Artificial intelligence (AI) is quickly becoming vital to countless aspects of life, and understanding its foundations, implications, and applications is more important than ever.
We had a look at the free AI courses being offered right now and came up with a list of free classes you can take to get you started on artificial intelligence or to complement your knowledge.
Featuring offerings from prestigious institutions and platforms like Google Cloud, Vanderbilt University, and the University of Helsinki, these courses cover a broad range of topics including generative AI, TensorFlow, ethical considerations, and practical applications in business and societal good.
In this article, we highlight the top 10 free AI courses you need to know about, such as:
- Introduction to Generative AI Learning Path
- Prompt Engineering for ChatGPT
- AI For Business Specialization
- AI Foundations for Everyone
- Career Essentials in Generative AI by Microsoft and LinkedIn
- AI for Everyone
- An introduction to artificial intelligence
- Intro to TensorFlow for Machine Learning
- Ethics of AI
- AI for Good Specialization
1. Introduction to Generative AI Learning Path
💰 Free
📖 5 activities
⏰ 7h30m
✅ Last updated a month ago (as of April 2024)
🧑💼 Managed by Google Cloud
🏫 Beginner level
This artificial intelligence course is offered by Google Cloud Skills Boost. This beginner microlearning course doesn’t need you to have any technical knowledge or background. It’s a great way of helping you learn generative artificial intelligence, including large language models (LLMs) and responsible AI principles.
It introduces Google’s seven AI principles and ends by explaining the practice of responsible AI in Google Cloud’s products, taking a comprehensive approach to educating learners about the current landscape of artificial intelligence.
The modules are:
- Introduction to Generative AI
- Introduction to Large Language Models
- Introduction to Responsible AI
- Prompt Design in Vertex AI
- Responsible AI: Applying AI Principles with Google Cloud
2. Prompt Engineering for ChatGPT
📖 7 assignments
🎓 LinkedIn shareable certificate
⏰ 18h
🧑💼 Built by Vanderbilt University
🏫 Beginner level
Part of Vanderbilt University’s Prompt Engineering Specialization, this course is a self-paced artificial intelligence class designed to improve your prompt engineering skills. Composed of six modules, the course will build up your subject-matter expertise in ChatGPT and other language models.
You’ll be introduced to the patterns and approaches that will enable you to write effective prompts for these large language models. You’ll start with basic prompts and work your way to sophisticated prompts.
The course will allow you to apply your prompt skills and knowledge of LLMs for a wide range of tasks in your education, personal life, job, and more.
The modules are:
- Course Introduction
- Introduction to Prompts
- Prompt Patterns I
- Few-Shot Examples
- Prompt Patterns II
- Prompt Patterns III
Note: The graded assignments, shareable certificate, and feedback are paid.
3. AI For Business Specialization
📖 4-course series
🎓 LinkedIn shareable certificate
⏰ 1 month (at 10 hours a week)
🧑💼 Built by the University of Pennsylvania
🏫 Beginner level
This four-course series will provide you with the fundamentals of using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and with, teaching you how to apply them to support your business. Covering topics such as the risks of AI and ethics, people management in the fair design of human resources within machine learning, and designing governance frameworks to apply artificial intelligence fairly.
After taking this specialization, you’ll be able to implement ethical AI strategies and better understand the relationship between AI, machine learning, and data analytics. Each course ends with an assignment and two courses include peer-review exercises.
The courses are:
- AI Fundamentals for Non-Data Scientists (7 hours)
- AI Applications in Marketing and Finance (6 hours)
- AI Applications in People Management (9 hours)
- AI Strategy and Governance (9 hours)
4. AI Foundations for Everyone
📖 4-course series
🎓 LinkedIn shareable certificate
⏰ 1 month (at 10 hours a week)
✅ Last updated November 2023
🧑💼 Built by IBM
🏫 Beginner level
Built for beginners with little to no background in artificial intelligence, this specialization is a 4-course series designed to provide an understanding of what AI is, its applications, and use cases.
You’ll also learn about IBM Watson AI services and how to create intelligent virtual assistants and how these can be utilized in different applications. At the end of the specialization, you’ll have had hands-on interactions with a variety of AI environment applications, and will also have built and deployed an AI-enabled chatbot on a website without coding.
The courses are:
- Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (AI) (8 hours)
- Generative AI: Introduction and Applications (6 hours)
- Generative AI: Prompt Engineering Basics (7 hours)
- Building AI-Powered Chatbots Without Programming (12 hours)
5. Career Essentials in Generative AI by Microsoft and LinkedIn
📖 6-course series
🎓 LinkedIn shareable certificate from Microsoft
⏰ 4h30m
✅ Last updated a month ago (as of April 2024)
🧑💼 Built by Microsoft and LinkedIn
🏫 Introductory level
This course is made up of six different videos, each hosted by a different AI expert, covering a wide variety of topics and ethical considerations about AI models.
You’ll learn how to use Microsoft Copilot, including how to apply it to Word, how to analyze data in Excel, and more. The last video, “Introduction to Artificial Intelligence”, covers the best AI tools for businesses, which can be beneficial if you haven’t taken the plunge just yet.
The videos are:
- What is Generative AI? (42 minutes)
- Generative AI: The Evolution of Thoughtful Online Search (26 minutes)
- Streamlining Your Work with Microsoft Copilot (34 minutes)
- Learning Microsoft 365 Copilot (34 minutes)
- Ethics in the Age of Generative AI (38 minutes)
- Introduction to Artificial Intelligence (1h34m)
6. AI for Everyone
📖 1 course
⏰ 6h (4-week course)
🧑💼 Taught by Andrew Ng
🏫 Introductory level
Built to demystify artificial intelligence for non-technical business professionals, the course is taught by Andrew Ng, one of the most well-known names in artificial intelligence.
You’ll gain insights into AI’s workflow, strategy, terminology, and impact on society. The syllabus covers what AI and machine learning are, the workflow of ML and data science projects, how to incorporate AI into your company, and the societal implications of AI.
You’ll also learn how to build a sustainable AI strategy, making it ideal if you want to understand AI's capabilities, limitations, and influence on various sectors.
The 4-week syllabus consists of:
- Week 1: What is AI
- Week 2: Building AI Projects
- Week 3: AI in Your Company
- Week 4: AI and Society
7. An introduction to artificial intelligence
📖 2-week course
🎓 Free statement of participation on completion
⏰ 6h
🧑💼 Offered through The Open University’s “AI Matters” platform
🏫 Introductory level
The course explores the historical, ethical, and social aspects of AI. It's designed to clarify AI's opportunities and risks, focusing on how AI has evolved, its impact on society, and the ethical challenges of developing AI technologies.
This free online course aims to equip learners with an understanding of AI's socio-political and economic issues, the benefits and risks of AI technology, and ideas for navigating its future implications.
The course content is:
- Week 1: Surrounded by AI
- Week 2: Assuming AI is possible, what happens next?
8. Intro to TensorFlow for Machine Learning
📖 10-lesson series
⏰ 8 weeks
✅ Last updated September 25, 2023
🧑💼 Built in collaboration with Google
🏫 Intermediate level
Designed by the TensorFlow team and Udacity, this course is a hands-on guide to developing deep learning applications.
It starts with an AI and machine learning overview, then progresses through building neural networks for image recognition, using convolutional neural networks for efficiency, and exploring advanced topics like transfer learning and natural language processing.
The course includes practical projects, such as creating image classifiers and forecasting with time series data, and introduces TensorFlow Lite for deploying models on mobile and IoT (Internet of Things) devices.
The lessons are:
- Introduction to Machine Learning
- Your First Model - Fashion MNIST
- Introduction to CNNs
- Going further with CNNs
- Transfer Learning
- Saving and Loading Models
- Time Series Forecasting
- NLP: Tokenization and Embeddings
- NLP: Recurrent Neural Networks
- Introduction to TensorFlow Lite
9. Ethics of AI
📖 7-chapter course
⏰ Self-paced
🧑💼 Offered by the University of Helsinki
🏫 All levels
Created by the University of Helsinki, the course explores the ethical aspects of artificial intelligence. It encourages learners to understand the ethical implications and challenges posed by AI technologies.
It also covers key concepts like non-maleficence, accountability, transparency, human rights, and fairness. You’ll be able to engage with practical exercises to apply ethical theories in AI contexts, making it relevant if you’re interested in the responsible development and use of AI.
The chapters are:
- Chapter 1: Introduction
- Chapter 2: Non-maleficence
- Chapter 3: Accountability
- Chapter 4: Transparency
- Chapter 5: Human rights
- Chapter 6: Fairness
- Chapter 7: AI ethics in practice
10. AI for Good Specialization
📖 3 courses
⏰ 3 weeks
🧑💼 Offered by DeepLearning.AI
🏫 Beginner level with data experience
This specialization aims to equip learners to use AI in addressing significant global challenges. It covers AI applications in public health, climate change, and disaster management through practical projects and case studies.
You’ll explore a variety of AI techniques, including machine learning, natural language processing, and computer vision, to develop solutions that have a positive impact on society and the environment.
The courses are:
- Course 1: AI and Public Health
- Course 2: AI and Climate Change
- Course 3: AI and Disaster Management
If you don’t mind paying for a course, how about an AIAI-approved certification?
Certified Artificial Intelligence Practitioner [CAIP]
Certified Artificial Intelligence Practitioner [CAIP]
We also have a workshop series with live, hands-on training – free for members!
The Alliance
