Dive Brief:
- Consumption of learning material on AI- and data-related subjects grew more than 50% over the last year on O'Reilly's learning platform, according to a report from the training company. The report, How Organizations are Sharpening their Skills to Better Understand and Use AI, examined what technology experts are most interested in, as adoption of AI tech continues to grow, O'Reilly said in a statement.
- Examining user preferences and consumption patterns, it found that machine learning and data engineering content experienced the most year-over-year growth since 2018, at 58% each.
- The data suggests organizations and learners are invested in the training and adoption of AI technology, O'Reilly said. The company noted that its platform's overall content consumption rose by 8% from 2018 to 2019.
Dive Insight:
Most employees admit they wish they'd have focused more on STEM when they were in school, according to a recent Randstad US survey. That regret may be one impetus to workers need to pursue skills credentials for these growing career sectors. While some companies have debuted their own internal tech bootcamps to fill that need, others look at helping underserved workers build credentials. States and cities are upping their game as well, some by offering free coding courses to residents.
Although some believe AI will bring more jobs than it takes away by automating various roles and processes, the challenge may be to train enough workers in middle-skill jobs to ensure they're up-to-speed on the tech. Even with the talent gaps that increased automation has yielded, businesses across the country have said they plan to increase headcounts. Goals for hiring skilled workforces may be easier to attain for employers that eschew once set-in-stone four-year degree requirements in favor of digital credentials and a willingness to learn.
