How Generative AI Is Transforming Corporate Learning and Development

Corporate Learning and Development:
A Resource Balancing Act

We all know that to stay competitive, your people have to be at the top of their game. And that’s where learning and development programs play a critical role. Workplace skills require constant updating, which in turn means corporate L&D must easily and quickly adapt to individual employee training needs. Where many companies get lost is in managing this gargantuan effort: and that’s where generative AI in learning and development tools, such as D-ID’s video generation and interactive avatar creation, step in to save the day.

Challenges in Corporate Training

If the “global skills gap” isn’t affecting your company yet, it likely will in the near future. This term refers to the widespread need for businesses to continually adapt to changes in workplace skills, driven in part by advancements in AI and increased digitization. In light of this trend, nearly half of all employees will need to be retrained in the next 10 years, according to the Society for Human Resources Management, highlighting the growing importance of Generative AI in Learning and Development as a scalable solution.

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The response to this near-crisis has been a huge investment in corporate learning and development budgets. Today, the global corporate L&D market is worth $340 billion, which translates to more than $1,500 spent on an average employee this year alone.  

Value for Money

For HR departments, the question is about spending this funding wisely. The learning and development needs of numerous employees can result in hundreds of courses that need frequent updates to keep up with the constantly evolving skill demands. At the same time, L&D programs must be interesting and present the material in ways that lead to easy skill adoption and proper use.

Personalization and Capacity

A Harvard survey found that only 12% of employees use the skills they acquire in L&D programs in their jobs. A major reason for this failure is scale. Each employee has different learning needs that are affected by their role, personal abilities, and the future strategy of the company. Plus, each worker has his or her preferences for learning style and scheduling. Added to this challenge is the fact that L&D content must be engaging, memorable, and relevant in order to be effective. Many small organizations simply don’t have the resource capacity to create L&D programs that answer such needs. 

Quality and Effectiveness

When a company provides employees with training materials, they need to be uniform and consistent so that everyone approaches their job in the correct manner. This is particularly crucial in interpersonal interactions, ensuring that employees adhere to company standards in a way that is universally understood.

For instance, in customer service roles, employees should be adept at handling typical customer inquiries, and their responses should align with the company’s branding. Dealing with sophisticated business clients requires different skills than helping mid-range consumers. The key to getting this complex situation right is an easily customizable training program and a proper onboarding process.

Solutions Offered by Generative AI

One of the primary reasons employees are undergoing retraining is artificial intelligence – but Generative AI in Learning and Development is also the answer to many of these challenges.

Generative AI produces an enormous array of content, including text, pictures, audio, and synthetic data. Popular Gen AI platforms include ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini. When it comes to learning and development, organizations can leverage Gen AI capabilities, such as:

General Content Creation Tools

With minimal user guidance, AI platforms can generate text, presentations, and images and then combine these elements to create complete courses. Organizations can integrate Gen AI output with a Learning Management System (LMS) as the physical platform through which to deliver content. 

It all starts with the analysis of massive datasets. AI combs through thousands of hours of instruction, and millions of records of learner interactions, to automatically create up-to-date L&D material that can be adjusted to individual employees. The appearance and user experience of online courses can be modified by providing specific instructions to the Gen AI platform, often based on feedback from employees.

When it comes to student evaluations, Gen AI can analyze existing course tests and adapt them for an organization’s use. With the right prompts and a combination of AI and LMS technologies, quizzes, micro-content, interactive learning programs, visual instruction, and gamification are all possible.

Image and Video-Based Avatars

The next step up from a multimedia learning environment is the utilization of static and dynamic video avatars. The advantages of video avatars are clear: 

• It is much more engaging to look at a human face than it is to read diagrams or text.
• Learning from an actual person is how most of us were taught in school.
• Videos are more eye-catching and relatable. 

Yet the same is true even for static images. Observing an image of an individual associated with the subject matter being studied provides a vital “power of presence” that is important for us as social beings. This is one of the reasons why ads that show a person’s face attract much more attention than other types of images. Looking at someone’s face also delivers an important message in terms of expression and helps the learner to humanize the story, which makes the instruction more memorable.    

Interactive Visual Agents

Perhaps the most innovative form of Gen AI-powered L&D is the interactive D-ID Visual Agents technology. It delivers all the speed and effectiveness of AI content creation but with a human-like avatar that can answer questions and provide skills training. Customizing Visual Agents is as simple as choosing its physical appearance and voice. The knowledge used by the Visual Agent in its interactions is based on your own source material, which is then leveraged by retrieval augmented generation (RAG) technology to deliver accurate answers to queries. When a user has a question for their Visual Agent, they simply type it or speak with their microphone. Speaking with interactive Visual Agents is made even more realistic by their rapid response rate, allowing the interaction to feel like a real conversation. The processing ability of Visual Agents technology allows an accuracy rate above 90%.

Use Cases in Learning and Development

Many organizations are already using Generative AI technology to produce learning and development courses. We’ve shared below a few standout examples of its real-world applications:

Personalized Training Modules

The School of Optometry and Vision Sciences at Bar-Ilan University partnered with D-ID to produce dozens of interactive video avatars simulating medical situations. These situations can involve a wide variety of populations, clinical issues, and even personalities. With D-ID, the School of Optometry supplies the students with content that is customized according to a large number of variables so that they can gain experience in dealing with them. One of the most valuable parts of the program is that it uses “face-to-face” conversations with an AI-based character to create a lifelike clinical setting.

Compliance Training

One of the greatest concerns of a medical institution like the School of Optometry is compliance. In the medical profession, regulations such as HIPAA in the US, or GDPR in the EU, must be followed by all relevant employees. In the wider world, there are other kinds of compliance related to financial records, personal privacy, and similar issues. And training employees to understand the complexities of these rules can be a real challenge. Companies that use AI-generated videos for compliance training ensure that it is consistent, engaging, and easily understandable across all departments.

Onboarding Processes

Onboarding is an equally crucial type of training for organizational success. At the Diplomat Group, for example, both initial and advanced training for employees is vital. By partnering with D-ID, Diplomat can now produce a wide range of video content assets, including: 

• Training videos for new systems and processes
• Instructional guides divided into a convenient module format
• A huge selection of content featuring different languages, interesting stories, and practical simulations

Interactive Avatars

One aspect of D-ID technology that especially interested Diplomat was the use of interactive avatars for corporate training. As seen with the School of Optometry, these avatars are much more than informative training tools. They enable simulations and real-time interactions with learners, which makes the L&D process more effective. Diplomat built Excel templates with sets of questions and answers which were then used to test employees on how to act in certain situations. Based on a sort of “decision tree” concept, the next question asked by the avatar is based on the user’s answer. This creates a dynamic customization process that adjusts to the user’s expertise on the fly. 

Skill Development

As an expert in the e-Learning industry, Skilldora was looking for a platform to complement its mission of leveraging artificial intelligence to expand its line of “AI Instructed Courses.” Through D-ID technology, Skilldora was able to support continuous learning and development programs that rapidly adapt according to changes in workplace skills, among other areas of activity.
Skilldora used only AI instructors to deliver content, a low-cost strategy meant to solve numerous challenges in the online L&D industry, such as:

• High course drop-out rates and associated refund costs 
• Outdated virtual L&D platforms 
• The lack of consistency regarding material and user experience due to a variety of 
course creators 

Remote Learning

Skilldora also liked D-ID’s tools for creating interactive and engaging remote learning experiences (including in virtual environments). With the growth of the hybrid work culture, it’s essential for organizations to expand their L&D capabilities beyond in-person corporate training. This is particularly important for Skilldora as its goal was to be the US leader in AI-based instruction for the online learning industry. With D-ID, Skilldora could quickly, cheaply, and easily build courses for the modern student, characterized by advanced functionality that can only be delivered with a digital solution. In addition, Skilldora sells modular courses, and so it needed a content creation technology that allows clients to purchase personalized L&D videos according to various subjects. D-ID allows organizations to build courses of any length and on any topic simply by choosing an avatar and uploading content. 

Learn More About Gen AI Learning

Staying competitive means upgrading workplace skills through modern L&D technologies. Organizations adopting Generative AI in Learning and Development are already seeing faster upskilling, higher engagement, and measurable ROI. We invite you to contact D-ID today for a consultation or visit our website for more information.