The “new normal” has taken hold, and organisations continue to grapple with long-standing challenges such as training a remote workforce, rapidly upskilling large groups of employees, and overcoming language barriers within a diverse workforce. Additionally, the intense competition for top talent has recently caused significant disruptions in how businesses recruit, train, and onboard employees.

In response to these challenges, Learning and Development (L&D) trends fluctuate, influenced by a changing workplace, innovations in learning technology, and evolving employee demands. While trends serve as guides for learning professionals and company leaders, it’s ultimately up to them to determine what best meets their long-term training needs. For instance, Deloitte’s idea of ownership in the new learning paradigm emphasizes that the future of learning will be centered on the individual acquiring new skills, with a focus on personalised, integrated, hybrid, and lifelong learning.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is playing a pivotal role in this transformation, revolutionising various sectors, including L&D. From personalised learning experiences to seamless enhancement of learning content, AI offers numerous practical applications that significantly boost the efficacy and reach of L&D programs.

A 2023 study by LinkedIn Learning found that 60% of employees prefer personalised learning paths provided by AI, resulting in a 45% increase in learner engagement. Additionally, a Training Industry Report indicates that organisations implementing AI-driven learning platforms have seen a 30% improvement in training effectiveness and knowledge retention. However, these benefits come with challenges that need to be addressed to fully maximise AI’s potential in this field.

In this article, we will focus on how AI enhances learning content and its implications for the future of L&D.

Enhanced learning content

A 2023 report by McKinsey highlighted that 55% of L&D professionals use AI to curate learning content, reducing the time spent on content curation by 40% and subsequently lowering training costs. Similarly, a 2023 survey by the Brandon Hall Group found that companies utilizing AI in their L&D programs reported a 25% reduction in training costs.

Upskilling and reskilling should be a priority for most companies as employees need to learn new skills, take on new roles, and update their competencies to remain competitive in a VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, and ambiguous) environment. AI is redefining corporate training by enabling designers and instructors to create personalized, interactive, and adaptive learning experiences at scale.

The era of lengthy training designed by in-house instructional specialists is waning. With a globalized workforce and the need for just-in-time learning, companies must ensure they have quality content available at all times. For example, existing training material can be repurposed into smaller chunks and packaged in various formats.

Natural Language Processing (NLP)

One of AI’s most exciting applications in content creation is Natural Language Processing (NLP). Tools like ChatGPT exemplify NLP’s capabilities, which allow computers to understand and generate human language. NLP can draft training materials, brainstorm ideas, and guide learners with best practices, all tailored to specific audiences and goals. It can also polish scripts, making them clear, engaging, and personalised to different learning styles, and automatically create subtitles and transcripts to ensure accessibility.

Application of Gen AI

Generative AI helps companies create courses faster and allows for personalised learning at scale. AI also enhances the creation of engaging simulations that hone employee skills. Notably, enterprises can enjoy substantial time and cost savings with these new features and tools.

AI streamlines the development and administration of training, leading to higher-quality content and more efficient delivery methods. For instance, Xerox’s global training team reduced video and voiceover costs by over 50% compared to hiring voiceover artists in multiple languages.

With AI, you can create training videos as diverse as your audience. AI tools enable users to generate professional-looking videos from text, offering a wide range of video templates. Engaging viewers is easier with hundreds of AI characters (avatars), allowing for inclusive and diverse videos. Options include cloning a person’s appearance and voice and customizing an AI avatar’s outfit for personalized or branded content. You can also use the extensive voiceover library with over 100 languages, automatically generating closed captions and updating videos with a click of a button.

From personal experience launching the first-ever AI-powered training entirely in-house, the only barrier to success is the hesitation to adopt this technology. Challenges we faced were related to editing tools, such as splitting Arabic subtitles correctly and issues with templates, color palettes, and logo positioning. Customising the AI instructor’s voice and appearance to fit company culture and end-user expectations was straightforward but time-consuming due to the vast choice of characters and voiceovers available.

Here’s a summary of creating compelling course content videos with AI tools:

1. Create your script: Generate it from any document, video, or idea with the help of AI.
2. Customise your video: Easily create and replace AI avatars, adjust their clothing, tone of voice, and accent, and change colors, fonts, and layouts in seconds.
3. Collaborate: Share your content with guest users who can edit or comment on it.
4. Share your video: Download your video in different formats, including SCORM, and embed it anywhere.

Leading AI pioneer Andrew Ng said, “AI is the new electricity,” and just as electricity transformed industries over a century ago, AI and machine learning algorithms are set to revolutionize learning and development. AI frees educators’ time to guide and inspire students by handling tasks like grading and feedback. L&D professionals can also say goodbye to the endless program creation process, as AI helps produce engaging training materials in seconds. For example, Teleperformance used AI to train over 380,000 people in more than 170 markets, creating videos in 40+ languages and saving five days and $5,000 per video.

Video training that uses AI instructors and text-to-voice technology, such as the above video, speeds up the creation of new training materials and improves distribution across a larger range of employees. Synthesia surveyed 102 L&D professionals, and 97% said video is more effective than text-based documents. With modern AI tools, content creators and instructional designers reduced their average time for training video content development by 62%.

Challenges of integrating AI in L&D

The integration of AI in L&D faces several challenges. Employees and stakeholders may resist adopting AI-driven solutions due to fears of job displacement or distrust in technology, which can hinder the adoption and effectiveness of AI in L&D programmes.

Additionally, developing and implementing AI solutions can be expensive, making them unaffordable for smaller organisations or those with limited budgets. Effective use of AI requires specialised knowledge and skills, necessitating investment in team training or hiring experts, further adding to costs and complexity.

Despite these challenges, the statistics underscore the growing influence of AI in HR and L&D, highlighting its potential to enhance efficiency and effectiveness while addressing key issues. AI technology offers significant advantages, including personalised learning experiences, efficient content curation, and enhanced analytics.

By providing smart upskilling and reskilling opportunities on a previously unattainable scale, AI helps workers stay ahead of the changing job market. This transformation pushes organisations to rethink their L&D strategies, using data to make better decisions and integrating AI and machine learning into corporate training.

Ultimately, AI can upgrade training programmes to be more comprehensive, engaging, and relevant. By producing training videos in minutes without the need for cameras or actors, AI allows organisations to overcome budget constraints and enables any employee to create courses and personalised content without recording themselves on camera. The integration of AI applications in corporate learning is not just a trend but a strategic move towards enhancing employee skills, knowledge retention, and overall performance.

Yet, with AI-driven customisation, companies can optimise their L&D programmes to be more efficient and effective, resulting in higher engagement levels and enhanced learning experiences for their employees.