Employers are demanding AI skills. What's the best way to learn them?

MoneyWatch Employers are demanding AI skills. What's the best way to learn them? .chip { background-image: url('/fly/bundles/cbsnewscore/images/chip-bgd/chip-bgd-moneywatch.jpg'); } By Megan Cerullo Megan Cerullo Reporter, MoneyWatch Megan Cerullo is a New York-based reporter for CBS MoneyWatch covering small business, workplace, health care, consumer spending and personal finance topics. She regularly appears on CBS News 24/7 to discuss her reporting. Read Full Bio Megan Cerullo May 6, 2026 / 5:00 AM EDT / CBS News Add CBS News on Google Fluency in artificial intelligence is increasingly a prerequisite in today's labor market, with employers across industries seeking AI-literate job candidates.Research from Resume Genius found that 8 in 10 hiring managers consider AI skills a priority. And in a sign of the times, other data shows that most employers would hire a candidate with AI skills over one with additional years of work experience.Yet while many workers today are well aware of the need to hone their AI chops, few employers offer the necessary training, said Lisa Gevelber, who heads Google's "Grow with Google" initiative, a program that provides digital skills training to workers and businesses."We know AI can be extremely beneficial and that hiring managers say knowing how to use it is essential, but employers aren't meeting that need in terms of training employees," she told CBS News.Indeed, companies often aren't the best place to acquire the kind of AI skills that are suddenly in demand, said Sam Caucci, founder of 1huddle, a company that partners with firms to develop corporate training for workers. "Companies and academia are not equipped because the curriculum development process is so slow," while AI advances at breakneck speed, he said. How can workers level up?So how can people learn about AI in ways that might boost a job search or advance their careers? According to AI and career development experts, a good way to start is simply by using...