Free artificial intelligence training is being made available to everyone in the UK as the government steps up efforts to prepare the workforce for rapid technological change.
However, ministers acknowledge the programme will only succeed if businesses and workers choose to adopt it.
From today, adults can access short, practical courses through the government’s upgraded AI Skills Hub, designed to help people use AI tools in the workplace.
The training covers everyday tasks such as drafting text, creating content, and automating administrative work – with some courses taking less than 20 minutes to complete.
The programme is a joint effort between government and major tech firms, including Google, Microsoft and IBM, and has already delivered more than one million courses since last summer.
For some small business owners, the training has already had a tangible difference.
Tracey Kasongo, founder of 20 MGMT, a UK company involved in management consultancy, video production, and sound recording, said the courses helped her quickly build confidence in using AI.
“Being able to do a programme like that really fast-tracked me to learning and building skills in AI, and then applying it to the business,” she said.
“It helped us use the systems to create more efficient workflows and processes.”
Zunera Diwan, business founder of Money Circuit, a financial decision-making consultancy, said learning how to use AI properly transformed how she ran her business.
“Before, I was sceptical and only really used it like a search engine,” she said.
“Now I use AI for invoicing, contracts and creating policies. It’s saved me four or five hours a week, which I can put back into growing…
