Today I was at the HashtagOpenOlatTalks 2025 at frentix. Many thanks for the invitation to Florian Gnaegi, Mandy Menzel, Timo Kind, Rico Eberle, @Martin Sauerbrey, Lukas Witschi et al.
I have updated and re-presented my presentation from February 2025 on “Is learning still worthwhile in the age of AI?”. Here are the key takeaways for Learning & Development (L&D)
1. learning remains central – but is changing radically
▻ In a world in which generative AI provides knowledge at any time and in a multimodal way, the focus is shifting: from knowledge building to the ability to deal with knowledge – creatively, critically and context-sensitively.
2. new skills are required
Learners need to develop the following skills, among others:
▻ Use language consciously (prompt literacy)
▻ Understand and design automation
▻ Technical understanding of machine logic
▻ Make value-based decisions
▻ Use handwriting and psychomotor skills as cognitive support
3. learning systems are changing
▻ Static learning catalogs and traditional LMSs are becoming less relevant.
Instead, AI-supported, adaptive learning platforms are emerging that generate personalized learning paths in real time.
4. the role of learning professionals is changing
Away from content production and course design – towards:
▻ Curating and contextualizing
▻ Learning guidance and coaching
▻ Cultural design and strategic learning development
▻ Learning becomes dialogic, social and agentic
▻ Learning bots accompany individual learning journeys
▻ Dialogic learning becomes the new normal
▻ Learners actively shape their development – supported by AI
5. AI threatens the mediocre – and liberates the creative
▻ Those who only work through routine tasks will be replaced by AI. Those who ask questions, think, evaluate and design will remain relevant – and will be strengthened by AI.
6. from AI user to AI value creator
▻ Future-proof organizations empower employees to develop their own models, processes and data strategies with AI instead of just using tools.
❓The answer to the question “Is learning still worthwhile in the age of AI?” is:
❗️Yes – more than ever. But different.
Because:
Learning is shifting: it is no longer just about absorbing knowledge, but about working with knowledge, evaluating it, applying it, linking it – in dialog with yourself, with AI systems and other people.
AI does not replace learning, but shifts the focus away from memorization and towards the development of judgment, creativity, collaboration and strategic thinking.
▻ Future competence is not created by tools, but by understanding how to use these tools sensibly, reflect on them and think them through.
▻ Learning will become more individual, networked and continuous – no longer linear and formal, but situational, self-directed and accompanied by AI co-pilots.
In short:
Learning is worthwhile – not despite AI, but precisely because of it.
