OpenAI says broad access to AI’s benefits requires people to have practical skills and confidence to use the technology in everyday life. OpenAI Academy, launched in September 2024, was created to provide hands-on training that helps educators, small business owners, developers, nonprofit leaders and community members apply AI to their work.
Over the past two years the Academy has run more than 250 events and its content has reached over 4 million people. Offerings include self-paced courses, practical guides, in-person workshops and larger multi-site gatherings known as AI Skills Jams.
New learning paths and a practical focus
This month the Academy introduced new learning paths tailored for knowledge workers, developers, leaders, educators and college students. Learners can take role-relevant courses and earn Academy course badges by passing assessments.
The programs emphasize using AI to address everyday problems: a teacher might use ChatGPT to adapt a lesson, a small-business owner could build a repeatable customer-research process, and a developer might use Codex to plan and implement a change while keeping review controls in place.
Across hundreds of events, OpenAI has found the most valuable element is giving participants dedicated time and space to try AI tools on meaningful work, learn from peers, and receive coaching from OpenAI mentors.
Partners and the Community Trainer Program pilot
Partner organizations have been central to Academy programming, bringing trusted relationships, helping recruit participants, and shaping sessions around local needs. For example, the AI Skills Jam for K–12 Educators convened more than 1,600 teachers, administrators and district leaders across eight U.S. cities.
To enable more partners to lead Academy sessions, OpenAI is piloting the OpenAI Academy Community Trainer Program. Participating organizations nominate staff members to learn the Academy curriculum and how to facilitate practical workshops: demonstrating useful workflows, helping people apply AI to their own tasks, encouraging peer learning, and supporting participants as they evaluate results. Trainees complete instruction and a facilitation assessment before leading Academy sessions.
The pilot aims to increase the number of workshops and help schools, workforce organizations, small-business networks and community groups build their own capacity to teach AI skills. Over time, OpenAI intends for more communities to have local trainers people can turn to as needs and tools evolve.
Continued development of courses and events
OpenAI will continue to develop online courses, workshops and Academy Jams informed by feedback from participants and partners. Through the Community Trainer Program the organization plans to enable more people to lead practical AI learning locally, so more individuals have opportunities to practice, learn from one another, and build knowledge and confidence while applying AI in everyday work.
