December 12, 2024 | 12:00am
MANILA, Philippines — Filipinos are flocking to online channels to boost their skills on artificial intelligence, as they prepare for a future where employers would demand from employees a certain level of AI capability.
New York-listed education provider Coursera Inc. said it is witnessing a surge in Filipinos enrollees for learning courses on AI, as the platform is receiving an enrollment from the Philippines at least once every 15 minutes.
Coursera said its platform has drawn interest from more than 2.5 million Filipinos, registering a 21 percent increase in its learner base from the Philippines.
For this year, Coursera saw a nine-fold increase in registration among Filipinos for generative AI courses. Specifically, Filipinos were applying for classes on Google AI Essentials, Generative AI for Everyone and Generative AI: Introduction and Applications.
Coursera said the enrollment in these courses shows that employers are now expecting workers to learn the foundations of AI. Moreover, employees are being told to know a thing or two about the practical uses of the technology.
Coursera managing director for Asia-Pacific Raghav Gupta said the surge in enrollment signifies the willingness of Filipinos to embrace the future of work.
After all, workplaces are beginning to use generative AI in their operations, requiring employees to be adaptable and resilient.
“In 2025, we expect the global race toward AI literacy to further accelerate, and we also remain committed to empowering our Filipino learners with accessible and transformative education for success in the AI-powered world,” Gupta said.
Based on data from Coursera, the most popular courses in the Philippines in 2024 revolve around data foundations and digital marketing developed by Google. Further, Filipinos are learning the ropes of cybersecurity, technical support and user experience design.
In its Work Trend Index 2024, Microsoft reported that AI skill has become the top hiring priority for employers in the Philippines since the pandemic. The report said 70 percent of employers are rejecting candidates without any AI skills.
Moreover, Microsoft found out that 68 percent of them would go as far as hiring younger people with AI knowledge than experienced candidates without one.
Recently, the world has seen a spike in the use of generative AI, which refers to applications that can produce an image, video or text in an instant based on available data.
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