Microsoft’s First Generative AI Certificate Is Available for Free

Microsoft and LinkedIn launched on Wednesday the AI Skills Initiative certificate program, which is a library of free coursework for professionals who are beginners in regards to generative AI skills and want to learn how to apply generative AI to their work.

In addition, Microsoft will award a grant for exceptional ideas about training employees of nonprofit, social enterprise, and research or academic institutions to use generative AI, with proposals due August 15.

What does Microsoft’s AI Skills Initiative entail?

The Microsoft AI Skills Initiative, developed with LinkedIn, consists of five modules. Every module includes a video; some of the modules are packaged with quizzes, a workbook file or both. Completing all five modules gives the learner a Professional Certificate on Generative AI to display on LinkedIn Learning.

The content presented in the AI Skills Initiative certification skews toward Microsoft’s Bing Chat, which is built on OpenAI’s GPT-4, instead of its rival, Google’s Bard.

The Professional Certificate on Generative AI training will be available in Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Simplified Chinese and Japanese and will be free through 2025.

SEE: Learn how generative AI is transforming cloud security. (TechRepublic) 

“We have the opportunity to provide foundational information to everyone, everywhere, to help us all stay ahead of the skills gaps and harness its creativity to retrieve helpful information,” said Naria Santa Lucia, general manager of digital inclusion at Microsoft, in an email to TechRepublic. “As we are learning, the technology is learning from us, too, and we have the power to shape how the technology can best support us.”

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