Drawing from my early work alongside the founders of Covenant House and AmeriCares and then decades of experience serving local, national and global charities, I share these AI insights in deep gratitude to my mentors and the many causes I've had the privilege to support.

Amazon Launches “AI Ready” Initiative: Empowering 2 Million People Globally with Free AI Skills Training by 2025

Amazon recently announced an ambitious new initiative, “AI Ready,” aimed at equipping 2 million people worldwide with the skills needed to thrive in the AI-driven economy. By 2025, Amazon plans to provide free AI training that will prepare learners for the growing number of AI-enabled jobs, continuing its legacy of democratizing access to advanced technological education.

As part of this initiative, Amazon has introduced a range of new courses through its educational platforms, AWS Educate and AWS Skill Builder. These courses are designed to cater to various skill levels, from beginners to advanced professionals:

  • Introduction to PartyRock on AWS Educate: This course teaches learners how to use prompts to create AI applications, providing a foundational understanding of AI development.

  • Developing Machine Learning Solutions: Available on AWS Skill Builder, this course covers the entire machine learning lifecycle, offering comprehensive insights into how to develop and deploy machine learning models effectively.

  • Developing Generative AI Solutions: Also on AWS Skill Builder, this course explores how to customize foundational models to create generative AI solutions, a crucial skill in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.

  • Introduction to Responsible AI: This course defines the core dimensions of responsible AI practices, emphasizing ethical considerations and best practices in the deployment of generative AI technologies.

The "AI Ready" initiative is part of Amazon's broader commitment to education and skill development. Back in December 2020, Amazon Web Services (AWS) pledged to invest hundreds of millions of dollars to provide free cloud computing skills training to 29 million people globally by 2025. Remarkably, AWS surpassed this goal more than a year ahead of schedule, having already trained over 31 million learners across 200 countries and territories.

This milestone reflects AWS’s relentless drive to democratize access to cloud computing careers and uplift communities around the world. With the “AI Ready” initiative, Amazon is extending this mission into the AI space, ensuring that people everywhere have the tools and knowledge they need to succeed in a future increasingly shaped by artificial intelligence.

In a world where AI is becoming integral to every industry, Amazon’s “AI Ready” initiative stands as a crucial step in preparing the global workforce for the jobs of tomorrow. By offering free, accessible training, Amazon is not just opening doors to new career opportunities; it is also fostering a more inclusive and equitable technological future.

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