Microsoft Announces New AI Skills Initiative and Grant

Microsoft has announced a new AI Skills Initiative to help people and communities around the world learn to harness the power of AI. 

The new initiative, part of Microsoft’s Skills for Jobs programme, includes new, free coursework developed with LinkedIn; a new grant challenge with data.org for organisations to create new ways of training, upskilling and reskilling workers in generative AI.

“AI skills represent the third-highest priority for companies’ training strategies, alongside analytical and creative thinking. AI has tremendous potential to empower workers, however, we need to ensure that everyone has the skills to use it. The new AI Skills Initiative marks a new beginning that will build on a new wave of technology innovation to come,” Gunjan Patel, director and head – Philanthropies, Microsoft India, said.

Microsoft, data.org, Microsoft’s AI for Good Lab, and GitHub are launching an open grant program to explore, develop, and implement how nonprofit, social enterprise, and research or academic institutions can train and empower the workforce to use generative AI. 

This global grant will support organisations driving skilling and economic growth especially those focusing on fair and community-led implementations of generative AI with historically marginalised populations around the world. 

In addition to financial support, the awardees will receive access to a cohort experience, Microsoft events, Azure-based cloud computing resources as well as data training and technical guidance from Microsoft and GitHub experts.