Amazon Web Services (AWS) unveiled four new learning solutions on the 28th to bridge the AI skills gap.
The newly introduced offerings are four items: ▲ "AWS Skill Builder Meeting Simulator" ▲ "Cohort Studio" ▲ "AWS Microcredential" ▲ "AWS Certified Generative AI Developer – Professional" certification exam.
The World Economic Forum (WEF) expects that 40% of core job skills will change by 2030, and a Skillsoft survey also found that workers with AI skills receive, on average, 47% higher compensation. AWS set a goal of "supporting learners from all backgrounds to experience everything as a single journey—from learning technical fundamentals to hands-on practice, competency verification, and on-the-job application," it said.
AWS's online education platform "AWS Skill Builder" offers more than 1,000 learning resources, including over 220 free AI courses covering Generative AI and Agentic AI. Users can study autonomously on their own schedule.
The "Skill Builder Meeting Simulator" enables meetings via voice and text with AI-based virtual personas such as executives and technical experts, providing practice in handling tough questions and objections. It targets strengthening workplace communication skills, such as the ability to explain AI solutions to non-experts.
"Cohort Studio" is a collaboration platform where organizations can set team-level goals and study together through study groups, boot camps, and game-based learning. It is offered at no additional expense to AWS Skill Builder Team subscription customers, and AI recommends personalized content while a leaderboard allows teams to check learning progress in real time.
The newly introduced "AWS Microcredential" verifies practical skills by having learners perform specific tasks in a real AWS environment. The first lineup, "Serverless Demonstrated" and "Agentic AI Demonstrated," requires both complex problem-solving and implementation abilities, enabling corporations to use it as an indicator to gauge a candidate's actual on-the-job performance capabilities.
Registration has also begun for the professional credential beta exam, "AWS Certified Generative AI Developer – Professional." Aimed at developers with at least two years of cloud experience, it evaluates capabilities in foundation models, RAG (retrieval-augmented generation) architectures, and responsible AI deployment. AWS plans to provide a structured AI career development path by linking this with existing certifications such as AI Practitioner, Machine Learning Engineer, and Data Engineer.