Google recently unveiled its latest initiative to increase access to AI skills with the launch of Google AI Essentials — a self-paced course tailored to equip individuals across various roles and industries with the fundamental knowledge of AI to enhance productivity.
Remarkably, this course requires no prior programming skills or experience, ensuring inclusivity for learners from diverse backgrounds. “In under 10 hours, people will get practical, hands-on experience using AI to help with work tasks through videos, readings, and interactive exercises,” Andrew Zaldivar, Google Research Engineer.
He added: I’m one of many AI experts at Google that helped design the course. It was important to us that the training is relevant to workers across many different industries. We worked directly with other employers to test the course and implemented their feedback into the training,” Zaldivar said.
Notably, the Institute for Veterans and Military Families (IVMF) and Goodwill Industries International are among the inaugural recipients of this fund, underscoring the commitment to support underserved communities.
“Through the $75 million Google.org AI Opportunity Fund, we will help over one million Americans learn essential AI skills by providing grants to workforce development and education organizations, starting with Goodwill and IVMF,” Zaldivar said. “Both organizations are trusted, longtime collaborators with a track record of helping workers succeed. Goodwill will help job people in local communities across the country access the course, and IVMF will focus on offering the training to veterans, military spouses, and transitioning service members.”
Google AI Essentials offers learners the opportunity to glean insights directly from Google’s AI experts and engage in hands-on experiences with AI tools. Participants will discover how AI can revolutionize their workflows.
“The course’s five modules cover an introduction to AI, maximizing productivity with AI tools, prompt engineering, responsible AI use, and how to stay ahead of the AI curve. We designed the course to be applicable across all jobs and industries. For instance, whether you’re an account executive, project manager or event planner, you will be able to use the skills you learned in this course to brainstorm and craft compelling pitches, develop presentations, generate timelines, organize data, and streamline communications,” Zaldivar said.
Moreover, the course emphasizes the importance of crafting effective prompts and recognizing AI biases to ensure responsible usage.
Upon completion, participants will receive a Google certificate, validating their proficiency in AI skills and enhancing their professional credentials.
“Everyone who completes the course earns a certificate from Google to share with their professional networks. As employer demand for AI skills continues to increase, this is an important first step in showcasing your command of generative AI technology and your ability to apply it to increase efficiency and creativity at work,” Zaldivar continued, “We’re thrilled that many organizations are already seeing value in the course–for instance, in addition to Google, Citigroup will use it as an employee upskilling offering.”
Google’s collaboration with employers, educational institutions, and nonprofits further amplifies the impact of AI Essentials. Citigroup, Miami Dade College, and Stanford Digital Education are among the early adopters integrating the course into their programs, fostering AI literacy among employees, students, and high schoolers, respectively.
With the goal of democratizing AI literacy, Google’s AI Essentials course embodies a pivotal step towards ensuring that everyone can harness the transformative potential of artificial intelligence.
“Google has called Georgia home for more than 20 years, with an office in Atlanta and a data center in Douglas County. We’re committed to investing in the incredible talent in the state. We’ve helped train over 400,000 people in Georgia in digital skills with local partners, and we’re excited to further these training efforts with our new AI Essentials course,” Zaldivar said.
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