphone is already enabled, learners have usually been able to fix it by opening LanguaTalk in a new tab, or clearing their Cookies/Cache. See below for how to do the latter in a few clicks. Another option is to simply try using a different internet browser or device. Chrome typically works better than Safari and other browsers (Safari for example does not display external audio devices when you open up the settings during a conversation).

Very occasionally, there may be an outage at the company that provides the technology for transcribing what you say. If you're sure that your microphone is connected, you may wish to try switching to the V2 transcription option in Chat Settings. We offer technologies from multiple companies to reduce reliance on any one provider.


Instructions for clearing your cookies and cache:

  • If you're using Google Chrome, copy this into your search bar: chrome://settings/privacy . Alternatively, to reach this page, click the three vertical dots in the upper right corner of the browser window to open the menu, then scroll down and select "Settings." Click on "Privacy and security" (on the left if you're on a laptop), then 'Clear browsing data'. You can select to only clear the last 7 days if you want to keep data from before then (so you do not get logged out of other sites).
  • Using Safari? Go to the Safari menu, select "Preferences," and then click on the "Privacy" tab. From there, you can click on "Manage Website Data" and remove any data related to LanguaTalk. Then go back to LanguaTalk and log in.
    • If you're using an iPad or iPhone, it's a bit different. Go to the Settings app. Near the bottom, click Advanced. Then 'Website Data'. Then 'Edit', click the red button next to LanguaTalk and 'Delete'.
  • For Firefox: Go to the top of the page, where you see the current page. To the left of this, click the padlock, and select Clear Cookies and Site Data.