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Microsoft’s AI Skills Fest will be focused on helping newbies, business pros, and tech gurus strengthen their artificial intelligence skills across a number of areas. The AI training event is scheduled from April 8 – May 28, 2025.
Per a recent study conducted by Coursera, the demand for generative AI tools has experienced a year-over-year increase of 866% among students, employees, and current job seekers. Events like the AI Skills Fest are a great way for users to develop the skills needed to thrive in AI-driven workplaces.
Attempting a Guinness World Records title
Not only does the official kickoff celebration mark the beginning of the event, but it’s also the start of Microsoft’s attempt at setting a new Guinness World Records title attempt.
The goal is to have the most users to take an online multi-level AI lesson within a 24-hour period. Everyone is welcome to participate in the attempt, which kicks off on April 7 at 9:00 a.m. AEST and concludes on April 8 at 4:00 p.m. PDT at which point the AI Skills Fest will officially be underway.
Tackling AI Skills Fest challenges
First and foremost are a series of challenges meant to test current AI skills and help develop new ones. These challenges span a variety of tasks, activities, and themes, including:
- AI for public sector upskilling
- Protect data in the age of AI
- Prevent and respond to cyberattacks at the speed of AI
There are many more challenges to choose from, some of which are sponsored by the top AI companies today. Individual challenges can be joined by registering for the event with your Microsoft Learn profile.
Completing on-demand and live sessions
Many of the training sessions that comprise Microsoft’s AI Skills Fest are available on-demand. Interested parties have plenty of time to complete the various tutorials, modules, and tasks. Some on-demand sessions include:
- Use AI for everyday tasks
- Unlocking top AI marketing hacks in 30 minutes
- AI for organizational leaders by Microsoft and LinkedIn
The AI Skills Fest offers live AI training sessions, too. Some of the currently advertised sessions include:
- AI literacy with Minecraft
- Mastering the skills to create AI agents
- Microsoft 365 Copilot training
Much like the on-demand sessions, there are a plethora of live sessions to attend. Both on-demand and live sessions can be joined by registering for the event with your Microsoft Learn profile.