Google starts teaching employees how to use AI to better align with new business priorities

Google is updating its employee training programmes to focus almost entirely on artificial intelligence (AI). The company has revamped its wide-ranging internal education platform, Grow, with AI-related content to help employees integrate modern tools into their everyday work. The transformation is reportedly part of Google's effort to align internal learning with core business goals.According to CNBC, Google has overhauled its decade-old Grow platform to reflect the company's new AI-first strategy. The platform was previously known for its eclectic mix of courses, ranging from personal finance to 3D printing and even Rubik's Cube solving for Googlers. The report suggests that employees who had signed up for non-AI courses were informed earlier this year that those sessions would be cancelled and archived.advertisement'We have an active learning culture with numerous in-house courses tied to company priorities, along with generous educational reimbursement,' a Google spokesperson told CNBC in a statement. 'We're refreshing Grow to help employees find the most relevant learning opportunities.'
The change in learning content also signals a broader shift in Google's internal priorities. Grow, Google's online career training platform, once featured 500,000 course listings and was viewed as a valuable benefit. However, now Google believes many of these courses are now 'not relevant to the work we do today,' according to an internal memo sent to course creators. Only sessions aligned with 'business priorities' will remain available, says Google. Programmes that don't contribute directly to the bottom line are being phased out.Google's AI-focused transformation is also seen as part of broader cost-cutting efforts. Over the past year, Google has laid off thousands of employees across several departments and slashed benefits, including diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programmes—moves driven partly by internal efficiency goals and external political pressures. Anat Ashkenazi, the Chief Financial Officer of Alphabet (Google's parent company), had previously stated that the company could 'push a little further' on cost reductions. Ashkenazi during her debut in the earnings call last year said 'there is an aggressive roadmap ahead for 2025.' With AI now at the centre of its product development—from Search to Workspace and Cloud—Google's internal operations are reportedly being realigned accordingly.

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