5 Companies Winning With AI And What They Are Doing Differently

Why are some companies pulling ahead in the AI race while others struggle? A new Forbes analysis reveals that five companies—Duolingo, Salesforce, Klarna, Harvey, and Adobe—are not just using AI; they are fundamentally reshaping their products, customer experiences, and entire business models.

Companies including Duolingo, Salesforce, Klarna, Harvey & Adobe are using AI to create new products, improve customer experiences and reshape established business models. Each organization has taken a distinct approach, yet they share a common thread: AI is not an add-on but a core strategy. These are not pilot projects or experiments; they are live, scaled deployments driving measurable revenue, user growth, and cost savings.

The analysis comes at a time when businesses globally are grappling with how to move beyond the hype of generative AI. Many firms launch one-off chatbots or internal tools but fail to integrate AI into their value chain. The five companies profiled here show what real AI transformation looks like—proving that winning with AI means embedding it into the very fabric of the company.

Duolingo, the language-learning app with over 80 million monthly active users, uses AI to personalize lessons in real time. Its GPT-4 powered Duolingo Max offers role-playing conversations and explain-my-answer features. The result? Higher engagement and retention rates. Salesforce has embedded its Einstein AI across its CRM suite, helping sales and marketing teams predict customer behavior and automate routine tasks. The company reports that users of Einstein Copilot close deals 30% faster. Klarna, the buy-now-pay-later giant, deployed an AI chatbot that handles the equivalent of 700 full-time customer service agents. It resolves customer queries in under two minutes and has cut repeat inquiries by 25%.

Harvey, a startup founded in 2022, provides an AI assistant for legal professionals. Built on OpenAI models and fine-tuned on legal data, it helps lawyers draft contracts, conduct due diligence, and research case law. The company has raised over $100 million and counts major law firms as clients. Adobe has integrated its family of generative AI models—Adobe Firefly—directly into Photoshop, Illustrator, and Express. The AI creates images, edits video, and generates designs from text prompts, all while adhering to copyright-safe training data. Adobe says Firefly has been used to generate over 3 billion assets since its launch.

What these companies are doing differently, say analysts, is treating AI as a product feature that directly generates revenue or dramatically cuts costs, rather than a back-office efficiency tool. They also prioritize user-facing applications that improve the core experience. "They are not just automating; they are augmenting human creativity and decision-making," notes a Forrester analyst. The implication is clear: the AI winners are those that rethink their entire customer journey, not just optimize existing processes.

Looking ahead, each company plans deeper AI integration. Duolingo is testing voice-based AI tutors. Salesforce is expanding Einstein to handle complex workflows. Klarna aims to make its chatbot fully autonomous. Harvey is building industry-specific models for other verticals. Adobe continues to release new Firefly capabilities. As the AI landscape evolves, these five companies provide a playbook for businesses aiming to stay ahead—and a warning for those that treat AI as a side project.