Editorial
In 2022, the global Learning and Development (L&D) and corporate training market was valued at $378 billion — surpassing even HR in scale when factoring in technology and personnel costs. This massive marketplace covers everything from sales training, technical skills, executive development, certification programs, IT training and more. While HR plays a vital role in corporate learning, it represents just a small part of this vast ecosystem.
It sounds formidable — even invulnerable. But if you're an L&D leader or vendor, prepare to be surprised.
Everything’s about to change. Or at least, the version of learning you’ve built your career around.
I know that sounds provocative, but after 30 years in this space, I’m convinced: we’re shifting from a “publishing model” of learning to a world of dynamic, real-time content. And that changes everything: for vendors, L&D leaders and learning professionals alike.
Imagine you’re Harvard Publishing, LinkedIn Learning, Coursera or Skillsoft; your business is built on publishing and licensing content. Now you’re on borrowed time. Someone with AI skills can dynamically generate your entire library, and your business model? It’s officially at risk.
In many ways, the corporate training market is facing an Intel moment — building products for a world that’s suddenly moved on.
Let me explain.
First the Internet, Now AI Upends L&D
In the early 2000s, the rise of the internet shocked the learning and training market. Thousands of companies launched online courseware, LMS platforms and massive educational hubs like LinkedIn Learning (formerly Lynda.com), Coursera, Khan Academy and Blackboard, disrupting — and in many cases bankrupting — traditional classroom-based education providers. Companies invested heavily in LMS, content libraries and learning experience platforms. The major shift was from in-person education to online, collaborative learning, leveraging tools like iPhones, YouTube and even Twitter for fresh ideas.
AI is disrupting the learning landscape once more, eliminating the need for large "instructional design" teams to create content, as systems will now generate it dynamically. Instead, staff will focus on content curation, AI training and performance-based consulting and design.
Most L&D departments and vendors, which currently rely on large teams of designers and media specialists, will see these teams shrink significantly as the learning "system" delivers personalized, dynamic content tailored to each learner's needs and preferences.
Just as your Instagram or YouTube feed is unique to you, the same thing will happen in corporate learning. We’ve seen this in action in our own company.
A New World of Instructional Design
Corporate training has always leaned on the methodologies of traditional education: subject matter experts craft structured learning experiences, supported by instructional designers working within standardized pedagogical frameworks. But AI is proving to be highly effective in replicating and enhancing this process.
Think about how problematic this has been. While school students follow a structured learning path to build their scaffold of knowledge, business professionals don’t always have the time for such an approach. Some adult learners do go back to school, but for 90% of us we need on-the-job training, fast access to help and learning in the flow of work.
In a classroom we learn from the teacher, but at work we learn from the experts. So even if you love formal instructional design, remember that the “designer” is not the “expert,” so there’s a massive translation process going on. If we can build the instructional design into software (AI does this well), the subject matter expert can create materials directly, bypassing this translation process.
What about face-to-face interactions? Exercises, group discussions, projects and simulations are all fantastic experiences. They, too, can be automated by AI.
I am working with a vendor that not only builds dynamic content, but also produces an automatic “tutor” to answer questions and monitor learners’ progress. This AI agent then alerts the training manager (or the individual) when someone falls behind, and automatically generates remedial content or invites the learner to a chat. It’s new stuff but you can see where it’s going.
The early days of e-learning failed because we tried to replicate a face-to-face class online. Now, with AI, while the principles of instructional design may remain, we have to think creatively about how the system will help us learn even faster.
The Workplace Learning Challenges We Still Need to Solve
Companies have innovated a lot over the last decade. Ideas like micro-learning, video-based training, mobile learning (through messaging) and even virtual reality have played a role. Platforms like YouTube, podcasts and TikTok have proven that informal, on-demand learning can often be more effective than traditional instructional design.
But until now we’ve continued to face big challenges:
- Content Overload: Learners are bombarded with an overwhelming array of options, often without clear guidance on which content was most relevant to their needs or goals. Most corporate training libraries are overloaded with content.
- Outdated Materials: Even the most engaging and cutting-edge content quickly became obsolete, especially in fast-moving industries like technology, where new skills and knowledge emerge constantly. It often takes months or quarters to update content, so it’s hard to tell what’s current.
- Inefficient Learning Management Systems (LMS): Traditional LMS platforms, which were primarily designed to track compliance training, have struggled to keep up with the demand for personalized, adaptive learning experiences that address the evolving needs of modern learners.
One of the most promising innovations in L&D over the past decade has been adaptive learning. The concept was brilliant: rather than forcing employees through a rigid, one-size-fits-all course, AI-powered platforms would assess each learner's knowledge level and tailor the training journey to suit their individual needs. This approach promised to deliver a more personalized, efficient learning experience, ensuring employees received the right content at the right time.
Unfortunately, before AI this didn’t work well. Only 13% of companies tell us they have any form of adaptive learning today, largely because the content itself is not “adaptable” and the platforms aren’t intelligent enough to deliver.
How AI Is Stepping Up to Meet the L&D Challenge
While many L&D teams are still figuring out their next steps, the world outside the classroom has shifted permanently. Whether they embrace it or not, AI has ushered in a transformative era for corporate training.
Unlike previous attempts to build a new, 21st-century workplace learning paradigm, AI tackles or dissolves many of the long-standing post-Internet challenges in L&D, by:
- Automated, Expert and Fast Content Consolidation and Organization: AI can scan vast collections of learning materials, categorize them and present only the most relevant content based on an employee's specific needs.
- Genuinely Personalizing the Learning Experience: AI-driven platforms can generate tailored learning paths that are dynamically updated based on an employee's role, experience and learning preferences, offering a truly individualized experience.
- Making Knowledge More Accessible: Employees can engage with AI-powered assistants that provide immediate answers to their questions, eliminating the need to sift through outdated training materials. This transforms training into a dynamic, interactive dialogue rather than a one-way, screen-to-brain process. AI also integrates training with knowledge management, seamlessly blending learning with everyday workflows, making it an ongoing, integrated part of work life.
Innovative organizations are already leading the way with AI-driven learning strategies. Rolls-Royce, for example, is restructuring its corporate training programs by integrating AI into its knowledge management systems. Rather than relying solely on formal courses, employees can now access crucial information on-demand, allowing them to learn as needed and stay up-to-date with the latest insights.
AI's Impact on Learning Content Providers
AI is not only disrupting how training is delivered but it is also reshaping the business model of content providers. Historically, successful content companies like Skillsoft and Coursera operated similarly to publishing houses: developing courses over months and selling them as static, one-time learning products. This approach is being upended as AI introduces dynamic, personalized and on-demand learning experiences.
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With AI enabling real-time content generation and curation, the traditional course-development model is rapidly becoming obsolete. Employees are often taught material that was relevant six months ago, but today's L&D needs require content that reflects the ever-evolving landscape. Organizations will soon, and in overwhelming numbers, shift to AI-powered L&D platforms that continuously update training materials and generate real-time, tailored content based on the latest industry trends.
Is this the situation you see right now? Not entirely, but the pace of change is undeniable.
AI's Impact on How Learning Is Structured
Every week brings a new, mind-blowing development in AI’s capabilities. Just two years ago, most people hadn’t heard of a large language model (LLM), and now the ability to build one is being viewed as a strategic national asset. The meteoric rise of Microsoft Copilot throughout 2024 underscores how ready Fortune 100 companies are to embed AI into their workflows — not tomorrow, but today. White-collar professionals are already leaning on AI chatbots and virtual mentors to guide their learning journeys in real-time.
Simultaneously, the concept of learning will no longer be confined to structured training sessions. Instead, it will be seamlessly integrated into daily work processes. As a result, corporate buyers of L&D will quickly shift away from rigid course structures in favor of more fluid, adaptive learning experiences that evolve alongside the needs of the business and the learner.
And as AI excels at processing large volumes of content, making training and compliance more effective, it’s hard to see why Chief Learning Officers (CLOs) will resist this. To bring it to life, imagine this: If tools like Copilot are designed to be your ever-present work assistant, what’s stopping them from also becoming your constant, smart workplace tutor, guiding you in real-time, with personalized learning and development built right into your workflow?
AI's potential to transform the learning experience is not theoretical — it’s happening right now.
The Opportunity for L&D Professionals
L&D professionals must understand that the AI-driven transformation of corporate training isn’t just an incremental step forward like micro-learning. It’s a complete overhaul of how organizations acquire, create, deliver and assess knowledge across the workforce.
Moreover, for senior HR and L&D leaders, the AI revolution brings both significant challenges and exciting opportunities. Consider the following:
- In the early 2000s, CLOs were at the forefront of driving digital learning change. Over time, as the L&D landscape grew more complex, their influence waned. Could AI offer a fresh opportunity to lead transformative change?
- How can the significant investment in third-party content providers continue to be justified when money could be directed into AI-powered platforms that create and continually refresh personalized training content?
- What steps can organizational leaders take to shape the future of AI-driven, highly personalized and seamlessly integrated L&D 2.0? Additionally, how can they design offerings for new employees who may already have experience with AI-enhanced education from their college years?
As AI radically reshapes the corporate training landscape, L&D leaders must evolve. Those who embrace this transformation will set their organizations up for success in an increasingly fast-moving, knowledge-driven world. Conversely, those who resist risk facing a steady decline into irrelevance, with shrinking budgets to match.
If you're in L&D, 2025 is the year to wake up and realize that the AI revolution is here.
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