Sam Altman’s OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, has launched its first certification courses for workers and educators. These courses will be available through the OpenAI Academy and are expected to certify up to 10 million Americans in AI skills by 2030.
As part of the initiative, the company has launched two courses. The first program, called “AI Foundations,” helps users learn practical, job-ready AI skills directly in ChatGPT through a dedicated learning mode where users can practice real-world tasks, receive feedback from the chatbot, and earn certification.
The second course, titled “ChatGPT Foundations for Teachers,” is aimed at K-12 educators. This specific module is available on Coursera and focuses on integrating ChatGPT into teaching and administrative tasks. OpenAI also plans to release more educationally focused certification programs in the future.
This is the first time OpenAI has offered a formal certification course. Typically, the company creates and launches AI tools (like ChatGPT) for informal exploration or self-learning. As AI reshapes workplaces, people who know how to use AI tools and optimize them according to their needs (and those of their company) will have a competitive advantage.
The AI Foundations course could help you use AI to increase productivity, complete tasks more efficiently, or put OpenAI’s name on your resume. For educators, ChatGPT Foundations for Teachers helps responsibly integrate AI into lesson plans, assignments, and other academic workflows. The move could also help improve AI skills, familiarize more people with the latest generation of AI tools and increase their productivity.
For employers, OpenAI certification could be a sign of proven competence, while for educators it could revolutionize the way students use AI. For people who are simply curious about AI, the course makes AI more accessible. In the near future, OpenAI plans to make the certification programs available to a wider audience.
Currently, the AI Foundations course is available through pilot programs with leading employers such as Walmart, Boston Consulting Group, Upwork, and Accenture. However, ChatGPT Foundation for Teachers is available to everyone on Coursera (it is a seven-module beginner’s course that takes four hours to complete). Meanwhile, OpenAI is also reportedly developing an AI-powered job platform that is expected to launch in mid-2026.
