Amazon has rolled out a new initiative aimed at providing free AI skills training to 2 million people globally by 2025. Dubbed "AI Ready," the program looks to expand access to the in-demand skills needed to leverage next-gen AI technologies through new courses and hands-on learning opportunities for both students and working professionals. The launch comes as Amazon released findings from an internal study showing strong employer demand for AI talent. Workers with AI skills can expect to earn up to 47% more than their peers, presenting major financial upside for those who take advantage of Amazon’s free training resources. Specifically, AI Ready consists of three core components: 8 new free AI courses Amazon Web Services (AWS) is offering eight free online courses covering both foundational AI concepts and practical applications development. Options range from introductory workshops for non-technical users to advanced prompt engineering and machine learning coding courses for developers. Generative AI scholarships A new collaboration between AWS and online learning platform Udacity will provide over 50,000 high school and college students with access to a specialised course on generative AI. Upon completion, students will earn an official Udacity certificate to validate their skills. Creative AI coding lessons Amazon Future Engineer, the company’s childhood-to-career computer science education program, is teaming up with coding nonprofit Code.org on a one-hour introduction to AI concepts for K-12 students. Participants will use emojis and lyrics from popular songs to program AI-generated choreographed dances and animated backgrounds. This program, called 'Hour of Code' will take place globally during Computer Science Education Week, December 4–10, and is designed for students and teachers in kindergarten through 12th grade.
