EPFL's Marcel Salathe Launches "The Framework" Audio App for AI Literacy

Marcel Salathe, Associate Professor at EPFL and Co-Director of the EPFL AI Center, is launching The Framework, an audio-only app designed to teach people how to think about AI rather than how to use any specific tool. The app, which opens its waitlist this month and launches on iOS and Android in late May 2026, is built around 50 sequential audio lessons and a growing library of shorter explorations on emerging topics. Salathe, who is also a Y Combinator alumnus and best-selling author, has been building the app for six months. He described the premise on LinkedIn: 'In an age of AI, the most useful thing you can have is a way of thinking that holds up. Something with a longer half-life than the latest model announcement.' The app is priced at £15 per month or £99 per year.

The 50 foundation lessons are based on Salathe's existing book on AI, previously published in German and French but never in English. Rather than publishing a straightforward translation, Salathe 'went all in on audio' for two reasons: practical (listeners can engage while walking, cooking, or commuting) and personal ('There is something about a voice that does not transmit the same way in writing'). The lessons are narrated by Salathe himself, though the app includes an option to switch to an AI-generated voice. The course covers what AI is, how it works, where it is heading, and what it could mean for work, education, science, and how people think about themselves. The second component, explorations, consists of shorter audio reflections on emerging AI developments, recorded only when Salathe thinks they are worth the listener's time and added continuously as the field moves.

Salathe has previous form in education technology. He founded and served as the initial Academic Director of the EPFL Extension School, which was established to bring digital skills to a global audience through online education. He has held positions at Penn State University and Stanford University, and co-founded AIcrowd, a platform for collaborative data science challenges. The Framework enters a growing market for AI literacy content pitched at professionals and lifelong learners rather than computer science students. By focusing on enduring mental models over transient tool skills, the app aims to equip a broad audience with the conceptual foundation needed to navigate an AI-driven world.