Interest in machine learning and AI up, though slowing, one platform reports

Dive Brief:

Interest in machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI) grew in 2019, but at a diminished rate as compared to 2018, according to non-personally-identifiable information pulled from O'Reilly online learning. In 2019, interest in the topic grew by 7%, about half its 2018 growth rate, the training company announced in a Feb. 18 report.
Security usage spiked 26% last year, the learning platform said, a surge driven by interest in two security certifications, CompTIA Security (+50%) and CompTIA CySA+ (+59%).
Additionally, people learning to code gravitate toward python, the single most popular programming language on O'Reilly online learning. Python is so popular, it accounts for 10% of the platform's total usage, the company said.

Dive Insight:

As technologies such as AI and machine learning revolutionize the workplace, learning and development is coming to the forefront of talent management. Preparing workers for AI and automation will lead learning trends in 2020, according to a November 2019 Udemy report. While many workplaces will train employees to sharpen their tech skills, the report said, learning professionals will also need to focus on soft skills and skills related to project management, risk management and change management.

About 120 million workers around the world will need access to retraining opportunities, a need at least partly driven by AI and automation, according to a report from IBM. This need vastly outpaces the number of organizations equipped with resources that suffice for such an effort, however.

Platforms such as O'Reilly may aid in filling this gap. Third-party training programs are growing in popularity with seemingly positive results. Managers may prefer coders with training from a boot camp, for example, a recent report from HackerRank found. But there has been at least one report that external L&D programs boast false results; New York Magazine reported Lambda School, "a 'boot camp' for people who want to quickly learn how to code," has inflated the number of job placements secured by its graduates.