~ The landmark initiative is an online, mobile-first platform with 24×7 anywhere, anytime access for developing employee’s essential workplace skills.
New Delhi, 07 Feb 2024: The rapid advancements in AI and technology have transformed the job-market dynamics across sectors – highlighting the urgent need for not easily automatable and high-demand employability skills that increase a candidate’s attractiveness in the competitive job landscape. Addressing this requirement, the Wadhwani Foundation today announced the launch of three new AI Co-Pilots to enhance the employability of youth and young adults across the nation. The newly launched functionality is a critical addition to the Foundation’s AI-powered, Genie.AI platform – aimed at upskilling job seekers, especially those from underserved communities.
Genie.AI provides over 1000 hours of skilling and entrepreneurship content, backed by a network of experts and mentors. Offering free, tailored learning in English, Hindi, with expansion plans in other Indian languages, the platform partners with government and global entities to enable learning for a wide audience – aiming to reach 10 million learners by 2027. The AI Co-Pilot function accelerates the impact the Genie.AI platform by providing each learner with a set of robust tools to accelerate their mastery of employability skills, all personalized to the learner’s target job.
Speaking about the launch of the new functionality, Dr. Ajay Kela, President and CEO, Wadhwani Foundation said, “In an era where technological prowess is a given, the real differentiator lies in one’s ability to problem solve, critically think, effectively communicate, and innovate. These skills often remain out of reach of numerous job seekers from underserved communities. By harnessing AI, we can ensure that critical employability skills are not only ingrained in educational institutions but also transcend socio-economic barriers to learning. The idea is to sculpt a workforce which is not just job-ready but future-proof.”
Sunil Dahiya, Executive Vice President, Wadhwani Foundation said, “Amidst evolving workplace dynamics, the Wadhwani Foundation focuses on empowering individuals with critical in-demand employability skills like adaptability and digital proficiency. Our AI-enabled platform and industry-led training equips job seekers with essential proficiencies for success ensuring they thrive in this rapidly changing job market.”
Employers require learners with a range of skills beyond technical knowledge, including effective communication, adaptability to change, customer-centricity, professionalism, and innovation, amongst others. To address these needs, the Wadhwani Foundation has released three exciting AI Co-pilots: My Tutor for students, My Mentor for faculty, and My Interview Coach for job applicants.
My Tutor personalizes the learning experience with immediate assistance and tailored content. Users can ask questions during lessons for instant clarifications, engage in targeted skill practice to check their learning, and receive clear guidance on key points to remember. With My Tutor’s cutting-edge personalization, each lesson is adapted the user’s individual career goals, such as providing specific insights and scenarios for a learner aspiring to become an automotive sales associate. Additionally, it incorporates real-life, scenario-based learning challenges relevant to the user’s career path. My Tutor also encourages collaborative learning, allowing users with similar career goals to engage in group activities, enriching the learning process through shared experiences.
My Mentor significantly enhances the teaching experience by offering faculty additional tools to deliver more effective and engaging lessons. It provides AI-generated discussion prompts for each lesson, aiding faculty in creating more engaging and interactive classroom discussions. Additionally, My Mentor offers insights into common misunderstandings learners might encounter, helping educators anticipate and address learning challenges effectively.
Finally, My Interview Coach helps learners demonstrate their knowledge during job interviews. Recognizing that most learners lack access to one-on-one coaching, My Interview Coach gives each learner specific job questions customized to the learner’s target job, enables the learner to video themselves answering the question, and then provides scores and detailed guidance on how to improve. Through this tool, learners build their confidence and ability to convey their knowledge and experience effectively in high-stakes interviews.
Mark Malaspina, Chief Product Officer, Skilling, Wadhwani Foundation, spoke about the potential of these three AI Co-Pilots, “In a country where students and job seekers struggle to find personalised coaching, these AI Co-Pilot can be a game-changer. They not only accelerate learners’ acquisition of skills adapted to their career goals and the opportunity to practice critical communication skills in interview settings, but they also enable trainers with information and strategies to make training more effective and relevant to their students. The AI functionality coupled with the robust 360-degree support of Genie.AI platform has the potential to create a workforce adept not just in technical skills but also armed with critical thinking and communication proficiencies that enable innovation and its implementation in an ever-evolving job market.”
In the coming months, the Foundation will continue to roll out impactful new AI features on the Genie.AI platform. In development now is a new AI Co-pilot, My Career Advisor, that will enable learners to explore careers based on their skills and interests, understand the “day-in-the-life” of different job roles, and create a personal plan for building the skills and experience they need to pursue the career of their choice.
Genie.AI and these embedded AI Co-Pilots are transformative steps in education and employment that revolutionise skill development and career readiness with personalised learning, innovative teaching aids, and robust interview preparation. Democratising education, the platform is set to help millions of Indians realise their career aspirations in today’s dynamic job market.
